Knowing how to use a brush properly is essential for effective oil painting. Brushwork Essentials provides detailed, easy-to-follow instructions on how to master brush techniques. Step-by-step demonstrations and complementary artwork highlight each brushstroke as it appears on the canvas.

Readers can find detailed instructions on how to render expressive form and texture using the myriad shapes and types of brushes available. The many topics covered in this book include:

• How to use different strokes to achieve specific effects, such as lighting and shadowing
• Mixing and loading paint
• Cleaning and shaping brushes for maximum control
• The mechanics of holding a brush
• Wet-into-wet application of paint on canvas
• Picking the right paint for specific types of strokes
• The differences between smooth brushwork and a scumbled painted surface

Color photographs show the exact premise behind each of the author's lessons — for example, what the paint looks like when you vary the consistency with solvents or mediums.

Illustrations are followed by images of the author's own award-winning, highly refined paintings, which reinforce the specific points discussed.

There's much valuable information presented here, but the tone of Brushwork Essentials is humorous and lighthearted.

Author — Mark Chris Weber.

Paperback. 144 pages. 8½" × 11" (22 cm × 28 cm).