Rating: 
Summary: A failure to instruct...and a WALL to progress...
Review: Edwards seems intent on obtaining dominance in the field of "How To Draw" books written by those who cannot teach, all employing a fashionable Madison Avenue advertising approach to Drawing-On-The-Cash-In-Your-Wallet.
Edwards seems to falsely presume that Michaelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo Da Vinci and other Renaissance Masters all drew upon knowledge regarding the RIGHT-SIDE of their brain, or ZEN, or even YOGA. It's a nonsense proposition, unsupported by fact. Neither were such "masters" of drawing, interested in selling HOW-TO-DRAW books.
One could examine infinitely the theme of an "Artist Within," a creative self within, or even a Divine Spark within. It all sounds very inspirational. The problem is, it just doesn't matter whether the artist is within/without, internal/external, left-brain/right brain, or just plain WRONG-HEADED; because it amounts to nothing more than coy marketing.
Betty Edwards engages in gross self-promotion, prevailing upon public sentiment to hold forth as art expert, Zen Buddhist, scientist, and New Age mystic guru. Before we would simply pick up pen, pencil or charcoal, Edwards would first lecture us on "Five Stages of Creativity", which are set forth thusly:
1. First Insight, 2. Saturation, 3. Incubation 4. The Ah-HA! 5. Verification
It seems a person isn't even allowed to draw a simple line without going through emotional and intellectual catharsis, statistically analyzed, meditated upon, and finally called "MAGIC". Magic it may be, but on page 3 alone, Edwards quotes Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin, and F.G. Kenyon. The implication is clear; Edwards believes art is conditional upon maintaining an intellectual act, in short, a KNOW-IT-ALL act, wise in all things, including Zen Buddhism, New Age Cosmology, Nuclear Physics, Evolutionary Theory, and Philosophy. These things are fine and good when people choose them, but not when they are forcibly shoved down our throat as a prerequisite to a basic charcoal drawing. Morever, Edwards cannot distinguish between the fundamentally contradictory philosophies inherent to METAPHYSICAL REALISM & METAPHYSICAL NOMINALISM.
This is an overly complex approach, for it begs the question:
"If an "Artist Within" is doing the drawing, does it require a model, who simultaneously is equally attuned to the "Model Within" in order to effect good drawing?"
It is all very silly, and very absurd.
Betty Edwards, by introducing personal metaphysics into teaching drawing, is essentially dictating to students, that they must accept the philosophical and pseudo-scientific ideology, before they can even begin to learn to draw. This is not an aid to drawing at all. It is actually another form of a WALL thrown up to personal progress, or a block to those already inhibited by bad art instruction such as Edwards and so many others produce.
Rating:
Summary: A failure to instruct...and a WALL to progress...
Review: Edwards seems intent on obtaining dominance in the field of "How To Draw" books written by those who cannot teach, all employing a fashionable Madison Avenue advertising approach to Drawing-On-The-Cash-In-Your-Wallet. Well, it isn't so. One could examine infinitely the theme of an "Artist Within," a creative self within, or even a Divine Spark within. It all sounds very inspirational. The problem is, it just doesn't matter whether the artist is within/without, internal/external, left-brain/right brain, or just plain WRONG-HEADED; because it amounts to nothing more than coy marketing. Betty Edwards engages in gross self-promotion, prevailing upon public sentiment to hold forth as art expert, Zen Buddhist, scientist, and New Age mystic guru. Before we would simply pick up pen, pencil or charcoal, Edwards would first lecture us on "Five Stages of Creativity", which are set forth thusly: 1. First Insight, 2. Saturation, 3. Incubation 4. The Ah-HA! 5. Verification It seems a person isn't even allowed to draw a simple line without going through emotional and intellectual catharsis, statistically analyzed, meditated upon, and finally called "MAGIC". Magic it may be, but on page 3 alone, Edwards quotes Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin, and F.G. Kenyon. The implication is clear; Edwards believes art is conditional upon maintaining an intellectual act, in short, a KNOW-IT-ALL act, wise in all things, including Zen Buddhism, New Age Cosmology, Nuclear Physics, Evolutionary Theory, and Philosophy. These things are fine and good when people choose them, but not when they are forcibly shoved down our throat as a prerequisite to a basic charcoal drawing. This is an overly complex approach, for one could infer philosophically that if an "Artist Within" is doing the drawing, does it require a model, who simultaneously is equally attuned to the "Model Within" in order to effect good drawing? It is all very silly, and very absurd. Betty Edwards, by introducing personal metaphysics into teaching drawing, is essentially dictating to students, that they must accept the philosophical and pseudo-scientific ideology, before they can even begin to learn to draw. This is not an aid to drawing at all. It is actually another form of a WALL thrown up to personal progress, or a block to those already inhibited by bad art instruction such as Edwards and so many others produce.
