How Art is Made is a unique book that takes famous works of art, and dives into the methods and materials the artist used. Though materials are usually a footnote when viewing a painting or sculpture or other work, it is rarely explored in detail. This is a very interesting, must have for artists and those who love art.

This book offers a accessible introduction to art, emphasizing the materials and techniques utilized by renowned artists.

Interesting book.

A survey of techniques, mediums and materials. A great reference book, with explanations of the methods and with examples, both old and new. I seen dozens of books like this and this book is very comprehensive in coverage of the medium and materials, including areas such as Graffiti and Immersive spaces.

If as an art student, this would be a good go-to book and reference.

My thanks for the ARC goes to NetGalley and Quarto Publishing Group – White Lion, Frances Lincoln. I'm voluntarily leaving a review.

I liked the organization of HOW ART IS MADE. By looking at different methods and materials, we get to explore a variety of artists, times, and interpretations.

One of the things I particularly enjoyed about this book is seeing artists outside of Europe. This is a book I would have liked to have in my classroom as a teaching reference.

Happy art marking!

A book I've been kind of looking for a while, How Art Is Made is a really good primer for anyone who is just beginning to want to understand and learn more about art and what it takes to create good art, with examples that are well known and even highlight less acknowledged artworks such as art installations and reliefs.

The profiles on each style and method are easy to read and easy to understand with excellent examples of the art to highlight the method and style, from the work of Van Gogh to Vermeer and go through a range of eras and centuries for a broad scope of styles of art. It can be a little dense in moments, however I think that this is a pretty good read on the subject matter.

A really informative read on how art is created, I'd recommend it to anyone just beginning to look into art.

(I received an ARC from Netgalley for honest review).

What a fascinating book, I want a copy for myself as well as a copy for the library shelves. Anyone who owns ‘How Art is Made’ will be constantly referring to it for inspiration and information.
Materials from gold to oil paints are covered with many varied examples and methods are also covered in depth with a comprehensive collection of different techniques.
I really like how accessible the book is and the diverse examples of art used to illustrate each process or material.

Debra Mancoff is the author of more than 20 books on art and art history. This is the second book I’ve read and reviewed this year, and looking at the dates of other works, it seems as though she is publishing at least one book a year. That output would be impressive even if she was merely churning out pseudo-scholarly art history “lite” for the masses, but she isn’t. How Art is Made is a beautiful book, well researched and written. Although she writes from the standpoint of a scholar, her writing is accessible to anyone who wishes to enhance their art knowledge and experience.

The book is written in two parts. Part one discusses artistic media, including pencils, charcoal, and several different types of paint, discussing the unique features, strengths and weaknesses and presenting examples of masters who have used this media. Part two features methods ranging from perspective to etching, including contemporary methods like graffiti and installations. I’m a bit confused, though, about why she did not include photography or digital techniques.

In the arts appreciation course I taught for more than 20 years, one of my goals was to have students move beyond merely seeking the meaning of a piece to discovering the deliberate choices the artist made to communicate their desired effect. This book definitively aids art lovers in that quest.

Thank you to Frances Lincoln and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

How Art is Made : The Craft Behind the Masterpieces is a very interesting book that will appeal to anyone with an interest in art. It describes various techniques that have been employed by artists throughout history. The pictures and photographs are beautiful. It is the perfect book for dipping into, and would make a lovely gift.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for giving me the eARC and physical ARC of this book.

This is definitely the sort of book you could buy at a museum with it's high quality images and how it describes the techniques used by artists throughout the centuries. Some mediums that are shown are; collage, grafitti, gold, watercolour and so much more. The history of the artists and mediums was really nice to read along side the stunning works.

This is a book that you can dip in and out of which is great and is a perfect coffee table book. It can just be nice to flip through for the imagery as well.

I loved seeing artwork combined by materials / methods.

Included in the book are materials such as ink, pencil, encaustic, and watercolour. Methods include collage (yay), monochrome, brushwork, en plein air, and immersive spaces.

Such a delight to start the book with a chapter on gold!

I would have loved to SEE more of the behind-the-scenes of the artmaking, but each piece is explained beautifully.

(I received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review)

I was interested to review this book to see the level of detail it included and to determine the audience. Each of the dozens of methods and materials covered are briefly described with a few examples as well as a brief, relevant history. This is not a guide to teach any of these methods. The descriptions of the techniques are enough to help someone better understand the art they are seeing/studying, but is not for the artist to learn how to use the technique or material. This book seems geared toward those interested in an introduction to art and has great breadth and relevant examples. Look elsewhere to learn the techniques.

You've just seen an amazing painting or sculpture, a fresco or drawing and thought, "I wonder if I could do that?" Or maybe you realize, "NO WAY could I ever do that!" Or you think, "How did that happen?"

Well, you can't know until you spend years perfecting your creativity.

Some ongoing questions that pop up in blogs and discussions are: "Is this a craft project or an art project?" and "How do you know the difference between something made a hobby and something made as a job?" (Usually the latter is identified by remuneration.) "When do I know/do enough to qualify as a 'real' artist?"

Mancoff spotlights various arts by how they're made. If you like art history, this is for you. Same if you're a student of art who wonders how that masterpiece "happened" with basic materials. And ... you'll learn a lot whether you identify as an artist or crafter, especially if you want to broaden your repertoire of techniques and skills.

This is not a step-by-step tutorial on how to do one type of art but a compact and illustrated version of the different materials and techniques throughout history, referencing the most important ones and places of origin. The illustrations are paintings and artwork from different artists and the description of each material (for example: ink, gold, watercolor...) or technique (brush, space, texture, perspective...) All are simple and easy to understand. Makes a good coffee table book.

This would be a great book to dip in and out of, as well as reading it through as I did. I read this digitally but would have loved to read it in hard copy to really get the feel for the paintings/art. I really enjoyed looking at art I recognised through the lens of their medium, which is not something I often think about, and it was so interesting to see how they linked to others done in the same style but with a completely different result/time period. There were also lot of paintings and artists I didn't recognise so it was great to be introduced to new art in this way.

This is a great complimentary to the book the story of art. I was captivated by the cover of the book since that is my favorite artist. I can definitely see this book being sold at the MET or similar museums bookstores for the art lover. It was unique the categories that you broke down to discuss for each of the art pieces.