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100 BEST
FREE ART E-BOOKS
Why not go one step further and join a PAINTING TRIP with us!
We have created a most comprehensive, yet careful selected list of the many free instructional and other art related e-books.
All books within this listing are either public domain or used with permission.
This page was last updated: December 20, 2016
Famous Art Quotes
The aim of every artist is to arrest motion, which is life, by artificial means and hold it fixed so that a hundred years later, when a stranger looks at it, it moves again since it is life.
William Faulkner
Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.
Pablo Picasso
Life beats down and crushes the soul and art reminds you that you have one.
Stella Adler
Painting is poetry that is seen rather than felt, and poetry is painting that is felt rather than seen.
Leonardo da Vinci
It has been said that art is a tryst, for in the joy of it maker and beholder meet.
Kojiro Tomita
Art is the desire of a man to express himself, to record the reactions of his personality to the world he lives in.
Amy Lowell
To send light into the darkness of men's hearts - such is the duty of the artist.
Schumann
We all know that Art is not truth. Art is a lie that makes us realize truth, at least the truth that is given us to understand. The artist must know the manner whereby to convince others of the truthfulness of his lies.
Pablo Picasso
ART
QUOTES
BUT that's what being an artist is - feeling crummy before everyone else feels crummy.
The New Yorker
VERY few people possess true artistic ability. It is therefore both unseemly and unproductive to irritate the situation by making an effort. If you have a burning, restless urge to write or paint, simply eat something sweet and the feeling will pass.
Fran Lebowitz
GREAT art picks up where nature ends.
Marc Chagall
WHEN my daughter was about seven years old, she asked me one day what I did at work. I told her I worked at the college - that my job was to teach people how to draw. She stared at me, incredulous, and said, "You mean they forget?"
Howard Ikemoto
ART consists of limitation. The most beautiful part of every picture is the frame.
G.K. Chesterton
WHAT art offers is space - a certain breathing room for the spirit.
John Updike
THE artist is the opposite of the politically minded individual, the opposite of the reformer, the opposite of the idealist. The artist does not tinker with the universe, he recreates it out of his own experience and understanding of life.
Henry Miller
NO great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did, he would cease to be an artist.
Oscar Wilde
THE painter puts brush to canvas, and the poet puts pen to paper. The poet has the easier task, for his pen does not alter his rhyme
Robert Brault
AN artist is someone who produces things that people don't need to have but that he - for some reason - thinks it would be a good idea to give them.
Andy Warhol
SOME OIL
PAINTING FACTS
OIL painting was first used in Western Afghanistan.
THE medium made its way throughout Asia and the Middle East between the fifth and ninth century.
IT did not become popular, though, until its use in 15th century Europe.
SEVERAL Renaissance artists are credited for the invention of painting with oil paints, but the actual inventor is unknown.
THERE is a modern oil paint that is heated to 265 to 280 degrees Fahrenheit first before painting and dries when it is cool. This kind of paint resembles normal oil paints and is often shown as oil paint.
There are different types of oils that are used to create oil paints.
THESE types include linseed oil, poppyseed oil, walnut oil and safflower oil.
EACH type of oil creates a different look and dries at a different time.
THERE are other types of media that are often used alongside oil painting.
THESE types of media include resins, waxes and varnishes.
SOMETIMES oil paints are boiled in resins before use.
RESINS usually are pine or frankincense. These media can help protect the painting, give it shine, translucency and density.
BEFORE the popular choice of canvas, oil paints were used on wood panels.
OIL paint was also used to paint shields in the Middle Ages for tournaments and for decoration.
THESE shields were stronger when painted with oil paints instead of tempera paints, which were popular at the time.
OIL paint revolutionized art. Because it’s slow to dry, it freed artists to take their time with a painting, change their minds, make corrections, and even start over.
OIL paints dry to the touch within two weeks, and are generally dry enough to be varnished in six months to a year. It may take years for a painting to dry completely.
