Composition: A Series of Exercises in Art Structure for the Use of Students and Teachers

Rating:
Summary: Don't waste your money
Review: Dow's book is a classic of pictoral composition. Yes, there is a long forward, but so what? Dow didn't write the forward. The book is a workbook format, and many may not find the exercises useful, but the information sandwiched inbetween is priceless. Not an easy book to read, but well worth the effort. If you're looking for a quick fix with pretty pictures and easy formulas, don't buy this.

Rating:
Summary: Composition Masterpiece
Review: Dow's book is a classic of pictoral composition. Yes, there is a long forward, but so what? Dow didn't write the forward. The book is a workbook format, and many may not find the exercises useful, but the information sandwiched inbetween is priceless. Not an easy book to read, but well worth the effort. If you're looking for a quick fix with pretty pictures and easy formulas, don't buy this.

Rating:
Summary: A classic worth reading
Review: Dow's book is a masterpiece. The information is relevant to all visual arts. It is written as a workbook with exercises for students. Whether you follow the exercises or not, the information is priceless.

Rating:
Summary: The definitive book on the subject
Review: Having read the earlier review, I felt it necessary to chime in. The introduction, which I skipped, was lengthy, but there's a lot of information in the main text of the book- enough to warrant the price. It's as much a workbook as a text since there are suggested exercises to follow. There are also lots of pictures of examples which I found very helpful. Dow "wrote the book" on composition, and this is it!

Rating:
Summary: Don't waste your money
Review: I want composition that I can understand and deal with in my painting everday. I don't care at all to read the long intorduction offered. Thanks but no thanks

Rating:
Summary: The definitive book on the subject
Review: I've never chucked a book out before in my life, but this one I did. The basic writings by Arthur Wesley Dow are very good, however the introduction written by Joseph Masheck occupied most of the books pages in a stilted language that was obviously written to put a check in one of this person's achedemic requirements boxes. It got me so riled that I had paid considerably for Dows comments and got Mashecks voluminous dribble, that I cut out the introduction with a razor blade and kept the small informative portion by Dow. If you're impressed with disjointed, convoluted, achedemic banter, buy it, you'll love it.

Rating:
Summary: Arthur Wesley Dow "Composition"
Review: I've never chucked a book out before in my life, but this one I did. The basic writings by Arthur Wesley Dow are very good, however the introduction written by Joseph Masheck occupied most of the books pages in a stilted language that was obviously written to put a check in one of this person's achedemic requirements boxes. It got me so riled that I had paid considerably for Dows comments and got Mashecks voluminous dribble, that I cut out the introduction with a razor blade and kept the small informative portion by Dow. If you're impressed with disjointed, convoluted, achedemic banter, buy it, you'll love it.