7 Keys To Great Paintings

by Jane R. Hofstetter

Seven Keys to Great Paintings puts the fun back into painting with lighthearted, down-to-earth instruction that also reveals the core elements of painting design. * Each of the seven chapters begins with a poem verse to help readers remember the message behind the concepts * The emphasis on watercolor will appeal to painting's largest audience, as well as general painters * Creative, game-like instruction echoes bestsellers like Watercolorist's Essential Notebook * Full-page charts and 8 well-illustrated step-by-step demos make the concepts easy to understand and apply The author's friendly, personal tone and extensive workshop experience are sure to charm and encourage painters of all levels.

Genres: Art

128 pages, Hardcover

First published December 22, 2004

Reviews

[Tandava Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

All the examples in the book are her own paintings, so I’m very pleased that I actually quite like most of her work. In so many of the painting books I get from the library, I just get so tired of one boring landscape after another, but these (even with so many landscapes!) really have a great energy and life to them. It gives me confidence in her advice, and there’s the added bonus that it’s mostly watercolor, which I’m most interested in at the moment. Most of the principles, of course, can apply to any medium. The specific step-through exercises are all for watercolor, but are very high-level, like 4 steps for an awesome finished painting, so it’s not really about the technique. (Though I would have liked more technique in this case, because I quite like the results but I think they’re a bit beyond me.)

As for the 7 Keys, perhaps these are standard things that people who study art are all familiar with, but for me it was a really excellent, clear introduction to principles that feel helpful even just for appreciating art, as well as making it. I’d certainly encountered some of the concepts before, of course, but I feel like I really got it all much more from this book. And I also feel like I could spend a lot more time rereading and studying it because I can tell I’m still barely dipping a toe into fully absorbing and understanding it. It’s actually a very useful book to keep around as a reference. Lots of good checklists to consider for your paintings, samples of layouts and value patterns, etc.

I also like that many of the examples are things that she did simply as demonstrations in the classes she teaches. Often even just taking a random starting point like an abstract value pattern and working with it until it turns into really a seriously good painting.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am trying to work my way through books on art theory and technique to add to and enhance my weekly art class. This book, by a watercolorist, examines pattern, design, the golden mean, color, and other issues in planning and completing a painting. I found it very helpful and took notes to keep. These basics should have been taught to me in high school art classes or the classes I took at the Corcoran as a child, but they were not. We just "painted.' It actually helps to know why something works or fails.

[Reuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent practical tips.

[Gayle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great practical help to take my watercolors to the next level.

[JayeL]

I was introduced to this book by my friend Sonja when she did a presentation on composition and value at a CQFA meeting.