THE earliest known oil paintings, Buddhist murals found in Afghanistan’s Bamiyan caves, date to around the 7th century CE.
OIL paints don’t evaporate to dry; instead, they solidify through oxidation.
PAINTING with oils didn’t become widespread until the 15th century, when Flemish masters like Jan van Eyck perfected the technique.
THE paint tube was invented in 1841 by American painter John Goffe Rand. Before then, oils were stored in animal bladders.
BASIC oil paint is a mixture of ground-up pigment, binder (usually linseed oil), and thinner (turpentine).
LEONARDO da Vinci improved the process for making oil paint, cooking it with beeswax.
PIGMENTS can be made from minerals and organic materials, including semiprecious stones and snail mucus.
THE most expensive pigment was ultramarine—deep blue. Made from lapis lazuli, it was once more costly than gold.
UNTIL the 19th century, artists had to mix their own oil paints each day by hand.
IT can go on as a thin film (glaze) or thick, textured layer (impasto).
OIL painting was first used in Western Afghanistan.
THE medium made its way throughout Asia and the Middle East between the fifth and ninth century.
IT did not become popular, though, until its use in 15th century Europe.
SEVERAL Renaissance artists are credited for the invention of painting with oil paints, but the actual inventor is unknown.
Thorough understanding of colour is essential...
Interestingly proper colour knowledge is not that widely known, so much so, that 70% of artists admitted in recent studies that colour is to different degrees a problem for them.
Teaching colour is one of Artable's great strengths.
And everyone can learn in the shortest of time to mix any colour from only the most limited colour palette and get it always right.
So why not join the fun and get up to scratch with your colour knowledge.
Check out our classes and workshops.
HOW TO MASTER
COLOUR COMPLETELY..
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Pictorial Composition and the Critical Judgment of Pictures
by Henry Rankin Poore
Comprehensive in depth book on pictoral composition written in a classical language of its time.
The Practice & Science of Drawing
by Harold Speed
This book contains classical knowledge on drawing, line drawing, mass drawing, rhythm, variety, unity, balance, propotion and portrait drawing.
Line & Form
by Walter Crane
Probably the most comprehensive book ever written on line, line variation, line conture drawing, form and design. It is the classical instructional work on line and form
The Elements of Drawing
by John Ruskin
For some it will be a bit dull and not easy to revive information from this book, where others will find it much deeper and thorough than most drawing books. Ruskin does not believe in hobby art, he describes that only the very digilent art enthusiasts will become a good drawer.
Lectures on Architecture and Painting
by John Ruskin
This book will be a delight for all who are interested in classcial architecture and buildings.
Great Pictures, As Seen and Described by Famous Writers
Edited by Esther Singleton
Great writers have occasionally been inspired to record their impressions of a famous painting. A great book for art students, who need to describe a famous painting.
Lives of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors and Architects
by Giorgio Vasari
This book is mostly for art students who wish to gather information on some eminent painters.
Letters and Lettering
by Frank Chouteau Brown
This is a brilliant book on lettering, typface and not only a historical evolution of the letter forms, but with some good knowledge on type and in the furthest sense calligraphy.
The Botanical Magazine Vol. 1-8
by William Curtis
Renowned for featuring the work of two centuries of botanical illustrators. Many plants received their first publication on the pages, and the description given was enhanced by the keenly detailed illustrations.
Pictorial Photography in America 1920-1922
by Pictorial Photographers of America
This book is believed to be the first attempt in America to give a comprehensive presentation of the status of pictorial photography of its best workers. Commended to photographers both professional and amateur, of artists and art lovers, and of the public generally.
Picture and Text
by Henry James
This book presents some general ideas about the relation between author and illustration, picture and text, as well as the advancing technology of illustration.
A Text-Book of the History of Painting
by John Charles Van Dyke
The object of this series of text-books is to provide concise teachable histories of art for class-room use in schools and colleges.
