Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter


James Gurney - 2010
    This art instruction book will accompany the acclaimed Imaginative Realism: How to Paint What Doesn't Exist.James Gurney, New York Times best-selling author and artist of the Dinotopia series, follows Imaginative Realism with his second art-instruction book, Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter. A researched study on two of art's most fundamental themes, Color and Light bridges the gap between abstract theory and practical knowledge. Beginning with a survey of underappreciated masters who perfected the use of color and light, the book examines how light reveals form, the properties of color and pigments, and the wide variety of atmospheric effects. Gurney cuts though the confusing and contradictory dogma about color, testing it in the light of science and observation. A glossary, pigment index, and bibliography complete what will ultimately become an indispensable tool for any artist.This book is the second in a series based on his blog, gurneyjourney.com. His first in the series, Imaginative Realism, was widely acclaimed in the fantastical art world, and was ranked the #1 Bestseller on the Amazon list for art instruction."James Gurney's new book, Color and Light, cleverly bridges the gap between artistic observation and scientific explanation. Not only does he eloquently describe all the effects of color and light an artist might encounter, but he thrills us with his striking paintings in the process." --Armand Cabrera, Artist

Creative Block: Get Unstuck, Discover New Ideas. Advice Projects from 50 Successful Artists


Danielle Krysa - 2014
    No longer! This chunky blockbuster of a book is chock-full of solutions for overcoming all manner of artistic impediment. The blogger behind The Jealous Curator interviews 50 successful international artists working in different mediums and mines their insights on how to conquer self-doubt, stay motivated, and get new ideas to flow. Each artist offers a tried-and-true exercise—from road trips to 30-day challenges to cataloging the medicine cabinet— that will kick-start the creative process. Abundantly visual with more than 300 images showcasing these artists' resulting work, Creative Block is a vital ally to students, artists, and creative professionals.

Werner's Nomenclature of Colours: Adapted to Zoology, Botany, Chemistry, Mineralogy, Anatomy, and the Arts


Patrick Syme - 1814
    This new edition brings the classic work back to life.In the late eighteenth century, mineralogist Abraham Gottlob Werner devised a standardized color scheme that allowed him to describe even the subtlest of chromatic differences with consistent terminology. His scheme was then adapted by an Edinburgh flower painter, Patrick Syme, who used the actual minerals described by Werner to create the color charts in the book, enhancing them with examples from flora and fauna.In the pre-photographic age, almost all visual details had to be captured via the written word, and scientific observers could not afford ambiguity in their descriptions. Werner's handbook became an invaluable resource for naturalists and anthropologists, including Charles Darwin, who used it to identify colors in nature during his seminal voyage on the HMS Beagle. Werner's terminology lent both precision and lyricism to Darwin's pioneering writings, enabling his readers to envision a world they would never see.Werner's Nomenclature of Colours is a charming artifact from the golden age of natural history and global exploration. This beautiful pocket-size facsimile is certain to delight and inform a new generation of artists and scientists.

Picturing and Poeting: Picturing and Poeting


Alan Fletcher - 2006
    Follow-up volume to the best-selling The Art of Looking Sideways, Picturing and Poeting is the latest collection of mind-bending images and creative wordplay from Alan Fletcher, one of the most internationally influential figures in graphic design.

Nebula


L.E. Miranda - 2021
    In order to save himself and others, Liam must reach his full potential as the last hope.He must become the last shining star that guides his people.This is the story of a man's desperate attempts to save humanity from certain extinction, as well as find out who's behind it all. He dreams of creating a fairer, more just reality and through the System, finds a ray of hope. Follow his journey as he struggles to build up his power while withstanding the trials of Fate.

Even So


Lauren B. Davis - 2021
    Angela Morrison has it all. She’s married to a wealthy man, adores her son, grows orchids, and volunteers at Our Daily Bread Food Pantry. What more could she want? More — much more. And she’s willing to risk everything after meeting Carsten, the landscaper with the glacier-blue eyes. Sister Eileen, who runs Our Daily Bread Food Pantry, struggles with the silence of God and harbours a secret she believes is unforgivable. She yearns to convince Angela she is loved by God, despite her selfishness and destructive behaviour, but in order for that to be authentic Eileen must learn to love her first, and that’s no easy task — especially after Angela causes a terrible tragedy. Through the crucible of their relationship, Angela and Eileen discover how caring for the most difficult among us and practising forgiveness, no matter how painful, opens a door to the miracle of transformation.

Frontier City: Toronto on the Verge of Greatness


Shawn Micallef - 2017
    It began as a series of reports from the civic drama of the 2014 elections. But beyond the municipal circus, writer and commentator Shawn Micallef discovered the much bigger story of a city emerging into greatness. He walked and talked with candidates from all over Greater Toronto, and observed how they energized their communities, never shying away from the problems that exist within them -- poverty, violence, racism, and drugs -- but advocating solutions that bring people together. Shawn Micallef introduces us to those fighting for a more inclusive vision of Toronto and reveals the promise and potential for a city that has been suffering through a severe identity crisis but is now on a steep upturn. Toronto, he says, is set fair to be a new urban model for cities all over the world. Micallef reveals Toronto in all its rich variety. It is hard, he says, to grasp the vast size and scope of Toronto until you spend a few hours walking through unfamiliar neighbourhoods. Each reveals another adjacent to it, and then another, and another. The city goes on and on, into unheralded ravines and oblique views of the downtown skyline. Hiding in all that geography is not only great beauty, but a force for change that's been building for decades as people arrived here from every corner of the globe. Frontier City is a revelatory view of the Toronto of today and an inspiring vision of the Toronto of the near future.From the Hardcover edition.

