Start Painting Now
Emily Powell and Sarah Moore
Pan Macmillan
Review: Karen Watkins
Just in time for the end of year holidays comes this comprehensive colourful hard cover book offering inspiring ideas for those wanting to explore their artistic potential.
From paint to paper, brushes to brooms these two sisters include chapters on “fear of failure” and “no more excuses”. There’s another section on stretching yourself that covers going big, going inside and going outside. Chapters take you through the painting journey from getting started to showing your work and everything in between.
“We firmly believe that art is for everyone and painting is a source of joy”, writes contemporary British painter, Powell and medical doctor, Moore.
As children they would often be found around a kitchen table with their mum after school drawing and painting, cutting and sticking. Their dad enjoyed painting watercolours in his spare time – a medium the sisters don’t use much as it is hard to get intense colour.
If you consider yourself creative and have always had a voice in the back of your head saying you are not good enough take the plunge, the authors will guide you through the process of freeing you from your inner critic.
The beautiful, brightly-illustrated book is mostly abstract art. If you are not a fan of this style have no fear.
The authors have integrated stories from 12 accomplished female artists from around the world, what we can learn from them and examples of their work and different styles.
These sections are followed by fun exercises that are based on emotions and feelings to express through drawing. There is also an element of self-discovery.
The book will trigger insights that you subconsciously know but it helps to put them into words. It is definitely a kind of art therapy. If you are already painting but are willing to explore different techniques this book will encourage you to try something new.
At first glance the weird transition from first person to third person is annoying. As is the arrangement of the book and yet reading it everything comes together and makes sense.
Reading a chapter or two a day, the structure and energy are infectious.
By the end it left me motivated to have a go at painting a mural on my house. Let’s see!
