Workshop Review
I bought this DVD a while ago from M. Britton's website (same price!) and all I can say as a beginner is that it is worth every penny.
I learned a lot from handling drawing tools, to drawing techniques and anatomy.
As a European (educated in Italy) I found Mr Britton extremely professional and detailed when instructing, in other words, even though he makes the subject easy for you to follow, he doesn't talk down to you by dumming it down.
While you realize how much work is ahead of you to get to that kind of level, the process and the result of the portrait executed by his skilled and talented hands are absolutely inspiring, and doesn't allow you to quit or be discouraged.
From my point of view this DVD belongs to libraries! The quality of the DVD is very good!
Bravo monsieur!
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Workshop Review
I recently purchased Mastering Portrait Drawing and am absolutely, completely blown away by it! I attended art classes in the seventies and have ever since been searching for more direct and intensive art instruction. I am basically a landscape painter,however, I have recently been getting many requests for portraiture, especially children. While this DVD is for portraiture, I see an immediate improvement in my initial landscape layouts. I am leaving next week to go to Jackson Hole and spend 10 days in Grand Teton and Yellowstone parks to do alot of plein air painting and am eager to see if there is an immediate difference in my painting approach. Thank you so much for your dedication and superb instructional abilities!
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Workshop Review
First I wanted to let you know how much I have enjoyed your DVD's I recently purchased both the Portrait Drawing DVD and the Symphonic Composition. Both of these sets are absolutely the best instructional sets I own. Your instruction is understandable and comprehensive. Thank you for making these available for those of us unable to take your workshop. I look forward to many hours of "instant replay" until I can extract all of the valuable nuggets you have provided. Additionally, the information on the Golden Section is so very well presented. I never completely understood this until watching your DVDs. Again, thank you.
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Workshop Review
I just wanted to thank you for your wonderful portrait dvd, I spend a lot of time with you and Sonja.
The amazing thing is how much it has helped. In the first week my portrait skills have increased a hundred fold. Yes, I said "a hundred fold", all those dumb little mistakes were really costing me.
Jim T.
Courtney BC, Canada
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Workshop Review
I just finished watching Michael Britton's Mastering Portrait Drawing DVD's and and without any doubt they are the best available that I have seen - and I have purchased / watched many!! Michael is a natural instructor - and makes portrait drawing easy to understand.We
are very lucky to have him as a resource.
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Mastering Portrait Drawing 1:
the frontal pose DVD Workshop
Drawing portraits is generally something that most people assume one must be born with a talent for. Sure there are those for whom portait drawing is a God-given talent, but everyone no matter what their 'talent' level must study and acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to grow and develop as an artist.
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My name is Michael Britton. As an artist and a teacher for many years I have taught both the 'talented' and those who have had to struggle for each and every step forward. Experience has repeatedly shown me that the fable of the Turtle and the Hare is often true. A sure and steady progression of learning will sooner or later surpass the 'naturally talented' who do not work on improving their skills.
As an art student, now this is going back a ways, I studied at pretty much every art school in New York City. Like most other art students I was constantly seeking that one teacher who would give me the 'answer' - the keys to portrait drawing heaven. Luckily I found the artist Francis Cunningham who, himself had been a student of Edwin Dickinson (1891 - 1978) 30 years earlier, who had, in turn, studied under William Merritt Chase (1849-1916) and Charles Hawthorne (1872-1930). Chase and Hawthorne founded the Chase School which became the New York School of Art. This is my lineage. Under Cunningham I was thoroughly taught the centuries-proven methodology and techniques of realist drawing in the same manner that he was taught by Dickinson, and he by Chase and Hawthorne.
And, in turn, I will teach these same proven principles to you.
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Being able to consistently get a remarkable likeness in your face and portrait drawing can be learned. But there is a skill-set that must be acquired. The first is the ability to strike the arabesque, that is the entire outside shape of the head. The arabesque encompasses the overall shape and proportion. From there, one constructs the portrait by fixing the facial proportions and then blocking in the initial tone.
Even at this very early stage the likeness of the sitter will begin to emerge in the portrait drawing.
