Andrew Loomis fascimile reprints.

If you've ever held a pencil and thought seriously about learning how to draw you've surely heard of Andrew Loomis and his books on drawing and art.

Loomis was a commercial illustrator born in 1892 who had a certain class that became rare with the introduction of mass media. His work, althought stricktly for magazines and advertisements, had an air from a different age and time. Because he also felt the urge to teach people the craft of his trade, he wrote and drew several books about creating illustrations and art in general.

His books, counted among the best and brightest, have become very rare and quite expensive, if you happen to catch one of the early original prints, as most of them are now OOP (out of print). Lucky for us, Titan Books started publishing fascimile prints of the Loomis collection last year. The third volume, 'Succesfull drawing' (left), will finally be out May 4.

Unlike Loomis' first book, 'Fun with a pencil', published in 1939, this one tends to be a bit more technical, containing chapters on proper lighting and the deconstruction of complex shapes in different perspectives. In the book Loomis explains that a succesfull drawing must apply to ten fundamental laws, which he divides into two categories, called the five P's, being Proportion, Placement, Perspective, Planes and Patterns and the five C's: Conception, Construction, Contour, Character and Consistency. There are also some excellent chapters on costume drawing, showing some fine examples of Loomis remarkable talent. It was later reprinted with additional material under the title 'Three Dimensional Drawing.'

Click to enlarge: Some examples from 'Succesful Drawing', showing methods of drawing proper perspective and scale (above) and some of Loomis' excellent examples on light and shadow (below).

Born at the very end of the 19th century in Syracuse, New York, Loomis lived and worked most of his life in Chicago, where he had his own studio and taught at the 'American Academy of Art', after serving in WWI. He himself had been a student at the Art Institute of Chicago, as well as the 'Arts Students League of New York', located at West 57th Street.

Established in 1875, the Students League had participated with the 'Society of American Artists' and the 'Architectural League of New York' in the founding of the American Fine Arts Society in 1889. Loomis studied there under teachers such as Impressionist painter Frank DuMond, who taught at the institute for over 50 years, and George Bridgman, who taught anatomy for 45 years. Bridgman himself had studied at the renowned École des Beaux-arts in Paris under Gustave Boulanger (1824-1888), the esteemed French painter awarded with the Prix-de-Rome in 1849, the annual scholarship given only to a selected few of the students of the famous French 'Royal Academie of Painting and Sculpture' since 1663.

Many of today's celebrated artists and sculptors studied there and failed miserably for years, attempting to win the prestigious prize, which came with a stay for several years at the French Academie in Rome, located in the Villa Medici, where artists would study all the classical examples in painting, sculpture and architecture, found in Italy's profound artistic history.

Francois Boucher was one of few artists honored with the award in 1720. My favorite painter, Jacques-Louis David, Boucher's student and nephew, won it in 1774, after five attempts and a period of starvation, which was meant as a protest (David finally won the Grand Prix in 1774 with his painting of 'Antiochus and Stratonice').

Above: Painting by Boulanger from 1861 titled 'Rehearsal of 'The Fluteplayer' and 'The Diomedes wife' in the atrium of the Pompeian house of Prince Napoleon, 18 Avenue Montaigne', currently on display at the Chateau de Versailles in Paris. The painting shows French playwright Émile Augier (center), the poet Théophile Gautier (in the back), actress Éthélie Madeleine Brohan (front right), actress Marie Favart (back), actor Edmond God (left, bending forward) and actor Joseph Samson (right, lying down). Boulanger had visited the ruins of Pompeii during his stay in Rome which inspired him for the painting, showing Napoleon's house in Paris where preparations are being made for a performance given before the imperial Court (Click to enlarge).

Below: various sketches by George Bridgman from his books 'Constructive Anatomy' (1920) and 'The Human Machine' (1939), clearly showing the mechanics of the human arm and hand. Bridgman used to draw simplified, interlocking wedges to break down the anatomy of the human body, using blocked out forms to represent the masses. This concept was even further explored in later artbooks by comic artist Burne Hogarth ('Tarzan'), which clearly show Bridgman's influence. In the course of his life Bridgman wrote and drew several invaluable books on anatomy which are luckily still in print.

Below: Loomis wrote/drew six artbooks altogether, of which two have been reprinted by Titan last year. 'Figure drawing for all it's worth' was his second book, originally published in 1943 while 'Drawing the head & hands' (his fifth book) was the last published during his lifetime in 1956, his last book, 'The eye of the painter' was published in 1961 after his death.

So you see, Andrew Loomis' work, althought it does not reside at the Louvre or other esteemed institutions, holds a vast body of knowledge and history. He received his education from a long line of great artists, and althought the flame of the prix-de Rome extinguished in 1968, you're still able to capture some of that style and elegance through the books Loomis worked so hard on and left behind for us. Great to see they're back in print. Check here for more on Anatomy.