How to Draw Anything

by Mark Linley

Anyone can draw. Let Mark Linley inspire you to pick up your pencil and create a magical masterpiece. His positive approach secures quick, accurate results and ever-growing confidence.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Drawing, Reference, Crafts, Art Design, How To

288 pages, Paperback

First published April 29, 1985

Reviews

[Hazel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author/artist Mark Linley believes that anyone can learn to draw and inspires everyone to pick up a pencil and create a work of art. Unlike many ‘how to draw’ books – those that provide step by step visual aids but no further insight – Linley goes into a lot more written detail.

First of all an artist needs to be able to look properly. Without studying the subject or object properly, no one would be able to produce an accurate sketch. Starting with landscapes, Linley tells the reader how to and what to look for when beginning a drawing in order to get a basic outline. It is only after this is down on paper that specific details can be added.

Linley explains various methods of shading and line marks to give a suggestion of perspective, and emphasises that an illustration does not need to be 100% accurate – that is what cameras are for. After landscapes, Linley takes the reader/future artist through plants, animals, people and cartoons in a similar manner.

Each chapter provides the reader with a few assignments to undertake based on what they have read, or the example illustrations. Many of these tasks are to copy Linley’s own examples, however he stresses that the outcome does not need to – or rather should not – look exactly like his. Each artist needs to develop their own style.

I found How To Draw Anything a lot more useful than the ever popular step-by-step guides that most people gravitate to. In those types of books we are NOT taught to draw, we are taught to copy. You may be able to accurately draw the same cat as the artist/author of the book, but you would not know where to start when face with a real life cat. Linley tells us what to look out for and where to start in these situations – you feel like you are actually learning something.

Mark Linley comes across as a humorous individual – his writing is full of puns and quips, intending to make the reader smile or laugh out loud, thus making them feel more relaxed about the subject. Linley does not only attempt to teach people how to draw, he tries to make each of us feel more comfortable about our abilities and encourages us to keep on trying.

Before reading this book I had already begun developing my own illustration style, however I gave a few of Linley’s assignments a try (see here). I am pleased with my outcomes and feel inspired to try more landscape drawings in the future.

[Abdullah Alasmari · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not among the best art books that I have read, nor does it cover the elements in a masterful way, it's just a book to show you how fun and easy the process can be (if you're shooting for mediocre result). However, because my father bought me this book on my 16th birthday (along with a fancy pencil set) I rate it five stars. Forgive my bias judgement :O

[Danella Yaptinchay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, there are some decent takeaways from this book but as a reader and a not-so-confident drawer, it got a little irritating that the author kept using the word "easy" when talking about drawing. Let's just say it was not the most effective way of encouraging someone to draw especially when we're not yet comfortable with our skill level. He also kept emphasizing in several chapters that one has to look in order to draw properly, but he did not expound on this concept much at all. It would've been nice to read more about what we're supposed to look at per subject.

Key takeaways: creating outlines, finding shapes, shading with simple strokes and lines.

[Rich B · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent though now quite old guide to drawing and sketching. The tone of the writing occasionally sounds dated especially when it wanders away from the topic of drawing. However, in terms of the drawing advice itself, that’s timeless so it’s still helpful. There’s some solid advice and practical tips aimed at beginners who want to get better at drawing.

It’s comprehensive with 34 different chapters, each looking at different themes or objects - landscapes, animals, faces etc. It helpfully shows the rough outlines that start sketches so you get the scale and perspective right if you’re following along. Then it shares how you can fill in and add texture and richness to your drawings.

The last few chapters move more into cartoon and illustration territory and while these are OK, they feel much more dated than the real-life sketching examples. Didn’t get so much out of these sections.

Overall, it pretty much lives up to its title (as long as you don’t get too specific about what “anything” means). I enjoyed the breadth of content and its specific and practical advice and it’s a solid book if this is a subject you want to learn about.

[Shilpa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book when growing up, and on finding a thrifted copy many years later (much to my delight), I still do. Mark Linley really did teach me how to draw anything with this book, and his techniques have stayed with me for life. Also helps that he's really funny in this book. He doesn't teach you to copy complicated works, but rather provides scalable approaches on how to tackle a wide variety of objects/places/people to draw.

[O · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really helped me on my quest to properly draw. I used to copy everything I could possibly copy from this book from landscapes to cartoons. A great book to start off with when you're a young aspiring artist.

[Ietrio · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you have this book in your local library. And there are none better, do spend time to copy a few suggested sketches.

Otherwise, it is a waste of paper. Wordy. And a very unsure or untrained hand. Overall there is more text than drawing.

And the title is misleading too. Anything?

[Willow Rankin · Rating 1 out of 5]

*DNF*

Its not that it's a bad book, its that realistically I have no interest in learning how to draw, and so this book; which for reasons I am not sure as to why I purchased; is not all that interesting to me.
Firstly each chapter starts off with a theme, a concept which slowly builds as you read. However, the wordy nature, the lack of step-by-steps and the language (the incessant over use of the word "easy"), put me off reading any further.
Its probably a good book for aspiring artists, or as a silly gift for those who love drawing, but overall, not one for me.

[Karen J. Mossman · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's probably taken the longest time ever for me to read a book because I literally drew everything he suggested. He was correct because I tried my hand at buildings, country scenes, farmhouses, bridges, dogs, cats, people, cartoon characters, cars, and never had so much fun. 

It's given me the confidence to tackle other things, and I feel like I can draw thanks to this book.

[Jue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good book for a non drawing person ! easy to follow, pictures helped, enjoyed the excersises and explinations. This little book will become my bible.

[Lesley Grainge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. Easy clear follow along instructions. One to keep by and dip into often.

[Hunter · Rating 3 out of 5]

He says "just follow these really simple drawings" when they're not simple at all. I thought this book would motivate and encourage me to draw, not put me off from it!

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this is a great resource if I ever venture away from Zentangle.

[Walid · Rating 2 out of 5]

thank you