Books We Recommend
(With links to Amazon.com)
There is no single, perfect reference book for the visual art student. But some volumes get close! with broad ideas, inspiring drawings, brilliant technical information and insights that enhance our perception of visual ideas and experiences. In our experience as artists and teachers, we have found it best to make the most of each book we have, but stay open to other's concepts. This approach will broaden your understanding, by using the resources available, as reciprocal.
One anatomy book cannot give you everything that you need. "Artistic anatomy" treads into aesthetics and qualitiative judgements which can be illusive to purely pragmatic minds, concerned only with the in's and out's of each muscle. Authors always find different priorities, each have their blind spots and strengths. Sometimes the explanations do not enhance the diagrams, and other times the text and ideas are powerful but the drawings weak or unsatisfying.
The books selected below, we believe are the most practically useful and singular in their domain. The books below are reference or technical books only, there are no monographs by individual artists. The Atelier has all of these books in house and we refer to them in classes. Books which are out of print and out of copyright can be downloaded for free on the internet. For items below whose copyright has expired, the Atelier possesses digital copies of which we pass onto students.
Atelier Art Classes
Classical Life Drawing Studio: Lessons & Teachings in the Art of Figure Drawing (The Art Students League of New York)
by James Lancel McElhinney, Instructors of the Arts Students League of New York
Classical Life Drawing Studio on Amazon.com
Die Gestalt des Menschen
by Gottfried Bammes
Die Gestalt Des Menschen on Amazon.com
Constructive Anatomy (Dover Books on Art Instruction)
by George B. Bridgman
Constructive Anatomy on Amazon.com
The Human Figure
by John H. Vanderpoel
The Human Figure on Amazon.com
The Artist's Guide to Human Anatomy
by Gottfried Bammes
The Artist's Guide To Human Anatomy on Amazon.com
The Artist's Complete Guide to Figure Drawing: A Contemporary Perspective on the Classical Tradition
by Anthony Ryder
The Artist's Complete Guide to Figure Drawing on Amazon.com
Drawing to See
by Nathan Goldstein, Harriet Fishman
Drawing to see on Amazon.com
Art of Responsive Drawing, The (6th Edition)
by Nathan Goldstein
The Art of Responsive Drawing on Amazon.com
Figure Drawing: The Structure, Anatomy and Expressive Design of the Human Form, 6th Edition
by Nathan Goldstein
Figure Drawing: The Structure, Anatomy and Expressive Design of the Human Form on Amazon.com
Design and Composition
by Nathan Goldstein
Design and Composition on Amazon.com
Classical Drawing Atelier: A Contemporary Guide to Traditional Studio Practice
by Juliette Aristides
Classical Drawing Atelier on Amazon.com
Classical Painting Atelier: A Contemporary Guide to Traditional Studio Practice
by Juliette Aristides
Classical Painting Atelier on Amazon.com
Modelling and Sculpting the Human Figure
by Edouard Lanteri
Modelling and Sculpting the Human Figure on Amazon.com
Modelling and Sculpting Animals
by Edouard Lanteri
Modelling and Sculpting Animals on Amazon.com
Treatise on landscape painting
by Andre Lhote
Treatise on landscape painting on Amazon.com
The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci Complete
by Leonardo da Vinci
Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci Complete on Amazon.com
The Practice and Science of Drawing
by Harold Speed
The Practice and Science of Drawing on Amazon.com
Oil Painting Techniques and Materials
by Harold Speed
Oil Painting Techniques and Materials on Amazon.com
Imaginative Realism: How to Paint What Doesn't Exist
by James Gurney
Imaginative Realism on Amazon.com
Color and Light: A Guide for the Realist Painter
by James Gurney
The Key Muscles of Hatha Yoga
The Key Poses of Hatha Yoga
by Ray Long
These beautifully and extensively illustrated books written by an orthopedic surgeon give thorough explanation of the anatomy and biomechanics involved in the dramatic and often quite extreme poses of Hatha Yoga. They are intended for the Yoga practitioner or teacher, but are perfectly suited to anyone wrestling with the complexities of anatomy as it appears in the Life Class. Not only do they show where the muscles are located in each pose, some illustrations are colour coded to indicate which muscles are contracted and which are stretched. The text is lucid and succinct. There is also very clear introduction to anatomy terms and concepts in general, again, beautifully illustrated.
These books are not a replacement for the artists' anatomies mentioned below, but the scope of the poses and the depth and clarity of the images and discussion of each make this an extremely useful tool. On the website there are also rotating animations of the main poses and other free material. They have been extremely generous with sample pages, so you can know exactly what you are getting.
To purchase or explore the material, go to the Bandha Yoga website.