Chuck Jones A Flurry of Drawings
by Hugh Kenner
Kenner provides a brief, lively history of animation before focusing on the Warner Brothers animation studio, out of which came the wildest, most outrageous cartoons of the 1940s and 1950s. The book can be read online or bought from this site.
Constructive Anatomy
by George B. Bridgman
Learn how to draw the human figure with practical and effective methods made famous by a leading art instructor. First he simplifies complex anatomy problems into simple structures before exploring the muscle patterns into more complex detail.
Drawing for Beginners
by Dorothy Furniss
We must think with the brush and the pencil; we must think first and then draw round our 'think'. This book may help you to arrange your thoughts. It is but a helping hand on the broad highway that leads to the great world of art.
English Caricaturists
by Graham Everitt
The history of cariture submitted in an entertaining way depicting the social and political events of the 19th century. The book provides a good inside of some later caricaturests and their lives.
Pen Drawing: An Illustrated Treatise
by Charles Maginnis
A very instructional book for people wanting to draw with the pencil. Elaborately illustrates ideas, discovering in a way which is often lost in modern writing.
The Art of Caricaturing
by Mitchell Smith
In this brief and consistent book Mitchell Smith gives lessons that cover all branches of caricaturing. Drawings illustrate all necessary points, and each point is explained in the text. Author included caricatures of many famous men.
The Art of Illustration
by Henry Blackburn
Explains the modern systems of Book and Newspaper Illustration, and especially the methods of drawing for what is commonly called 'process', on which so many artists are now engaged.
The Doré Gallery of Bible Illustrations
by Gustave Doré
From the creation of the world to its final redemption, view the Bible as imagined by one of history's most accomplished illustrators. This book of Dore's classic Gallery pictures many of the best-loved stories from the Old and New Testament.
The Painter's Encyclopaedia
by Franklin B. Gardner
Well, it is what it says, a book filled with definitions of art related words in painting and plain art.
The Human Machine
by George B. Bridgman
One of the leading classical books for the understanding of human anatomy. It concentrates on planes, light and dark and muscle groups.
Art
by Clive Bell
Clive Bell was a 20th century art critic. Bell proposes a very strong version of formalism: What a painting represents, for example, is completely irrelevant to evaluating it aesthetically. According to Bell nothing is more valuable that a visual work of art.
Anatomy, Descriptive and Surgical
by Henry Gray
One of the most comprehensive books available with thorough descriptive descriptions of muscles and bones within the human body.
Best of Farshchian
by Papak
Mahmoud Farshchian is a world renowned master of Persian painting and miniatures. He is the most prominent modernizer of the field of miniatures, an art form which was first established in Ancient Persia and later spread to other countries.
Cathedral Cities of Spain: 60 reproductions from original water colours
by W. W. Collins
Wonderful watercolour paintings of cathedrals in Spain.
Catalogue of Paintings and Drawings
by Worcester Art Museum
Comprehensive catalogue of art paintings with brief decriptions created by the Worcester Art Museum.
Exhibition of War Portraits
by National Art Committee
A wonderful collection of war portraits from the National Art Committee in America.
A Complete and Comprehensive Treatise on the Art of Crayon Portraiture
by Crocker, J. B. teacher of drawing
This is a wonderful little book about the medium of crayon. Hardly any visuals, yet as most classics far more detailed and descriptive information than found in modern books.
What To Draw And How to Draw It
by Edwin George Lutz
A great example of one of the first step-by-step how to draw books created for children. It is not in particular how an artist would approach a drawing, yet it still does have some value, as one learns to see at least out of the box. A wonderfully preserved book of this kind.
Pen Drawing
by Charles Donagh Maginnis
Describing in depth the application and use of the pen. Information are more detailed than in modern books of this type and some lost knowledge of using the pen in a sufficient way can be discovered. A must for all wanting to use the pen.
