Oct 22 2007
Book Review: Marine Painter’s Guide by Jack Coggins
Marine Painter’s Guide by Jack Coggins – ISBN 0486449742 – I bought the book locally at Texas Art Supply – It is an “Unabridged Dover 2005 republication“. Mr Coggins (deceased) did a great job with the book and his paintings are terrific! I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. His extended family created the website.
Being a seascape artist, I am automatically drawn to books referencing painting the water or boats. Neither my boats nor my seascapes go into the kind of detail he puts into the book BUT … it is very helpful to read and learn about the details even if I never actually paint any of those details in my own paintings. It gave me a better appreciation for the depth of detail so many of the great seascape painters put into (OR LEFT OUT) of their paintings of the full masted sailing ships or schooners and those wonderful harbor scenes that are not my forte either. I love to see them and it is enjoyable to learn more about how they were created.
I believe this book is invaluable though for anyone who does paint or draw detailed ships and/or harbor scenes – what you can learn about rigging and masts as well as sails and harbors will help infuse a lot of realism into your work even if you paint abstract seascapes. Sometimes, knowing what to suggest or to leave out of a painting is what makes the difference between a masterpiece and a so-so okay but not quite right painting. I found it quite helpful to see his value sketches in the book and how he portrays rain in those sketches … rain is hard to portray in any medium I think. The book is full of sketches, paintings and more information than I could ever hope to learn yet I eagerly read every word, studied each sketch and painting – now you know why I haven’t written much recently – I have been busy studying, enjoying and following the wisp of inspiration that has visited me with reading and studying this book.
NOTE: After moving in September, my computer died too – I finally bought a new one but this book keeps drawing me back to study the sketches some more. The lighthouses are fascinating too!
