Watercolor Painting: A Comprehensive Approach to Mastering the Medium

Tom Hoffmann's book fills in the gaps that occur with other watercolor books that I own (good books, I mean, and I own a couple dozens). Why is that? Because it is written from the heart and solid knowledge and shows the “why” (deep waters) rather than the “how” (shallow waters) and do it in a provocative, thoughtful, inspirational, clear and transparent way.

I love Tom Hoffman's work, he really shows how watercolour can be adapted and abstracted to take it away from more chocolate box images traditionally associated with watercolour. He includes the work of other artists to show you different ideas and approaches.This is not really a beginner's book - though anyone starting out should certainly get it - it makes you take a step back to examine why you do things and why you make the choices you make. There are too many books that tell you how to do a wash or work wet in wet, but leave you clueless about how to get stuck in rather than copy something. This is a great book for watercolourists who want to learn to do their own thinking. I have a few books on watercolour, this is my favourite so far.

An excellent book, full of inspirational ideas and paintings. But, I think the Amazon copy had been stored in a damp place before dispatch because the pages are slightly warped and smell damp. Disappointing for a relatively expensive book.

With some experience in oil painting but little experience in watercolor, I wanted a guide that would competently cover most of the basic techniques and aesthetic issues about how to make a painting work - in watercolor. It exceeded my expectations. It's comprehensive and written in clear language.It avoids flashy stunts and trickery - it calls for just plain hard work, focus and presence of mind. Now to find the time and the good weather to put its principles into practice. I got my money's worth!

A very informative, constructive book. Not a 'how to' book and probably more for those who have been painting with watercolour for some time and want yet more help! I gained a lot from this book, maybe it just makes you think more about what you are doing - for example he says, before rushing in to correct something 'what is the minimum you could do' . Sometimes that is nothing. "I usually lose more than I gain by trying to fix it" How very true!It's the kind of book you will dip into time and again.

This is not a book about watercolour technique as such; it is more about how to approach a painting - the strategy needed to achieve a good result. It also features numerous examples by the author and other successful artists. Highly recommended.

A beautifully presented book, which seems to have had little publicity in the UK's arty press.The author assumes a knowledge of basic techniques [no 'how to do a variegated wash'] & concentrates on his approach to picture making, given a high degree of motivation & emotion. His style is loose, with many examples of work by other acknowledged masters. There are few helpful books like this.I rate it amongst works like Whitney, Chamberlain, Yardley.Shapiro,Nechis & Goldsmith----5 stars plus!

Real inspiration, it's not about the trivia, such as which brush to buy, how to paint boats, or trees, but how to see in a way that makes the medium come alive. The best book ever on watercolurs.