Ernest William Watson, (Born 1884 in Conway, Massachusetts) Died 1969), is America's most widely read author on the technique of pencil drawing. As an author, artist, teacher, publisher and editor, Mr. Watson was a prominent figure in the art world for many years.
Early career edit
He concluded his art studies and education in 1907. His profesional career began in 1908. Watson was a design and drawing instructor at Pratt Institute in the Bronx, New York and supervised both day and evening classes from 1919 to 1929. He also taught a special class for architects in the potentialities of the graphite pencil. His tour of service at Pratt lasted 21 years.
Career edit
He was Art Editor for Scholastic Magazine from 1931 to 1937. In 1937 together with Ralph Reinhold and Arthur L. Guptill, he founded Watson-Guptill Publications. He was Editor-in-Chief 1955 of American Artist from 1937 to end of 1955.
The Art of Pencil Drawing edit
- copyright..1968
Graphite pencil edit
Mr. Watsons preferred drawing tool was the graphite pencil.
| “ | "I discovered a great many years ago that it will do everything I want to do with a pencil".[2] | ” |
He considered it to be tremendously versatile and superior tool for drawing. His ability to preserve the subjects essential interest was necessitated by the pencils limited black and white expression. He felt that selectiveness and sensitivity compensated for the pencils lack of color. At a young age, he adopted the grapite pencil as his preferred medium while most of his contemporaries saw the pencil as an adjunct only to be used for preliminary compositional arrangements. He saw the graphite pencil as an independantly viable medium, in and of itself. The Art of Pencil Drawing His art studio, called Threshold, was on Mulberry Lane in New Rochelle, New York. His wifes name was EVE.
Works by Ernest William Watson edit
Ernest Watson wrote and edited many instructional and informative books over the course of his long career. He is considered to be the most prolific and widely read author of instuction Art books in American History.
Titles edit
- Creative Perspective for Artists and Illustrators
- How to Use Creative Perspective
- The Art of Pencil Drawing
- The Watson Drawing Book
- Forty Illustrators and how they work
- Composition in Landscape and Still Life
- The Relief Print: Woodcut, Wood Engraving & Linoleum Cut
- Ernest W. Watson's Sketch Diary
- Perspective for Sketchers
- Gallery of Pencil Techniques
- Linoleum Block Printing: Practical Instruction for Student and Artist
- Course in Pencil Sketching
- Printmaking (The Red Fox)
- Color & Method in Painting, As Seen in the Work of 12 American Painters
- Outdoor sketching
- Twenty painters and how they work
- Creative perspective for artists and illustrators
- Watercolor Demonstrated