A Book of Drawings
by H. M. Bateman
A book without words depicting the world of the 20s with humor. It is a brilliant little book and could be also valuable for people interested in character development.
Drawing and Engraving
by Philip Gilbert Hamerton
Describing in much detail the process and application of drawing and engraving within different eras and cultures.
Machine Drawing
by Carl L. Svensen
A most comprehensive and deeply detailed book on the use and application of drawing machinery. Describing meticulously processes from basic exercises to the most complex employ of machinery drawing.
Handbook of Drawings
by William Walker
A typical deeply descriptive book of its time. In depth details on every aspect of machine drawing from the correct crosshatching patterns for different materials to the most complex application of drawing machinery.
Linear Drawing
by Ellis A. Davidson
Contains several subjects, incl. machinery drawing, geometrical, drawing and linear perspective, explained in quite some detail. From the application of the principles of Gothic tracery to fabricating a Parabola or Hyperbola it contains a vast amount of information.
Drawings of Rossetti
by T. Martin Wood
A rare and wonderful collection of Rossetti's drawings and preliminary sketches for his paintings
The Teaching of Drawing
by L. Hammond Morris
A very simple instructional book on the basics of drawing. It is more about correct measuring methods than freehand drawing.
Projection Drawing
by John Daniel Walters
Walters' elementary graphics, 2d book. Describes in details on the following topics: geometrical drawing, projection drawing, elements of descriptive geometry and linear perspective.
Drawing Made Easy
by Edwin George Lutz
Another nice book on the basic of learning how to draw for children and for adults. Children learn to see things within shapes and line directions.
Fashion Drawing & Design
by Luie M. Chadwick
A marvelous study of drapery and fashion drawing from the 1800-1890s. Describes the process of line drawing, wash drawing for dresses of that time, historical dresses, children fashion and lingerie and even hair dressing and millinery, with a large amount of illustrations.
Rogers' Drawing and Design
by N. Hawkins
Another comprehensive books on mechanical drawing.
Nature Drawing and Design
by Frank Steeley
This book describes the process of using flowers or leaves to create simple line drawings and patterns. There is a touch of art nouveau within the illustrations, which was typical for this time.
Drawings of Albrecht Duerer
by Frank Steeley
A collection of mostly religious drawings of Albrecht Duerer, who's work is known for enormous detail in crosshatching or watercolour.
Prints and Drawings by Frank Brangwyn
by Walter Shaw Sparrow
A collection of regligious and work related drawings of Brangwyn.
Student's Manual of Fashion Drawing
by Edith Young
Beautiful line drawing illustrations from the beginning of 1900.
A Guide To Figure Drawing
by George Elgar Hicks
Instructional book on figure drawing incl. principles of outline, light and shade and proportions etc. Accompanied by delightful and detailed illustrations mostly crosshatched.
Drawings Of Ruby Lind
by Ruby Lind
Ruby Lind displays mastery of composition and her cross-hatching pen work is delightful and elegant. A joy to the eye.
Ornamental Drawing & Architectural Design
by Robert Scott Burn
Beginning at the simplest principles of ornamental design and continuing leading the reader gradually up to the most complicated arrangements of lines and curves. Not overly original, yet historical and practical.
The Art of Figure Drawing
by Charles Harvey Weigall
A classical drawing book on figure drawing. Beginning with the bodies proportions to explain line work. As usual for books of this time, one can find some forgotten knowledge.
Drawing for Art Students and Illustrators
by Allen W. Seaby
This book describes in detail the application of drawing, in particular proportion, type forms, construction, tonal value, figure and anatomy study. It is as typical for books from this time written in details and contains some beautiful illustrations.
Handbook of Foliage and Foreground Drawing
by George Barnard
A comprehensive book of different trees and its foliage. Each demonstration contains a full view of each tree and detailed foliage examples in different styles, all adjunct with detailed descriptions.
