This step-by-step book is divided into six chapters, each with seven daily exercises.  The Zentangle method was created by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas as a way to practice focus and meditation through drawing by using repetitive lines, marks, circles, and shapes. Each mark is called a "tangle," and you combine various tangles into patterns to create "tiles," or small square drawings. Each of the six chapters explores a different aspect of Zentangle:Basics and EnhancementsTangles and Value PatternsGeometric and Organic PatternsUnderstanding and Using ColorDefining and Using StyleCreating the Rest of Your Zentangle JourneyEach exercise includes new tangles to draw in sketchbooks or on Tiepolo (an Italian-made paper), teaches daily tile design, offers tips on related art principles, and contains an inspirational "ZIA" (Zentangle Inspired Art) project on a tile that incorporates patterns, art principals, and new techniques.   Drawing Zentangles is a relaxing and replenishing diversion that can be enjoyed by people of all ages and skill levels. In addition to its soothing benefits, a Zentangle practice can also help with self-image, phobias, addictions, pain management, conflict resolution, and coping with grief. Step away from the daily hustle and untangle with a Zentangle.

    The right knowledge can deepen the ability of this music to edify, enlighten, and stir the soul. In How to Listen to Great Music, Professor Robert Greenberg, a composer and music historian, presents a comprehensive, accessible guide to how music has mirrored Western history, that will transform the experience of listening for novice and long-time listeners alike. You will learn how to listen for key elements in different genres of music - from madrigals to minuets and from sonatas to symphonies-along with the enthralling history of great music from ancient Greece to the 20th century. You'll get answers to such questions as Why was Beethoven so important? How did the Enlightenment change music? And what's so great about opera anyway? How to Listen to Great Music will let you finally hear what you've been missing.

    Improve your drawing skills, expand your creativity, and learn new art techniques—and have loads of fun doing it!—with Drawing and Painting Imaginary Animals.

    Tamara’s kind, non-judgmental voice guides your way. What is holding you back? Where do you want to go? Let go of the past! Use these expressive exercises to help you recognize your personal challenges and other obstacles, then work through them. Let go of limiting beliefs, find courage, feel gratitude, heal pain, and develop self-love as you playfully create. Each themed chapter presents four to five two-part projects. First, you will explore a common issue that hampers creativity and/or positive self-worth. The second portion is a step-by-step mixed-media art project designed to help you work through that issue. Just a few of the explorations:Let go of what no longer serves you by taking stock of what’s holding you back, then create a zentangle butterfly to symbolize you flying away from those limiting things.Embrace and love your inner quirky bird by taking an inventory of your quirky traits, then create a bird that celebrates them.Heal old wounds by writing a letter to yourself as a child, then create a house to keep your inner child safe.Adding rich variety to the messages and art inspiration, some of the project outlines have been contributed by Tamara's guest teachers: Roxanne Coble, Andrea Gomoll, Alena Hennessy, Mystele Kirkeeng, Ivy Newport, and Effy Wild, each of whom are noted mixed-media artists in their own right. The final chapter presents a simple binding method for creating a keepsake book of your Life Book projects. Steeped in inspirational images and uplifting affirmations, Create Your Life Book can help you achieve both personal and creative growth.

    Art has been replaced by postart, a term invented by Alan Kaprow, as a new visual category that elevates the banal over the enigmatic, the scatological over the sacred, cleverness over creativity. Tracing the demise of aesthetic experience to the works and theory of Marcel Duchamp and Barnett Newman, Kuspit argues that devaluation is inseparable from the entropic character of modern art, and that anti-aesthetic postmodern art is in its final state. In contrast to modern art, which expressed the universal human unconscious, postmodern art degenerates into an expression of narrow ideological interests. In reaction to the emptiness and stagnancy of postart, Kuspit signals the aesthetic and human future that lies with the old masters. The End of Art points the way to the future for the visual arts. Donald Kuspit is Professor of Art History at SUNY Stony Brook. A winner of the Frank Jewett Mather Award for Distinction in Art Criticism, Professor Kuspit is a Contributing Editor at Artforum, Sculpture and New Art Examiner. His most recent book is The Cult of the Avant-Garde (Cambridge, 1994).

    You don't need worry about messing up techniques you've never attempted before inside your raw-art journal. You just need to be you because raw art is you and it thrives on creative play, on experimentation and even on making mistakes.Raw Art Journaling will teach you how to embrace your art, confront negative self-talk (a.k.a., your gremlin) and make meaning with your words and with your art. Inside Raw Art Journaling you'll discover how to:Write meaningful thoughts with a single sentenceCreate thought-provoking poems through found poetryUncover images hidden in your photosMake personal meaning with the simplest of linesFinally feel free to make mistakesUse clever techniques to keep your secrets secretQuiet your gremlin, grab your permission slip (it's on page 19) and start making meaning in your own raw-art journal today!

