Successful Drawing By Andrew Loomis

796 reviews 420 followers

November 15, 2012

(More pictures on my blog)

This book is more advanced than the two earlier books, Figure Drawing for All It's Worth and Drawing the Head and Hands.

Compared to other books that try to cover everything, this book focuses on certain aspects of drawing.

There's a great deal of emphasis on perspective and that section is 80 pages, which is half of this 160-page hardcover. At times, it can be quite difficult to follow because there's too many things explained at the same time. The part on drawing figures on different planes and elevation is quite useful. And also the part on common perspective mistakes.

The second half of the book covers lighting. It's stuff like how light rolls of a sphere, cone and cube. The application is more on figures as with the accompanying illustrated examples. There are many useful drawing pointers to take note of.

The book doesn't cover everything, or at least topics I would expect from a drawing book. What's missing are topics such as composition, contour drawings, colours, drawing portraits (dealt in his other books) and drawing techniques like hatching, layering tones, etc. It doesn't cover drawing by eye which deals with proportion, although it is mentioned briefly which can be overlooked easily.

Ultimately, the book is on understanding the fundamentals behind drawings. There isn't any step-by-step instructions to follow along, you learn by copying what's shown.

This is an intermediate book more suited for those with some knowledge of drawing, more specifically for those looking to learning perspective and lighting. If you have the two other Loomis books mentioned above, then you can easily apply what you've learned.

If you're looking to draw something instantly, then I would recommend more elementary beginner books. For perspective, you can try Perspective Made Easy, and Keys to Drawing for drawing in general. I'll also recommend Lessons in Classical Drawing because that book is also about successful drawing.

art-books-instructional

264 reviews 22 followers

Edited January 27, 2021

Get it here:
https://archive.org/details/andrew-lo...

Just like Loomis' other books, this thing is packed to the brim with knowledge. Very technical, far more information here than I ever got studying art and design in college. If a college tells you they are using 'self directed study' tell them were to shove it and just buy a book instead. You will save a hell of a lot of money and learn a hell of a lot more.

Loomis recommends sketching a hand every day (drawing hands is something every artist finds challenging), so I have been sketching one body, one face, one hand, and one landscape every day using the following website:
https://quickposes.com/en/gestures/ra...
I recommend creating an account, since it enables you to save any reference images you really like, or if they seem like they would be useful for current or future projects, to a 'favourites' folder for future reference.

Finishing this book marks the end of the current research phase for my DIY art course.
I'll be going through this free online art course next to make sure it sticks:
https://rapidfireart.com/how-to-draw-...

Then, with drawing hopefully brought up to a decent level it will be time for more research:

Deadline 1st July:
'Color - A Course in Mastering the Art of Mixing Colors'
by Betty Edwards

Deadline 1st August:
https://tips.clip-studio.com/en-us/of...

Deadline 1st September:
http://www.clipstudiotutorials.com/

Deadline 1st October:
Watch BitChute version of Vox Stoicas' Summary of Ultralearning as a form of revision:
https://www.bitchute.com/video/Ryfhnp...

+ Read ebook version of ULTRALEARNING:
https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/library

+ Revision of method:
https://www.scotthyoung.com/blog/mypr...
(Read the text and watch the video).

Deadline 1st November:
Portrait Challenge:
Every day I will allow my self 1 hour for a 'Progress Monitor Portrait'.
(and also do 6 speed portraits at 10 minutes each to actually progress in skill, for a total of 2 hours spent).

Then after a bit more research up until 1st of December it will be time to start work on my own art project... 0_0

25 reviews 2 followers

January 24, 2017

"To learn to draw is to draw and draw and draw."

-Andrew Loomis

16 reviews 3 followers

December 16, 2016

This is an excellent book that has an extensive section on perspective drawing. I bought it to fill in knowledge gaps left out by other books in my collection - specifically perspective drawing as it pertains to the figure. The drawing examples can be a bit more difficult to understand than in other books, especially when there are lots of dark construction lines cluttering up the images. This is one of the reasons why I don't think this book is nearly as effective as a stand alone resource. The section on common errors in perspective drawing was especially helpful, as well as the sections on inclined planes and establishing shadows, which other books seem to neglect entirely.

I think this book is available free online, but I bought the new reprint because I can't stand reading PDFs or looking at art examples on an e-reader.

art-design

perspective-drawing

Author 1 book 35 followers

Edited October 9, 2012

Another classic tome by Andrew Loomis. It is easy to see how great artists such as Alex Ross were influenced by these books. This one deals mainly with Perspective and Lighting on Form. Personally, I felt that the section on Lighting Forms, for both basic shapes and anatomical forms, was the highlight of the book. The section on Perspective was also very educational. Great artwork is presented for the examples.

art

44 reviews 2 followers

August 4, 2016

There are artists. There are masters. And then there are teachers.
Loomis writes with the technical sincerity of a physicist writing the proof of a theorem - and the book expects equal amount of work and dedication on your part.
The section on perspectives is quite long, and sometimes hard to follow - but that's only because a novice will have to practice and return to assimilate the depth of the content.

The book is also an interesting source for copying and practicing interesting sketches. Loomis' approach to drawing is refined and instructive like a manual - and he writes quite brilliantly.

1,504 reviews 4 followers

August 14, 2012

good book for that person that you know that is always drawing. wonderful examples!

283 reviews 1 follower

January 25, 2018

I read through the book. I only did a few exercise because I did not have time to do them all. So I will have to read the book again and do all the exercises. I liked the book.

2,410 reviews

September 2, 2019

Some very good guidance on perspective, light and form. I really like the examples that he gave. There is always more to learn when it comes to art.

art

113 reviews 1 follower

May 17, 2021

Gives you a solid foundation on what makes a successful drawing that attempts for realism. Heavy on the fundamentals of drawing such as perspective and rendering form.

118 reviews

September 7, 2021

Still can't believe a dead man is teaching me more about art than 3 years of university.

art-help

713 reviews 124 followers

August 12, 2010

Andrew Loomis's Successful Drawing is a classic course on drawing. In it, Loomis expresses his approach on becoming a competent sketcher/painter. The wannabe artist has to master five aspects: proportion, placement, perspective, planes of light, and pattern or texture. To create, the same artist would have to traverse a path that starts with conception, traverses construction, contour, character, and ends with consistency. The book illustrates each concept and path element, but the actual text may seem at times difficult. Overall, an excellent drawing book. Read it and all the books signed Loomis.

art

teaching

January 13, 2012

I can hardly wait for the Titan Books release of the new printing of this book, a long-treasured part of my drawing library. I have had to handle my original printing with great care to preserve it - so I look forward to being able to really dig in to upcoming reprint.

As noted in other reviews, this is a complete drawing course and while excellent, may be challenging to some. Loomis' discussion of perspective is one of the most valuable I have found.

6 reviews

September 30, 2016

I highly recommend books by andrew loomis, because of the individual detailed subjects he draws and write about. And most importantly these books are for free download. They don't make them like this anymore.

artbooks

April 12, 2013

Just plain amazing, it goes into great depth about perspective, and constructing shapes in perspective!its also useful for lighting and basic form.