Rating:
Summary: A failure to instruct...
Review: Edwards seems intent on obtaining dominance in the field of "How To Draw" books written by those who cannot teach, all employing a fashionable Madison Avenue approach, WHERE-THERE's HYPE, THERE's SUBSTANCE. Well, it isn't so. One could examine infinitely the theme of an "Artist Within," a creative self within, or even a Divine Spark within. It all sounds very inspirational. The problem is, it just doesn't matter whether the artist is within/without, internal/external, left-brain/right brain, or just plain WRONG-HEADED; because it amounts to nothing more than coy marketing. For that matter, what would Zen literature suggest to us? It would suggest to us that drawing is about THING-IN-ITSELF, without excess conceptual baggage. If one were mindful of the duality of INNER ARTIST versus OUTER ARTIST, one is not drawing with the single-mindedness of self-forgetfulness. Yet there are dozens of art books published in a fashionably repetitious manner of "Hey Kids, Let's Re-Invent the Wheel!!!" In my opinion, there are simply too many in the world prepared to set themselves up as one kind of TEACHER or other, and the problem is, most of them fail to distinguish whether they are offering new art or new religion. This is an overly complex approach, for one could infer philosophically that if an "Artist Within" is doing the drawing, does it require a model, who simultaneously is equally attuned to the "Model Within"? It's all silly. It merely disenfranchises those masters of the past from receiving due credit for the power of their art, and generates a flow of income to modern instructors who presume to elevate themselves above and beyond ordinary people and traditional methods of instruction by virtue of some magical contact with an inner self. [This reviewer happens to acknowledge an "inner self" by the way, however, I don't find it necessary to allude to that just to hype books on art instruction.]
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but lots of overlap. Definitely try the original...
Review: I am one of the biggest fans of Betty Edwards' work, having learned to draw in five days by the "Right Brain" method. I have found the "Artist Within" book less helpful than the others, however. In it, Edwards uses many of the same drawing approaches (exercises that I love and which have made all the difference to me) as "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain," but now she applies them to creative problem solving. I agree completely with her premises and support the approach. On the other hand, as a book, this one is less helpful than the original precisely because it reuses so much of the same material. I would have liked more theory and exploration of just how learning to draw makes a difference in other parts of one's life. So, I'm not sure I'd recommend this book wholeheartedly, unless you just can't get enough of the "Right Brain" drawing approach. Get "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain," first. Then decide if you want more elaboration with a different spin.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but lots of overlap. Definitely try the original...
Review: I am one of the biggest fans of Betty Edwards' work, having learned to draw in five days by the "Right Brain" method. I have found the "Artist Within" book less helpful than the others, however. In it, Edwards uses many of the same drawing approaches (exercises that I love and which have made all the difference to me) as "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain," but now she applies them to creative problem solving. I agree completely with her premises and support the approach. On the other hand, as a book, this one is less helpful than the original precisely because it reuses so much of the same material. I would have liked more theory and exploration of just how learning to draw makes a difference in other parts of one's life. So, I'm not sure I'd recommend this book wholeheartedly, unless you just can't get enough of the "Right Brain" drawing approach. Get "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain," first. Then decide if you want more elaboration with a different spin.
