Image provided by Giphy

Often times we get messages and comments on our social media pages with the question:

“How did you learn how to draw?”
“What websites would you recommend for me to learn how to draw?”

The second question always surprises me. I guess with the digital age being so heavy right now, everyone depends on the internet for everything even to learn fairly simply things like how to draw. Growing up in my day and age, we did not have that luxury. Even though the internet scene was there and picking up heavy during my teenage times, we still depended on the old school ways of learning things like reading.

Read A Book!

Yes, I said it, you should definitely be reading more books right now more than anything, especially if you are the type relies on going to look for all life’s answers online. The internet can be your friend one day and then not be your friend the next day. Just think, if you are learning how to do everything by focusing on the world wide web, what happens if the power goes out where you are? Even worse, what happens if the entire internet gets shut down ….God forbid that happens!

Below are some of my most favorite books I have either used in the past during college times, or that I am using right now to improve my craft along this art journey as an alternative and first source when learning about art. Feel free to click on each for more information on where you can purchase them for yourself to have on hand as well.

1. 1. Art History Vol. One by Marilyn Stokstad – This edition is a very old one from about three to four years ago that I purchased as a required textbook during college. It mainly focuses on the history of art throughout the world. Great for projects where you want to be in tune with your history and culture.
   2. Color Index Revised Edition By Jim Krause | Idea Index by Jim Krause | Layout Index by Jim Krause – These three books by Jim Krause are the holy grail when it comes to designing, especially for any graphic designers! I have loved them all so much for years. They were all purchased as required textbooks while in college that I held on to as well. They have helped a lot when it comes to deciding on colors for different projects, thinking of ideas for new projects, and on deciding layouts especially for graphic design work for clients. 
      
      

      

      
   3. You Can Draw It All – This is an art drawing book that focuses on drawing a variety of random things like people, landscapes, cities, and much more. It is a very fun and festive book. I would recommend it if you are an illustrator. This one is available through our affiliate Target as well for easy purchasing online at a very low price right now.
   4. A Guide To Drawing 7th Edition by Daniel M. Medelowitz, David L. Faber and Duane A. Wakeham – Another collection addition from my college days. I use this one from time to time, but not as often as the others. This particular edition is super old as they update every year faithfully. It helps a lot towards drawing figures, along with drawing better perspectives for buildings and landscape views.
      

   5. Figure It Out! : The Beginner’s Guide to Drawing People by Chris Hart – This book has helped me out so much when it comes to drawing the human figure. It includes guided lessons for you to go by while you learn by starting off with fairly beginner steps at the beginning of the book, to more tougher lessons towards the end of the book. I would highly recommend it for all artists, especially fine artists if you are looking to create full body or portrait style art work.
      

   6. Mixed Media Revolution: Creating Ideas for Reusing Your Art by Darlene Olivia McElroy – If you are an artist who is big on recycling and recreating art pieces from other art works, then this is the book for you. I have learned so many ways of saying money and time from this one. Highly recommend it if you are looking to create on a serious budget, also if you are a mixed media artist as well.
   7. Art Office Second Edition by Constance Smith & Graphic Design Business by Michael Huggins – These two books go hand in hand with one another. The Art Office is full of the official forms you will need for the business side of the art world if you are a graphic designer yourself or have a graphic design business/service of your own. It includes everything you need along with contract templates for design projects with clients. The Graphic Design Business breaks down everything you need to do for your business and even includes a DVD with more official forms for the business side of art as well. I would highly recommend them both for any artists in all genres of art to keep your service legal and official at all times.
      

      

These are just some great reads apart of my expanding art book collection that I often use on a regular basis. Mainly the ones I am using this summer. They all are great for any designers, painters, etc who are looking for ways to improve their business/service or artwork. Feel free to click each title for more information on where you can purchase each one. They are all affordable reading material and won’t break your pockets so don’t worry about that. Just remember these small investments into improving your craft may make the difference in the amount of artwork you sell on a regular basis, giving you more room to flourish.

Disclaimer: Affiliate links have been included in this post in which Delux Designs (DE), LLC receives a commission from any sales made through this post. We assure you, the products featured through DE from product reviews are products that we recommend based off of our own personal experiences from using them.

For continuous updates on all new art work, art events and much more follow our social media page links listed below. Thanks for your support everyone!
Facebook | Instagram | Pinterest | Tumblr | Twitter