Creative Illustration Back In Print!

This week Titan Books released a reprinted facsimile edition of Andrew Loomis' Creative Illustration. Loomis' books have been popular for generations of artists and Creative Illustration is no exception. It has arguably been the most anticipated of Titan's four Loomis reprints and was long overdue.

Original volumes of Loomis' illustration masterwork have become difficult and expensive to come by since I got my copy for $35 some twenty years ago ( but Amazon's current price for the new hardcover edition is below what I paid then!). For years, copies have been selling on the Internet from anywhere between $100 for a well worn copy to $300 for one in prime condition.

I have featured excerpts from Creative illustration many times here on my blog and still hold it up as the standard by which all instructional illustration books should be judged. Loomis effectively breaks down the process of creating a picture into logical chapters dealing with concepts such as line, tone and color.

Even after over twenty years as a freelance artist, I find Loomis' insights into picture creation valid and instructional. If I were to recommend just a single volume to someone on the subject of creating illustration, this book would have to be on top of the list.

Much of the original version was printed in black and white, so I am excited to get a new copy of Creative Illustration that is reported to include a whole new full color section on working with color.

Order your copy of Creative Illustration by Andrew Loomis right here:

Previous Posts for Creative Illustration on Life Needs Art:
Loomis on Toning a Color Palette
Composition Based on Numbers and Letters
Creating Visual Balance
Eye Path Reverse Analysis

Composition Based On Shapes and Letters

Compositions can be based on many different shapes as demonstrated in Creative Illustration by Andrew Loomis. When thinking about possible compositions, it is sometimes helpful to analyze your subject by mentally breaking it down into it's most basic shape and form. Doing so will allow you to create a simplified map for where you want to take your composition.

Creative Illustration is out of print and expensive but a PDF version is posted here.

Creating Visual Balance

Back cover for Jack Black and the Ship of Thieves- 8" x 8" , acrylic

Finding balance in your composition can be a tricky process. One rule of thumb that is helpful to keep in mind is the fulcrum and lever principle. Once again I pull a page from  Creative Illustration by Andrew Loomis to illustrate the concept. The value of creating appropriate distance between compositional elements is evidenced in his sketches. A basic rule is to have the larger heavier object nearer the center of the composition and the smaller object further away from the "balance point".  If the two objects are of similar size and shape then overlapping the two forms can add interest to the composition.

From Creative Illustration by Andrew Loomis

In the back cover spot illustration at the top, I  used the smaller scale of the plane to balance the larger forms of the ship's smokestacks. I broke the "keep the larger elements toward the center" rule in order to add drama and keep the plane the center of focus. The simplicity of the smoke and sky shapes against the complexity of the plane also provides a nice visual counterpoint. Obviously no rules are set in stone, but if something looks wrong or out of balance to me, I look at changing the scale, spacing or location a bit until things look right.

Overlapping Forms to Create Depth

Poster for New Mexico Museum of Natural History

by Greg Newbold - acrylic on board

From Creative Illustration by Andrew Loomis

Continuing  a bit further with my Look at Andrew Loomis' Creative Illustration. I pulled a page that discussed the importance of overlapping form and contour in the arrangement of objects in the picture plane. Loomis insists and I agree that almost any subject can make a compelling picture if the forms are arranged in a visually pleasing way. I was looking back though my work to find a piece that strongly illustrates this principle and I found this piece I did for the Natural history museum in Albuquerque, New Mexico. They held an exhibit of artifacts discovered by William Flinders Petrie, considered by many to be one of the fathers of modern archaeology. The character of Indiana Jones was based partially on his persona, including the fedora. I used a lot of overlapping objects in the composition both to add depth as well as compress the picture space enough to allow numerous objects to be shown within the frame.

Loomis PDF

Eye Path Reverse Analysis

Autumn Rhapsody- Acrylic; 12" x 19"

Discussion in my class recently have revolved around composition and one of the things that came up was the importance of creating an eye path in your work. A composition should take the viewer on a visual journey through the piece. There should be logical points of emphasis and uncomfortable pauses, starts, stops and "eye traps" should be avoided. I frequently seem to fall back on my old favorite Creative Illustration by Andrew Loomis to explain these concepts.

From Creative illustration by Andrew Loomis- click to enlarge

This page in the book discusses the importance of a comfortable eye path, which if done correctly will effortlessly guide your viewer through the piece, prompting them to linger where you want and then continue on and enjoy secondary points of interest along the way.

I thought it would be interesting to do this same sort of analysis on one of my own pieces. Sort of a "reverse engineering" of my composition. In hind sight it was interesting to discover that in this piece from The Touch of the Master's Hand picture book I indeed followed the important guidelines laid out by Loomis. One such essential tool is to have elements that stop the eye from going out of the picture plane, or if something does lead you off, make sure there is another place where logical re-entry occurs. Of course there are other elements to creating a successful visual journey such as hierarchy of values among others, but understanding that as an artist you have complete control of the visual journey your viewer takes is a great first step toward powerful composition.

Creative Illustration PDF at Alex Hays' website

Loomis on Toning a Color Palette

The first project in my Intro to Illustration class this semester calls for incorporating a "toned" palette. Some of my students asked for a more in depth explanation of how this is done. One of my all time favorite descriptions on how to do this is contained in the long out of print Creative Illustration by Andrew Loomis. His brief but meaty description on how to incorporate a toned palette into your work is above. Notice that only one color in the mix stays pure- the toner color itself. As you mix in the chosen color, all the other colors shift toward that color, thus creating a unifying effect.

The key to creating color unity in a toned palette is to not overdo the amount mixed into the various other colors. To heavy a hand will result in muddy, monochromatic color. You will notice the influence of the toner color in the skin tones of each of Loomis' examples, yet the flesh tones feel totally natural in context. I frequently use a "toner color" to unify my color scheme. I think Creative Illustration is a must read for any illustrator, or artist for that matter. I found my copy of  for $30 about eighteen years ago after a lengthy search. It's still available, but no longer so affordable. If you can't find or afford it, PDF facsimiles are available online as well.