There's a nicely structured feel to this relatively elementary introduction to portrait drawing. The author finds room to consider both the history of portraiture and the artistic aspects of what make a good portrait. Throughout, she emphasises the creative side of the process just as much as the practical. The bulk of the book is taken up with a series of lessons using a variety of media - pencil, charcoal, pastel and coloured pencils - in both monochrome and colour. Also, there is a good balance between male and female, young and old subjects, as well as children. Renate Klein manages to deal concisely with the important things, including a brief anatomical tour of the human head. As an introduction to a tricky subject, the whole thing is nicely done and provides a good foundation for you to build on.-The Artist There's a nicely structured feel to this relatively elementary introduction to portrait drawing. The author finds room to consider both the history of portraiture and the artistic aspects of what make a good portrait. Throughout, she emphasises the creative side of the process just as much as the practical. The bulk of the book is taken up with a series of lessons using a variety of media - pencil, charcoal, pastel and coloured pencils - in both monochrome and colour. Also, there is a good balance between male and female, young and old subjects, as well as children. Renate Klein manages to deal concisely with the important things, including a brief anatomical tour of the human head. As an introduction to a tricky subject, the whole thing is nicely done and provides a good foundation for you to build on.-The Artist Two new titles have been added to Search Press's 'Draw' series - Draw Portraits and Draw Animals. Draw Portraits by Renate Klein is an excellent introduction to the skill of portraying the human face in pencil, charcoal, chalk, pastel, coloured pencils and watercolour pencils. By working on the step-by-step exercises, the author hopes that you will be able to improve your own techniques and start imparting you own individual style on the portraits you are drawing. Starting with the basics, Renate encourages you to learn how 'to see' - what's important and what's not. Chapters cover composition, light and shade, the anatomy of the head, as well as individual exercises on drawing the mouth, eyes, nose, ears and hair.-Leisure Painter
