[audiobook] The Artist's Complete Guide to Facial Expression by Gary Faigin at Arts-Photography

Review

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Great instruction. poor reproduction of the artworkBy Brooks HarrisonGreat instruction. poor reproduction of the artwork. Previous reviewers mentioned this issue. but when I checked the previews. this appeared to be an issue only with the soft cover. For those relying on those previews. the hardcover has the same overdrawn look as the softcover preview. Makes me wonder if these were switched. and the softcover actually provides a better reproduction of the artwork.12 of 13 people found the following review helpful. Dont judge this book by its cover!By C. MorganIm a sculptor. very interested in capturing expression. and have been looking for a good book of facial expressions for some time. I saw the title. ordered the book and was extremely disappointed when it arrived; the last thing I wanted was someone elses interpretations of facial muscles. I needed photographs of the real thing. so I set the book aside. intending to send it back.Then I took a class with a very well-known portrait sculptor. and was surprised to hear him recommend this same book. "But it only has pencil sketches!" I protested. "Shouldnt we use pictures of real people?""Forget photographs. You need to actually read the book. Have you?" he asked. "You must READ it. every page. This is the best facial reference for the sculptor that I have ever found."I followed his advice. and hes right. Faigin is an extremely talented sketch artist and his drawings will teach you a lot. but the accompanying text is really what makes this book work. Hes carefully catalogued what each of the muscle groups in the face is doing throughout the expression of an emotion. and the sketches simply show what hes talking about. The text explains WHY we recognize certain muscle positions as a particular expression. and helps us understand the relationships of muscles. tissue and skin when the face moves.Faigin starts with how facial muscles portray key emotions. then moves to comparisons of different muscle groups in subtler positions. For sculptors. it probably helps to have a 3D model of the facial muscles (in addition to a mirror) handy while reading this book. But its such a rich store of information that youll learn plenty without them.17 of 18 people found the following review helpful. Keeping it. but disappointedBy Shopper82I saw this book some years ago and finally broke down and ordered a copy March 2011. It seems to me that the printing quality has gone down. The tonal range of the bw reproductions is really murky. Like they took a copy of a copy and printed it on really cheap paper. Its still a useful book and you can try to get better reproductions of the the famous art work elsewhere. If your in a used bookstore and run across the old hardbound earlier edition. get it instead. Whoever was in charge of quality control needs a kick in the butt.September 2011 - I just wanted to add that in spite of the above criticisms this is a valuable addition my art book library. No one book seems to do it all.