Great Teacher, Great Master
I never met Andrew Loomis. Never talked to him either, but he was one of the most influential men in my life. He wrote the book Creative Illustration. His book was given to me by my art teacher Mrs. Payne, when I was about 10 years old. Stamped inside is my maiden name, documenting just how long I’ve had it and reminding me of how it came to me. The book is amazing and contains text and pictures that I still refer to. I see dozens of lessons on color theory and composition reproduced by other artists in their own books that are just like those in his book. It seems like he had a lot of influence on a lot of artists. Just another example of an artist standing behind us as we paint and teach. So lovely. This book is a boundless treasure.
I really use this book. When I was young, I poured over it and used every page, either by drawing or painting copies of the plates. As an art teacher, I use his examples of composition, color and perspective. I used this book like no other in my library, so much so, that I’d worn the binding and the pages were slipping out. My dear mom, the librarian to the core, took it to a lady in Hillsboro, Oregon who repaired it for me. My mom told her that I wasn’t as concerned with it’s original condition as I was wanting to be able to continue to use the book. She did I wonderful job, so now it’s sturdy and I can leaf through it again as I have all these many years.
Thank you Mr. Loomis. Thank you Mrs. Payne. Thank you Mom.
I’ve seen a 1966 edition of this book on Amazon starting at about $200. Mine is a 1947 edition, but I image that the content is exactly the same. Here’s a link to Amazon. I think it’s a great investment!
With Warmest Regards,
Marla
