The next prompt of 21 Days in my Art World is Art Books. I have my fair share of art books on my bookshelf in my studio and discovered that I actually have many more scattered around the house. No big surprise there, I’m a mess*. So that means this isn’t a comprehensive visual list.
You also may notice I cram a lot of other crap into my bookshelves besides books. 😬 *See sentence above.
Art Books
My art books. That’s today’s prompt for the #21daysinmyartworld I don’t really have a lot I don’t feel, a few cool technique types and some more geared at art philosophy. I can’t say there’s a favorite and I haven’t bought one in a long time. These are not quite all of them. But I will tell you of a book I read as a young girl that has stuck with me till this day. It was probably as far back as 7th or 8th grade and it must’ve been the early 1980’s. I discovered a book by Robin McKinley about the re-telling of Beauty and the Beast, my favorite fairy tale. It was simply called “Beauty”. It was on the Omar reading list, I remember that. I can recall looking at the cover and thinking of how beautiful it was. But inside… inside was magic. So much more beautiful than the cover. The way she was able to describe the surroundings set my artist mind into overdrive. I think I may have read it three or four times getting even more out of it with each read. It was rich with visuals for my brain and creativity, using only words. I can still remember the imagery that filled my head as I read. I still have that paperback somewhere because hello… Hoarder. I think I’ll try and find it to read again. That young girl turned out to be able to create her own magical world with art and I’m so thankful for that gift. #jaimehaneyartist#aboutme
More about my art books
I’ve read most of these but not all. I don’t really have a favorite but I did really enjoy “I’ll run till the sun goes down”. It’s more of a auto-biography by a fellow artist and friend David Sandum. He has dealt with depression and anxiety all of his life and this is about how it’s affected him, his art and his family. It was very sobering and thought provoking.
Some are just books showing off the artist/author’s artwork with thoughts about each piece, which I enjoy. Others are technique books, most of which I’ve never even tried but still find interesting none the less. I also have reference books like the big book of North American Birds given to me as a Christmas present by my dad when I started painting crows and ravens. I’ve used that often.
Sprinkled in is my collection of astrology and other woo woo books which I love. My mom gave me the love of astrology very early in my life and it’s stuck. I wrote a post once about all of the Moon Sign books I have, many that were hers dating back to the early 1980’s. You can see that post here. I’ve since added to that collection as I buy a moon sign book each new year.
I’ve got drawing books, books on color and color mixing, books on design, books on painting, colored pencil books, different types of art books and inspiration books. All get a flip through every now and then. Just yesterday I was flipping through one that caught my eye while puttering around in my studio during this new and strange quarantine most of us are practicing.
Oh one or two more things. First I have actually bought a new book since this was originally posted on Instagram. I bought a book by my friend and author/artist Joni Mayhan. It’s called Hanover Haunting The DeAnna Simpson Story. I’ve done quite a few paranormal investigations with Joni and she’s a very good writer and all around interesting person. She told me a bit about this house when she was writing this book and I can’t wait to read more about it. I’ve read several of her books and they’re all very good.
Secondly, I have another book on my list and just haven’t bought it yet but plan to. It’s a book by another author friend Lisa Stowe of The Story River blog and it’s called This Deep Panic. It’s a suspense novel about what happens after an earthquake unleashes something ancient. Lisa has such a fantastic blog and I love her style of writing that I know it’s going to be a fabulous book.
If you’re a fan of reading and on goodreads.com, find me here.
Thanks for following along with my art journey. I hope you’re enjoying these posts I’m sharing from my Instagram account. I’d love to have you follow me over there. I’m at http://www.instagram.com/jaimehaney I’ve actually been more active over there and on my Facebook page than here on my blog. It’s a little faster to post there than on my blog. I’ve got my latest works on there and haven’t yet shared them here, but I will. I have no intention of stopping this online journal I’ve been writing in for ten years now(!).
⬅︎ More 21 Days & Hoosier Salon Gallery Opening
Learn more about me on the ‘About’ page
under the additional links menu. I’m an artist – a painter mostly and
an avid gardener. I paint a variety of subjects including birds, koi
fish, my gardens, ponds and flowers as well as anything having to do
with nature especially trees and tropical scenes. I
also enjoy painting abstracts and have started created more and more of
them. My most favorite thing to try to achieve in my painting is is
mystery and telling mystical stories.
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