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The next requirement is knowledge-based: to make sense of and convincingly render the features and supporting cast of cheeks, chin, forehead, etc. you must know the underlying anatomy of bone and muscle.
Anatomy plays a crucial role in conveying emotions. There are different muscles actions for joy and for melancholy. It is more than just a smile on the lips.
Once you attain the skill-set of portrait drawing you will find it to be immensely satisfying and your growth as an artist will accelerate. Seeing the likeness of your loved one or client or model emerging from the paper under your hand is a real accomplishment. Much better than to forever be struggling with the basics of portrait drawing with little or no progress.
You will find all of the tools you need to develop your portrait drawing to a high-level in my Mastering Portrait Drawing 1 DVD Workshop: The Frontal Pose.
In this four-hour, 2 DVD disk Portrait Drawing workshop you will learn:
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All the Tools and Materials used to create realistic, professional-looking graphite drawings; and best of all they’re simple, easy to find and cheap!
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How to Place and Size the portrait on the drawing surface first so your drawing doesn’t balloon off the size of your paper
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Understanding the Planes of the Head: achieving 3 dimensional effects using light so your drawing looks like it could walk off the paper
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Proper Measuring and Sighting techniques; learn about the importance of establishing your Station Point, squinting, and comparing length and widths
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Establishing Proportions and placing the Features correctly from the start - If you don’t want the nose to end up on the forehead you better know this!
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All the Anatomy you need in my “Constructive Anatomy of the Head” where each and every feature is thoroughly explained and the muscles are highlighted in animated color-coding for easy learning and memory retention
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How to work from the General to the Specific; Don’t get into those details too soon
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Building Tone and Value; the bedrock of realistic 2 dimensional artwork
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Background and Finishing considerations for professional looking works of art.
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How to Render Hair realistically and add movement and life to your work; AND
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How a Professional artist Finds, Analyzes and Corrects drawing problems -- these secrets are where great portraits lay.… and much more
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Unlike a class-room setting you see exactly the same view of the model as I do as I fully demonstrate each technique. Additionally, the animations reinforce what I am teaching you. This simply cannot be done in a class-room.
Let me ask you directly. How much information and skill did you get out of the last face and portrait drawing course that you took? Even if the instructor was world-class how much of the workshop did you retain?
If you're like most people, you probably retained about 10 to 20%. Consider that a 5-day workshop with a world-class instructor will cost you about $700 to $1,200 in tuition. And what if you have to travel to take the workshop. Add at least another $150 per day for a modest hotel and food and, say, $300 airfare and your total cost will be about $1,750 to $2,250! At least.
As a world-class instructor and Artistic Director I know that if you're a serious student you would have to take my class three to four times to absorb all of the information I have to offer. The cost for my students would easily be $2,100 to a whopping $9,000 for international students. And believe me, I've had artists travel from all over the world to learn these portrait drawing skills.
What if I told you that I will teach you all of my portrait drawing skills and techniques and that you can repeat my workshop as many times as you like for a very small fraction of what most other artists have paid?
In my Mastering Portrait Drawing DVD Workshop you also get:
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my Atlas of Facial Anatomy (frontal pose) fully integrated and succinctly presented in the DVD Workshop;
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a drawing exercise that will save you 10 to 20 years of struggle. I'm not kidding, this drawing exercise was developed centuries ago and used to train generations of artists; AND
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PLUS 8 Bonus Portrait Drawing
Lessons on CD-r!!!
That's an entire 8 week course on the key elements of portrait drawing. And, frankly, there is more portrait drawing information in this free bonus package than found in most college-level portrait drawing courses.
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Here's the lesson plan:
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About Looking - Breaking Symbolic Preconceptions in Portrait Drawing
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The Arabesque - A Dynamic Correspondence
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Understanding Planes - Achieving 3-Dimensionality in Your Portrait Drawing
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The Value of Tone in Your Portrait Drawing
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Drawing the Skull
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Drawing with a Sculptural Sensibility
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Elements of Facial Expression: Part 1
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Elements of Facial Expression: Part 2
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