Today we're thrilled to share a new book "20 Ways to Draw a Chair, and 44 Other Interesting Everyday Things" by our friend and artist, Lisa Solomon based out of Oakland, California. The book is part of a new 20 Ways series from Quarry Books designed to offer artists, designers, and doodlers a fun and sophisticated collection of illustration fun. It is also "an ode to all of the sometimes over-looked items that surround us and make our living spaces uniquely ours" which Lisa knows so well after spending a year doing a drawing in her sketchbook everyday of something that was left on a table or countertop of her house.




As Lisa is a mixed media artist who moonlights as an art professor, she mentions in her book that she approached drawing these objects as an exploration of the domestic shape, mark making, and idea of each collection.  As she explains, "What kinds of lines and textures do you need to minimally represent each object? What happens when you go all out and try to capture more detail? What happens when you change your point of view—look from the right, from the left, from above, or from below?"

Each spread features 20 inspiring illustrated examples of 45 themes - spoons, vases, baskets, lamps, bowls and much, much more—over 900 drawings, with blank space for you to draw your take on 20 Ways to Draw a Chair and 44 Other Interesting Everyday Things.

Let's take a look inside (and some of our drawing attempts)!






We are also excited to share a little illustration how-to Lisa created just for Poppytalk readers on how to illustrate using tracing paper.  It's a simple 5 minute video filled with a clever technique to get the illustrations you want.  Click on play below to see!


hedgehog illustration from Lisa Solomon on Vimeo.

For more information on Lisa's book check out the link below:

20 Ways to Draw a Chair, and 44 Other Interesting Everyday Things is available on Amazon and from Quarry Books

P.S.
Also something noteworthy and worth checking out:  Lisa has just moved into The Irving Street Projects - a residency space in the sunset of San Francisco where she has started a new project, entitled The Keepsake Project where she will be "collecting" and documenting the public's keepsakes. As she mentions on her blog, "i'm curious what you consider a keepsake. why some objects seem to be imbued with nostalgia". You can read more about the project on the tumblr she's set up, or the press release, but if you'd like to have her paint a keepsake of yours, simply send her a photo of it against a white background and she will draw it.  We love this poncho Lisa's grandmother made her when she was a little girl, and has now passed onto her daughter.  One of the examples of how the work will be recorded. Click here to learn how to participate.



Visit Lisa Solomon online at lisasolomon.com and on her social channels: