Portrait Painting Atelier: Old Master Techniques and Contemporary Applications

The art of portraiture approached its apex during the sixteenth century in Europe with the discovery of oil painting when the old masters developed and refined techniques that remain unsurpassed to this day. The ascendance of nonrepresentational art in the middle of the twentieth century displaced these venerable skills, especially in academic art circles. Fortunately for aspiring artists today who wish to learn the methods that allowed the Old Masters to achieve the luminous color and subtle tonalities so characteristic of their work, this knowledge has been preserved in hundreds of small traditional painting ateliers that persevered in the old ways in this country and throughout the world. Richly illustrated with the work of preeminent masters such as Millet, Gericault, and van Gogh, as well as some of today’s leading portrait artists and featuring seven detailed step-by-step portrait demonstrations, portrait Painting Atelier is the first book in many years to so comprehensively cover the concepts and techniques of traditional portraiture.

Publisher: Watson Guptill
Date Published: 2010
Book Condition: Near fine hardcover with minimal wear to board edges. The dust jacket has minor edge wear. Previous owner’s name on the title page. Otherwise, a near fine, unmarked copy internally.