Painting the Landscape in Pastel :: Education by Design Store

Customer Reviews

Nice read, but not what I expected

2006-11-10
When I purchased the book, I thought I would find more "step by step" examples for learning to paint landscapes in pastel. The book is nicely written, but not what I expected.

Visual Delight

2006-11-09
I have been painting in oils for a few years and want to explore pastels. I am familiar with Handell's work and always believe you should buy a book by someone whose art takes your breath away. In that aspect, this book will not disappoint. However, for a beginner in the medium of pastels, you may want to explore a book with more demos. Am I going to keep this book in my library...you bet! Thank you Albert Handell and Anita Louise West!

Academic painting.

2005-10-24
Far too academic. Fails to consider the sponteneity this media evokes and the inherent emtionality of each individual.

Handell has the best ever pastels

2005-01-16
I bought Albert Handell's book because for someone painting in pastels his works have reached a level that ordinary pastel artists might think impossible. They are so rich in texture and color blend and capturing the essance of the painting. From buying the book I did not really get a handle on how he did the paintings- he probably reveals that in his workshops- but the book is a visual delight and worth it just for that- Jason Alster - publisher- Creative Painting For The Young Artist

Very Lightweight

2002-12-19
I am a beginner to the art of pastel painting/drawing. This book is below the level of a beginner. It is long on talk about color, hues, values, and lots of things that a beginner doesn't really care about. When it comes to ACTUAL TECHNIQUE, HOW TO PUT PASTEL ON PAPER AND MAKE IT LOOK THE WAY YOU WANT IT TO, THIS BOOK IS VIRTUALLY SILENT! I have recently checked a book out of my university library that is the best book I have seen yet (the author's name escapes me now). It has about 10 demonstration paintings where the author goes through the various steps of creating a pastel painting. In contrast, Painting the Landscape had 1 or 2 such demonstrations and only about a page of nitty gritty on technique (actually applying pastel to paper).

Stay away from this book. It isn't worth your time.

Wonderful book 2008-03-08
I found it very informative, giving me new ideas to use in my art. Great pictures.

Disappointing 2008-02-14
I ordered this book because it was supposed to provide "lucid instructions for first time pastelists" but I found this definitely not the case. There are no instructions--just advice and that is so general that it is close to useless. Much better instructions with demonstrations can be found in other books. There are many illustrations in this book, but for my taste, the paintings are crude and unattractive. Certainly nothing I would care to emulate.

Painting in pastel? 2007-12-31
Handell"s current work doesn't impress me as much as his former style. Sometimes longtime artists get carried away with their own notoriety, and get just too artsy. This is more a"coffee table " book than something to learn from.

... But keep your eyes open 2007-10-23
(I'm not clear on the contribution by author Anita Louise West; the text is largely in the first person singular -- Handell's.) This is a decent, if short-winded, introduction to common, fundamental art concepts (color temperature, intensity, complementary colors) and a few pointers specific to the pastel medium. There is little that you cannot get elsewhere in more depth, and some puzzling statements ("A toned paper helps the artist enhance contrast in values" -- p. 20) that beg elaboration. Many of the points are theoretically demonstrated by Handell's own paintings, with a paragraph each of his discussion; but his comments often seem arbitrarily chosen, if not downright wrong for the painting in question. For example, p. 40, he states "these light green colors [of the spring outside the studio window] contrasted with and complemented ... all of the darker interior colors of the studio," but the highest-key portions of the painting are in the interior. On p. 39 a view of a pier shows a flag at half staff. Hendell states, "I purposely played down the detail of the flag," yet it is in plain sight and eye-catching. In fact, the most interesting thing about an otherwise trite scene is the flag (I would have titled the picture "Half Mast") because it adds particularity and involves the viewer ("what's going on?"). The painting is divided exactly in halves horizontally, classically a compositional no-no, so I would have liked to read the artist's discussion of this choice. In some other paintings the artist seems confused (or unconcerned) about the principal light source -- although since Wayne Thiebaud routinely gets away with this, maybe it's not a big issue. In summary, this book is a lightweight, and hopefully encouraging, introduction to a wonderful medium, but the discussion of individual paintings should be read with one's critical faculties in place. Plus, it never hurts to browse another artist's works, even if the lessons contain nearly as many "what not to do's" as "what to do's".

New to Pastel and in awe! 2007-09-04
Though I paint in other mediums, I am new to pastels. This book is the only one I will ever need. The pictures are beautiful and lush. The instructions and explanations are simple to understand. Would heartily recommend this book to new or experienced artists.