    Like a bizarro-world Norman Rockwell, he created magazine covers of Frankenstein, the Creature from the Black Lagoon. the Phantom of the Opera, and countless others in horrifying yet dazzling images throughout the 1960s and '70s. His intense colour and bold, impressionistic brushwork gave a unique sense of drama and sophistication to these iconic characters. Today, collectors fight over his original art--but, with this book, every fan can own glowing full-colour reproductions of his most famous work as well as many previously unpublished paintings and drawings.

    There's something to make for everybody, including all the beloved "little creatures" in your life. Your pup will look adorable in the Haute Dawg Doggie Sweater, and your favorite princess will adore the Teacup Jumper with the playful mouse finger puppet tucked in the pocket. There are plenty of projects for grown-ups, too, like the Rainbow Bag with rows of colorful waves and the Rustic Throw with reverse applique leaves.The best thing about these projects is how easy they are to make and there's no knitting involved! Simply throw old wool sweaters into the wash, then cut them apart to sew into felted goodies.Start with the sweet Cupcake Pincushions–they're so easy, and so very cute!"

    This easy, breezy handbook is full of insight that will help regular people begin a more inspiring and less stressful relationship with art. With tips on how to visit museums, how to talk about art at cocktail parties, and how to let art wake you up to the world around you, this little guide makes it possible for anyone to fall in love with art, whether for the first time or all over again.

    Whether you re a beginner, a student, or a career artist looking to be in the best museum shows, this book provides ways of advancing your plans on any level. Making It in the Art World is an invaluable resource for artists at every stage, offering readers a plethora of strategies and helpful tips to plan and execute a successful artistic career. Topics include how to evaluate your own work, how to submit art, how to present work to the public, how to avoid distractions in the studio, and much more.

    This colourful, exciting book offers a rich source of stimulating and innovative ideas that will appeal to all abilities.

    Freehand breaks down basic drawing techniques into bite-sized chunks, and reveals their practical application in dazzling examples by today's coolest artists. Over 200 innovative works of art demonstrate all the fundamentals—line, tone, composition, texture, and more—and are presented alongside friendly text explaining the simple techniques used to achieve each stylish effect. The final section of the book offers aspiring artists essential reference materials to hone their drafting skills and practice what they've learned. Petite in size but comprehensive in scope, this hip handbook will teach artists of all skill levels how to find their personal drawing style and start making amazing sketches.

    The result is an explosion of amazing new work by contemporary artists. This volume surveys the current revival of this loveliest of mediums, in portfolios from more than 20 of today's top watercolor artists from around the globe. From the evocative visual journals of Danny Gregory and Fabrice Moireau, through the fashion-inspired portraits of Samantha Hahn and Virginia Johnson, to the indie art stylings of Jane Mount and Becca Stadtlander, Watercolor stunningly showcases painterly brilliance. With artist profiles, an informative history of the medium, and an inspiring preface by DailyCandy's Sujean Rim, this is the guide to a beautiful revolution.

    An unprecedented blend of science and art, Daniel Levitin's debut, This Is Your Brain on Music, delighted readers with an exuberant guide to the neural impulses behind those songs that make our heart swell. Now he showcases his daring theory of "six songs," illuminating how the brain evolved to play and listen to music in six fundamental forms—for knowledge, friendship, religion, joy, comfort, and love. Preserving the emotional history of our lives and of our species, from its very beginning music was also allied to dance, as the structure of the brain confirms; developing this neurological observation, Levitin shows how music and dance enabled the social bonding and friendship necessary for human culture and society to evolve. Blending cutting-edge scientific findings with his own sometimes hilarious experiences as a musician and music-industry professional, Levitin's sweeping study also incorporates wisdom gleaned from interviews with icons ranging from Sting and Paul Simon to Joni Mitchell, and David Byrne, along with classical musicians and conductors, historians, anthropologists, and evolutionary biologists. The result is a brilliant revelation of the prehistoric yet elegant systems at play when we sing and dance at a wedding or cheer at a concert—or tune out quietly with an iPod.

    But that is all about to change... Two years after his parents’ sudden disappearance, Ben Greenwood stumbles upon a cryptic letter that could shed some light on their whereabouts. But before he can track them down, he’ll need to find the mysterious organization that sent the letter: The Royal Institute of Magic. To succeed, he'll have to navigate a land filled with fantastic creatures and spellshooters, where magic can be bought and sold, to unravel an ancient family secret that could hold the key to defeating an evil the Institute has been fighting for the last five hundred years. Royal Institute of Magic is a middle grade fantasy series that appeals to both young and adult audiences who enjoy magic, mystery and adventure. This bundle includes: - Book 1: Elizabeth's Legacy - Book 2: The Shadowseeker - Book 3: The Protectors - Plus a sneak peak of book 4!