Drawings of Alfred Stevens
by Alfred Stevens
Beautiful figure drawings by Alfred Steven who has a keen eye for couture line work with detailed descriptions to the work presented.
The Eye of the Painter
by Andrew Loomis
One of the most inspiring books on painting. A master at setting up guidelines and looking at drawing/painting in a very technical way. It is a very easy to read, and has some moments that you won't find in other artist's books.
The Human Figure
by John H Vanderpoel
This classic book from a master teacher offers clear, detailed instruction on drawing the human figure. More than 430 pencil and charcoal illustrations depict eyes, arms, feet, and other fundamentals.
The Book of A Hundred Hands
by George B. Bridgman
The legendary Art Students League of New York teacher offers 100 fine drawings and in-depth instruction, to drawing virtually every aspect and posture of the human hand. He covers it all: the back of the hand and palm, nails, bones, tendons, muscles, the arch, veins, and more.
Free-Hand Drawing
by Anson K. Cross
The legendary Art Students League of New York teacher offers 100 fine drawings and in-depth instruction, to drawing virtually every aspect and posture of the human hand. He covers it all: the back of the hand and palm, nails, bones, tendons, muscles, the arch, veins, and more.
The Young Artist Assistant
by Enfield
Elements of the fine arts, containing the principles of drawing, painting in general, crayon painting, oil painting, portrait painting, miniature painting, designing, colouring and engraving,
The Colour of Art
by Bonnie E Snow, Hugo B. Froehlich
Art Colour theory and its components.
Art Education for High School
by Pang Company
A comprehensive text book on art education for high schools, treating pictorial, decorative, and constructive art, historic ornament and art.
Painter's Cyclopedia
by George D. Armstrong
Valuable info on subjects: adulteration and blistering of paint, brushes, calcimining, carriage and china painting, colors, color harmony, color mixing, color testing, exterior painting, gilding, graining, house painting, marbling, mildew, oils and driers etc.
The Art of Caricature
by Grant Wright
Nothing distinguishes civilized from uncivilized man with as much emphasis as humor, and the various stages of civilization are marked by the character and amount of humor of each epoch.
A Practical Handbook of Drawing
by Charles George Harper
A book for the Illustrator and Artist on methods of reproduction and drawing.
The Augsburg Drawing Book 1
by De Resco Leo Augsburg
Allround book on the basics of drawing with a number of good illustrations. Book 1.
The Augsburg Drawing Book 2
by De Resco Leo Augsburg
Allround book on the basics of drawing with a number of good illustrations. Book 2.
The Art of Illustration
by Edmund J. Sullivan
This book is available in Djvu format only.
The Art of Illustration II
by Henry Blackburn
There was almost a revolution in illustration at the present time, and both old and young, teachers and scholars were in want of a handbook for reference when turning to the newer methods.
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by Edwin George Lutz
Another one of Lutz's drawing books for the art student.
The Art of Drawing in Lead Pencil
by Jasper Salwey
Classical instructional art book with beautiful pencil illustrations.
Trees and Tree Drawing
by Edward C Clifford
Wonderful classical instructional art teaching on trees with enlightening text and delightful illustrations.
The Sketcher's Manual
by Frank Howard
Whole art of picture making reduced to the simplest principles: by which amateurs may instruct themselves without the aid of a master
Anatomy
by George Viner Ellis
A comprehensive guide to the knowledge of the human body by dissection.
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The Artistic Anatomy of the Horse
by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins
The title very vwell describing its content with its comprehensive content on the anatomy of the horse, with a number of fine illustrations.
A Handbook of Anatomy for Art Students
by Arthur Thomson
Another great classic on the anatomy of the human body with detailed explanations and a number of illustrations.
Duval's Artistic Anatomy
by Mathias Duval, Andrew Melville Paterson
An epitome of a course of lectures delivered at the Ecole des beaux-arts "First edition, September, 1884." Translation of Précis d'anatomie à l'usage des artistes
Anatomy for Artists
by John Marshall, J. S. Cuthbert
An invaluable source of anatomy for teachers and students alike, including a number of diagrams.
