Watercolors by Winslow Homer: The Color of Light (Art Institute of Chicago)

I am a painter & Love Homer’s work, especially his botanicals in the tropics (this book has limited amount of those) but he was self taught and invented out of necessity.The print quality is fine but the real essence for me is unraveling his masterfultechnique

As a painter and an art educator, I have an abundance of books on paintings, painters and technique. This book beautifully combines all three and somehow transcends every other book on Winslow Homer or professional watercolor technique that I've experienced. Of course, it isn't a primer on watercolor; it is a scholarly, yet very accessible, treatise on the watermedia artwork of one of my two favorite American painters (Sargent being the other).Besides, the book is gorgeous. The plates are excellent, readily conjuring up both the ruggedness and the lyricism of Homer's technique, as well as the abstraction in the realism, and the metaphor threaded throughout his work.

I had originally checked out this book from the library, but found the descriptions and explanations of Winslow Homer's techniques so thorough and understandable that I wanted to buy the book for my permanent use. Bonus: The seller sent it much more quickly than I had expected!

For those of us who revere Homer as a great American artist and who particularly love his watercolors, this book is what we've waited for. I only wish some of the details and close-ups (which are stunning!) were larger.One reviewer said that her watercolor teacher is considering a course with this book as a basis. Great idea. I've taught watercolor at Fullerton College for sixteen semesters and I would love to do the same. For years my students and I have conjectured on how Homer worked. This book answers almost every question that can be answered. And the reproductions are excellent. And the work is breathtaking.

In my opinion, probably one of the finest books on any subject. The title says it all. As a professional Watercolor Artist, I am not interested in what the Artist had for breakfast or whether or not he loved his mother. I want to learn what Homer did and how he did it. Ms. Tedeschi has done precisely that. She and her associates at the Chicago Art Institute have done meticulous research on his technique and materials as well as composition. In depth discussion of the paper, pigments and even brush strokes the Artist used are valuable learning tools. For any Artist interested in the long term preservation of their work, this book can provide food for thought. I would highly recommend this book for every watercolor Artist. It also provides insight into the difficulties an Artist faces for the non-Artist that appreciates quality work and the effort it takes to create that work.