Sketch!: The Non-Artist's Guide to Inspiration, Technique, and Drawing Daily Life by France Belleville-Van Stone

Book Description:  An inspirational manual for integrating sketching into daily life for artists and non-artists alike. 

     Urban sketching--the process of sketching on the go as a regular practice--is a hot trend in the drawing world. In this aspirational guide, French artist France Belleville-Van Stone offers motivation to move beyond the comfort zone, as well as instruction on turning rough sketches into finished work. By sharing her own creative process, which includes sketching by hand and digitally, Belleville-Van Stone emboldens readers to craft a method of their own and devote more time to art, even if it's just 10 minutes a day. Sketch will inspire artists both established and aspiring to rethink their daily practice, sketch for the pure joy of it, and document their lives and the world around them.

My Thoughts:  I've always been interested in sketching or drawing; however, I can't seem to "get it."  I'm a crafty person and can decorate and place colors together but this sketching/drawing "thing" just never came to me.  

Well, this year  I am determined to learn but don't have the time to go to a class so when I saw this book Sketch!: The Non-Artist's Guide to Inspiration, Technique, and Drawing Daily Life by France Belleville-Van Stone I knew this was my chance!

Also, the title caught my attention:  The Non-Artist's Guide to Inspiration, Technique, and Drawing Daily Life...well, that's me...a non-artist.

This book does delve into the art/drawing instruction (and there are some great pointers/instructions).  The book is more about (don't laugh) making mistakes.  Yes, getting out paper and pencil/pen and sketching!  Make mistakes!  Go back and redo!  Love it!  Kind.of.like.life!  Make mistakes and then do better!  Learn, learn, learn!

I love this quote from the book, “If talent exists, my definition of it is this: it is the capacity to spend innumerable hours doing something and believe that somehow it matters. And perhaps if somehow God had a hand in it, it was in planting that tenacity in us.”

And yes, I've made some progress...I think I'll keep referencing this book and keep Sketching!

*This book was provided for review by Waterbrook/Multonmah*

• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Watson-Guptill (November 4, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385346093
• ISBN-13: 978-0385346092
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 0.5 x 9 inches