Learning from Henri Nouwen and Vincent Van Gogh: A Portrait of the Compassionate Life


Carol A. Berry - 2019
    At the request of Henri Nouwen's literary estate, she has written this book, which includes unpublished material recorded from Nouwen's lectures. As an art educator, Berry is uniquely situated to develop Nouwen's work on Vincent van Gogh and to add her own research. She fills in background on the much misunderstood spiritual context of van Gogh's work, and reinterprets van Gogh's art (presented here in full color) in light of Nouwen's lectures. Berry also brings in her own experience in ministry, sharing how Nouwen and van Gogh, each in his own way, led her to the richness and beauty of the compassionate life.

Niagara Motel


Ashley Little - 2016
    He and his mother move from motel to motel until, one night in Niagara Falls, his mother is hit by a car after falling asleep in the street.Tucker is sent to live in a youth group home where he meets Meredith, a pregnant sixteen-year-old with hopes of her own; he convinces her to join him on a road trip across the border to America in order to find his father, which takes them from Boston to the west coast. Along the way they encounter some of the most notorious criminals of the 1990s, and arrive in Los Angeles just as the Rodney King riots are unfolding.His cross-country search becomes an epic depiction of mid-90s America at a crossroads as seen through the eyes of a boy, for whom finding his father is the one thing that will make him whole. Told in spare, straightforward prose, Niagara Motel is a biting chronicle during the rise of mass-media in the decade that defined the MTV Generation, and the bittersweet story of a young boy who must learn hard lessons on his way to becoming a man.Ashley Little is the author of Anatomy of a Girl Gang, winner of the Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize and longlisted for the Dublin IMPAC Literary Award.

A Song for Nettie Johnson


Gloria Sawai - 2001
    As Sawai deftly turns over the stones of these people's lives and reveals the squalor, the fear and the unhappiness that lie beneath, she also uncovers that most precious of human qualities - hope.

Creating Art at the Speed of Life: 30 Days of Mixed-Media Exploration


Pam Carriker - 2013
    Create your own art journal while using a variety of mixed-media techniques and explore seven important elements of art:ColorTextureShapeSpaceDepthMark makingAnd shadingAn art-making workshop in a book, Creating Art at the Speed of Life offers a 30-day syllabus, introducing and exploring each element in a series of exercises, complete with worksheets to help you evaluate your work and make it more successful and satisfying.In an -open studio- at the end of each chapter, well-known contributing artists share inspirational work focused on that chapter's element. With Pam's lessons and advice on how to assess your artwork, you will experiment and grow into a more confident artist.

Memoirs of Montparnasse


John Glassco - 1973
    It is also the best and liveliest of the many chronicles of 1920s Paris and the exploits of the lost generation. In 1928, nineteen-year-old John Glassco escaped Montreal and his overbearing father for the wilder shores of Montparnasse. He remained there until his money ran out and his health collapsed, and he enjoyed every minute of his stay. Remarkable for their candor and humor, Glassco’s memoirs have the daft logic of a wild but utterly absorbing adventure, a tale of desire set free that is only faintly shadowed by sadness at the inevitable passage of time.

A Lesser Photographer: Escape the Gear Trap and Focus on What Matters


C.J. Chilvers - 2018
    Less gear. Less anxiety. Less stress. Less fear. A Lesser Photographer is the missing guide you've always wanted to the only gear that really matters: the gear between your ears. In under an hour, you’ll be able to identify the myths you’ve been taught about photography and embrace useful creative habits that will set you apart. Praise for previous editions: “For something beautiful and well-said, check out A Lesser Photographer.” — David duChemin “Amazing read…I really recommend everyone get a copy.” — Chris Marquardt “CJ Chilvers reevaluates what it means to be a photographer in this manifesto. Most of the points apply to virtually any creative endeavor or obsession. ‘The real show is outside the viewfinder.’” — Jim Coudal “I have to say, CJ has a great attitude. If you care at all about photography, he’s a must read.” — Patrick Rhone “Every photographer should follow CJ Chilvers.” — Eric Kim

Randy Bachman's Vinyl Tap Stories


Randy Bachman - 2011
    Writing music and lyrics, performing live and recording #1 songs, producing new music, organizing reunion tours—Randy has done it all. Music is his life, and his anecdotes put you at the centre of it all.These are his best stories. Even with all his success Randy is “still that kid from Winnipeg,” and his enthusiasm for great music is as strong as ever. Hear how after years of dreaming Randy finally got to see his musical heroes, The Shadows, play live, and then got to record a Shadows tribute song with longtime friend Neil Young. Encounters with celebrities and rock legends abound, but it is the music that is the driving force behind his extraordinary career, and what brings us back for more stories from Randy’s Vinyl Tap.

The Promise


Ida Linehan Young - 2019
    At the tender age of sixteen, a ruthless act leaves her shattered and struggling for survival. When all she has is her word, she makes a solemn vow to three small children. But circumstances drastically change, and the promise could take years to fulfill. She fears it might be better broken. When her past must be confronted, Erith finds herself facing unbearable choices that might cost her everything. Enduring self-doubt pushes Erith to her breaking point. Will she allow hope and kindness to guide her, or will it be safer to remain captive in the grip of her unfortunate past?