Most of us, artists or not, have some idea of what sketching is.
Sketching is a term associated with quickly realized, often rough and “unfinished” drawings (or paintings) that are meant to catch the essence of something without any unnecessary frills.
That simplistic explanation, however, doesn’t convey the unexpected effects of a regular sketching practice: a connection with nature and the visual world that can open our eyes and enrich our lives.
People who are not already inclined to sketch or draw may not realize that the experience of connecting to your surroundings through sketching is available to anyone, regardless of a lack of training or experience. In fact, if you can relax and not fret about your current level of skill (or lack thereof), sketching can be one of the most enjoyable ways to learn to draw.
For those who are inclined to explore sketching, or develop and refine their current skills, I would be hard pressed to think of a better guide than The Artist’s Guide to Sketching by James Gurney and Thomas Kinkade.
Those who are familiar with Gurney and Kinkade — and the disparate styles of work for which they are individually best known — might have little reason to connect them. When they were young, however, they were colleagues, roommates and friends.
Kinkade, in his later career, developed a somewhat controversial but highly successful painting style and gallery business model, before he died in 2012.
Gurney went on to a successful career as a writer, illustrator, paleo artist and instructor, noted for his fantastical Dinotopia series, and numerous instructional books and videos, many now considered foundational .(See, in particular, my review of his book Color and Light.)
The two artists, though still early in their careers, had achieved a fairly high level of proficiency, accumulated through hard work and study, and grounded in traditional artistic training and a seemingly unbounded enthusiasm for the practice. They pooled their knowledge and collaborated on the book that became The Artist’s Guide to Sketching.
There is also a fascinating story involved, of the two young artists encountering a friendly and informative hobo, and setting off on a cross country adventure hopping freight trains, sketchbooks in hand.
This book has long been out of print, and is often sought after by followers of both artists. The original was published by Watson-Guptill (and has the wonderful feeling of their classic art instruction books); the new edition is published by Andrews McMeel.
Some of the topics covered include: sketching materials, drawing basics, sketching under various conditions, dealing with spectators and being inconspicuous, how to use linear perspective on location (when you can’t draw vanishing points), sketching people, various ways of capturing motion, studying nature, buildings and man-made objects, and sketching from imagination.
There are any number of sketching books out there, but many of them are themselves “sketchy”, brief, breezy and somewhat unsatisfying. The Artist’s Guide to Sketching feels less like a run of the mill sketching book, and more like one written with the kind of depth and care more often found in a treatise on painting.
The book is in many ways what you would hope for in an instructional art book, but to me there is an element here that goes beyond the ordinary. I don’t think I’ve encountered an instructional book on sketching, drawing or any other aspect of art, that better conveyed the enthusiasm and love of the subject expressed here.
The book is available directly from Gurney’s website for only $30, including free shipping, and can be signed and personalized by Gurney if desired.