Drawing and Painting Beautiful Faces: A Mixed-Media Portrait Workshop

I have many art related books on my book shelf. This is one of my favorite. Although I only received this book 4 (?) days ago, I have read it from beginning to end and I recommend it, with no reservations; but beware, this is not a book that you will simply read through once and put it away. You will read it over and over as you practice and perfect your art of drawing the face. Why do i say this?One and a half years ago, I thought that I couldn't draw! After three months in my first class with Jane, I was astounded that I was learning the art faster than I'd ever imagined. Make no mistake, I still consider myself a beginner artist and I have an immense amount to learn. Yet, the pace at which I am learning, I solely attribute to Jane. If you can't take one of Jane's classes, this book is a must.Standing alone, the book is filled with rich colors that delight the eye. Nevertheless, Beautiful Faces is dedicated to ANYONE who wants to draw and paint. As an initial matter, I must say that Jane is passionate about drawing, painting and art supplies. :) Her passion stokes a student's creativity, while making art fun. She has a bubbly personality and is prone to laughter and random displays of humor. She doesn't take herself too seriously, which in turn, puts the novice at ease, and as you will find in the book, is overly generous in sharing her knowledge, and tips.In Beautiful Faces, Jane describes the various art supplies that one uses, for instance, paper, watercolor, pencils, paints, markers, inks, mediums, and more. She explains how and what they are used for. Before beginning the details of drawing, she covers the basic foundation that one needs to understand in order to make the learning process easier. Her drawing and painting instructions are clear, concise and easy to follow along with her. She covers all aspects of drawing the face, including my favorite and most difficult, drawing hair. She provides step-by-step instructions for drawing each feature. In the chapter on painting, she touches on various topics, including the all important topic of "shading." The tone of the book is encouraging from beginning to end, and the book is peppered with examples of Jane's work. All in all the book is clearly designed so that we too, can draw beautiful faces.Finally, I'd like to point out that this is an amazing book that is worth every penny. After studying , if you are sincerely interested in drawing, I heartily recommend that you register for the online e-course Beautiful Faces, or one of the many courses that Jane offers. They are reasonably priced and offer more detailed instructions than she can possibly include in this one book.

LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. Beautiful book - ditto on what everybody has said so far.It is full of detailed information ala Jane style. Every bit helps bring out the best in every student. Again, ala Jane style. For example, the information she provides for supplies is obviously not for profit. She talks about her tools as if every single one is a well loved best friend. If you have watched any of her videos, they are. Unlike other artists who exalt products because they stand to gain by it directly thru sales and/or indirectly thru sponsorship and who obviously only use the product to justify the not so transparent marketing ploy, Jane recommends products because she uses them. A. Lot. While she highly recommends specific brands, she also encourages students to find their own favorites.I can't draw worth a doodle, let alone a face. That was me. Jane said 'of course you CAN'. Less than a month later, I did and have been ever since. Anybody who's taken any of her online workshops knows this. This book is no different. Enough said.The only negative about this book? I wish it were on DVD as well...DVD update: An online workshop, Beautiful Faces, is scheduled to start March 2015. According to the description, it is the 'live' equivalence of this book. As with all of Jane's workshops, the students are given 'lifetime' access to the videos. Be aware that 'lifetime' does not mean the student's lifetime. But you already knew that, right?The workshop is pretty pricey $155.00. The videos are in Vimeo format and none are downloadable. That's a real downer and deal breaker for my money. Unlimited access is great but it requires connectivity. If you only have a desktop and no mobile devices, it also restricts your art space to within the confines of your desktop. Vimeo doesn't play nice with every browser. It frequently hangs in IE and is virtually unviewable in Firefox.Jane's Whimsical Face came with a DVD option. I think I paid $50 for both. Now that's more realistic. I can learn from Jane truly ANYWHERE. $173 (includes $18 for book) for Beautiful Faces for a lot LOT less. You do the math. Don't get me wrong. Jane has the best workshops. Ever! I just wished that I could actually have my money's worth...

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