A Manual for Artistic Anatomy
by Robert Knox
For the use of sculptors, painters, and amateurs.
Artistic Anatomy for Animals
by Edouard Cuyer
Useful anatomy book about the structure and detailed description of animals, from horses to monkeys with elaborate illustrations.
Anatomical Auxiliary (momentarily not available)
by Henry Leidel
A key for the study of the artistic anatomy of the human figure. The value of anatomy on the part of an Artist must not be underrated, for a sound knowledge of the same this book is a most useful aid.
Art Trader Magazine Vol. 1-14
by Art Trader Magazine
ArtTrader Magazine is a free web based publication (in PDF format) focused on mail art for trade such as ATCs (Artist Trading Cards), ACEOs, art journals, chunky books, altered art and altered art books. ArtTrader Mag back issues are all available for FREE download.
Revolutionary Art Vol. 1-30
by Revolutionary Art
Absolutely up-to-date magazine of our time. Revolutionary Art International Magazine is a FREE publication delivered in pdf format as a collective sample of graphic arts, videos, music, modeling, and world trends.
Ed Emberley's Big Orange Drawing Book
by Ed Emberley
This publication is really only for school teachers or childrens art tutors, who love to see one of the earlier versions of an typical "step by step how to" drawing book for children. It is more cute than anything, This book is aimed at children wishing to learn to draw.
Hints for Pupils in Drawing and Painting
by Helen Mary Knowlton
This is a nice little text book for people wishing to learnt the art of drawing and painting. It is relatively easy to read when compared to other books of this time and it is not too long either. Well worth reading if waiting for the bus or other short time slots we might get.
Price Catalogue of Materials for Water Colour Painting and Drawing
by J. Barnard & Son
A neat little catalogue of materials from ca. 1860. Not an instructional book, but interesting as to what has changed since then. It contains some nice illustrations of the materials.
First Principles of Symmetrical Beauty
by David Ramsay Hay
Nature of the science of aesthetics explained; Plane figures the bases of all forms; The isosceles triangle; Universal application of the composite ellipse in the arts of ornamental design; and more.
Costume Design and Illustration
by Ethel Traphagen
Designers and illustrators alike should have a knowledge and appreciation of the human form, and know what lines are important to emphasize or conceal. Drawing from the nude is of great advantage to gain this valuable training.
Art Recreations
by Levina Buoncuore Urbino
Art recreations is a complete guide to pencil drawing, oil painting, moss work, papier mache, wax work, shell work, enamel painting and more with valuable insides for preparing materials. Beautifully illustrated.
The Art of Miniature Painting
by Charles William Day
Instructional book on how to paint Miniatures. The books is loaded with illustrations.
Principles of Light and Colour
by Edwin Babbitt
There is just something about old books. Here another example of a very thorough description of light theory, colour theory, chromotherapy and fringe science. It is for people who do have still time to read and for a book published in 1878 it contains quite a reasonable amount of images.
How To Draw People
by Robert Barrett
Short but effective e-book with step by step demonstrations on mapping, measuring and gridding the human form.
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100 BEST FREE ART E-BOOKS
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2009 - 2014 GOLD COAST ART CLASSES TRADING AS ARTABLE ABN 23 323 459 037
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PLEASE CARE AND HELP EXPAND OUR LIST OF FREE E-BOOKS.
- If you find a free source for any art related e-books, please e-mail us... info@goldcoastartclasses.com
- We have created this listing out of passion for our art students and other creatives and offer this listing freely, please share your knowledge too, for the expansion of this wonderful resource.
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YOU CAN HELP to expand this list of ...
FREELY AVAILABLE art e-books.
If you are aware of a free source for any art related e-books, which are public domain or are otherwise allowed to be used, please e-mail us.
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