Rating: 
Summary: What an awakening of new consciousness!
Review: I read this book as an optional "Directed Reading" for a course in Creative Problem-Solving with the University of Oklahoma. It is ironic that I had just completed all six of Frank Herbert's Dune novels just before beginning Drawing with all its exercises. My first thought was, "This is truly 'BeneGesserit' stuff!" The author guides the reader into total participation with the material and helps one to coax that much-suppressed "right brain" mode of perception and comprehension into awareness--and it is truly revelatory of the richness of one's immediate world which normally remains unexplored. Amazing it is, too, how one's skill in writing in images (i.e., drawing) improves with full interaction with the book. This is a good read, one which I suggest for those who would like to increase their awareness of the world around them and who would like to recapture some of the childlike wonder at the universe.
Rating:
Summary: What an awakening of new consciousness!
Review: I read this book as an optional "Directed Reading" for a course in Creative Problem-Solving with the University of Oklahoma. It is ironic that I had just completed all six of Frank Herbert's Dune novels just before beginning Drawing with all its exercises. My first thought was, "This is truly 'BeneGesserit' stuff!" The author guides the reader into total participation with the material and helps one to coax that much-suppressed "right brain" mode of perception and comprehension into awareness--and it is truly revelatory of the richness of one's immediate world which normally remains unexplored. Amazing it is, too, how one's skill in writing in images (i.e., drawing) improves with full interaction with the book. This is a good read, one which I suggest for those who would like to increase their awareness of the world around them and who would like to recapture some of the childlike wonder at the universe.
Rating:
Summary: NO WONDER TTHIS BOOK IS SO CHEAP []
Review: MANY OF THESE BOOKS ARE FOR SALE AND I SEE WHY. IT WAS A HORRIBLE BOOK FOR ANY ARTIST OR FOR SOMEONE TO LEARN ANYTHING ABOUT BEING CREATIVE! HOW DID IT GET PUBLISHED?? TERRIBLE SILLY THINGS WRITTEN DOWN ABOUT MUCH OF NOTHING....DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME PLEASE..
Rating:
Summary: IF YOU FIND THIS BOOK HELPFUL, YOU MUST NOT BE AN ARTIST!
Review: NOT ONLY DOES THIS BOOK OVERLAP, I FOUND IT INSULTING TO READ! I WAS SO BORED OF THE DRAWINGS AND OVER AND OVER EXPLANATIONS OF THEM THAT I COULDN'T FINISH THE BOOK. THAT WAS TOO MUCH REALLY!! NO THEORY OR ANY BREAKTHROUGH KNOWLEDGE WHAT SO EVER.
Rating: 
Summary: A Good Starter
Review: One reviewer claims this book turned him into an excellent artist and now he can draw like a Da Vinci. If this is what you expect, it's cheaper and easier to close your eyes and make three wishes and maybe they'll come true. In order to draw like the great masters you need to draw and draw and practice for years and for years, but still there is no guarantee you will ever come close to a genius like Da Vinci. But even if you just want to draw like a professional you still need years and years of practice and HARD work. This book is for those who are looking for methods to tap their creativity and as a result draw the way they actually see things and not the way they think they see things. The results of the people who couldn't draw at all are remarkable compared to their ability before. For a person who can't swim, learning to slowly move in the water and manage an old lady's breaststroke is a big achievement, but that doesn't make him an olympic swimmer. I don't think this books intends to make a professional artist out of you, it just wants to show you ways to be more creative no matter what profession you do. There is no book that will make an artist out of you in 30 days. There are no short-cuts and those who don't believe it, dream on. Don't get me wrong, this is definately a good book and even Da Vinci would have taken a look at it. You will improve your drawing ability with Betty Edward's methods. Just stay realistic. If you then really want to draw professionally after you've achieved some basic skills with this book, go on to life drawing classes. The only "trick" there is to good drawing, is drawing drawing drawing. Maybe after your first 10 000 bad drawings, you'll start making your first good ones, but don't worry, you will and this book is a good starter.
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