Flowers, fruit & vegetables - Giovanni Civardi

Giovanni Civardi has built a formidable reputation worldwide for his skills as both an artist and a teacher, and here he provides a unique introduction to the art of still-life drawing focusing on natural forms. The focus of the book is very much on Giovanni's exquisite drawings of a broad range of flowers, fruit and vegetables, which are accompanied by concise, clearly written explanations of perspective, composition, vegetable anatomy and structure, and light and shade. At the start of the book there is a useful section on the various drawing materials that are available, where to find botanical subjects and how to make careful studies and observation. The author's in-depth knowledge of the subject is apparent throughout, making this book an ideal introduction for the beginner, as well as a source of information and inspiration for artists of all abilities.

Giovanni Civardi is a best-selling Italian artist and author, with over 600,000 copies of his books sold worldwide in English alone. Civardi was born in Milan, Italy in 1947. While training to become a sculptor, portrait artist and illustrator at the Free Life-Study School of the Accademia di Brera, he also studied medicine and surgery. For over a decade, he worked as an illustrator, producing commissions for newspapers, magazines and book covers. During frequent trips to France and Denmark, Civardi put on one-man exhibitions of this work and pursued his interest in studying the relationship between medical anatomy and the human form as depicted by the artist. His experience gained from teaching anatomy, life drawing and portraiture in schools and institutions over many years has led to the publication of numerous books in which Civardi's experiences are brought into focus. For more work and information visit his website: www.giovannicivardi.it.