Carole was brought up in a rural area of North Staffordshire. She moved South to study for her degree and post graduate qualifications at Central St. Martin's School of Art and subsequently freelanced as a book illustrator for major London Publishers. She worked on a wide variety of commissions and her illustrations are published worldwide. A mixed media painter and art tutor, she now works from her studio in Laddingford, Kent, and exhibits in London and the South East of England. Her artwork is experimental, combining media, resist techniques and a variety of mark making. In the last few years Carole has brought digital art into her practice and is frequently re-inspired by the new colour combinations or abstractions achieved. Her paintings are driven by strong feelings about ecology and man's impact on the environment.

Books on abstraction appear now with some regularity and that means publishers are getting beyond the basics. This one is particularly useful as it comes from an experienced practitioner and covers both creative and practical aspects of the genre.Carole works in a good variety of media that include watercolour, gouache, acrylic and ink as well as pencils and pastels. You won’t, therefore, feel constrained by a single one that isn’t perhaps your first choice. It’s also worth reporting that you won’t get to the materials section for 52 pages – you’ve been through all the looking, seeing and thinking before you start to get the brushes out.Carole works with natural subjects – flowers, landscapes and water and her style is well beyond representation, while always retaining the essential essence of what is depicted. The abstraction comes from simplified forms, use of colour and technical manipulation. She includes plenty of basic instruction, exercises and demonstrations that explain her approach as well as developing your skills.Overall, this is one of the most thorough and complete guides to abstraction I’ve seen.

• Introduction 6Framing the mind 8The formal elements 14Exploring your Materials 52Towards the abstract 62Irresistible Resists 70River Birds step-by-step project 80Layers 88Nocturne step-by-step project 94Collage and Print 102Autumn Seed Heads step-by-step project 116Afterword 124Index 128

Carole was brought up in a rural area of North Staffordshire. She moved South to study for her degree and post graduate qualifications at Central St. Martin's School of Art and subsequently freelanced as a book illustrator for major London Publishers. She worked on a wide variety of commissions and her illustrations are published worldwide. A mixed media painter and art tutor, she now works from her studio in Laddingford, Kent, and exhibits in London and the South East of England. Her artwork is experimental, combining media, resist techniques and a variety of mark making. In the last few years Carole has brought digital art into her practice and is frequently re-inspired by the new colour combinations or abstractions achieved. Her paintings are driven by strong feelings about ecology and man's impact on the environment.

Books on abstraction appear now with some regularity and that means publishers are getting beyond the basics. This one is particularly useful as it comes from an experienced practitioner and covers both creative and practical aspects of the genre.Carole works in a good variety of media that include watercolour, gouache, acrylic and ink as well as pencils and pastels. You won’t, therefore, feel constrained by a single one that isn’t perhaps your first choice. It’s also worth reporting that you won’t get to the materials section for 52 pages – you’ve been through all the looking, seeing and thinking before you start to get the brushes out.Carole works with natural subjects – flowers, landscapes and water and her style is well beyond representation, while always retaining the essential essence of what is depicted. The abstraction comes from simplified forms, use of colour and technical manipulation. She includes plenty of basic instruction, exercises and demonstrations that explain her approach as well as developing your skills.Overall, this is one of the most thorough and complete guides to abstraction I’ve seen.

• Introduction 6Framing the mind 8The formal elements 14Exploring your Materials 52Towards the abstract 62Irresistible Resists 70River Birds step-by-step project 80Layers 88Nocturne step-by-step project 94Collage and Print 102Autumn Seed Heads step-by-step project 116Afterword 124Index 128

Carole was brought up in a rural area of North Staffordshire. She moved South to study for her degree and post graduate qualifications at Central St. Martin's School of Art and subsequently freelanced as a book illustrator for major London Publishers. She worked on a wide variety of commissions and her illustrations are published worldwide. A mixed media painter and art tutor, she now works from her studio in Laddingford, Kent, and exhibits in London and the South East of England. Her artwork is experimental, combining media, resist techniques and a variety of mark making. In the last few years Carole has brought digital art into her practice and is frequently re-inspired by the new colour combinations or abstractions achieved. Her paintings are driven by strong feelings about ecology and man's impact on the environment.

Books on abstraction appear now with some regularity and that means publishers are getting beyond the basics. This one is particularly useful as it comes from an experienced practitioner and covers both creative and practical aspects of the genre.Carole works in a good variety of media that include watercolour, gouache, acrylic and ink as well as pencils and pastels. You won’t, therefore, feel constrained by a single one that isn’t perhaps your first choice. It’s also worth reporting that you won’t get to the materials section for 52 pages – you’ve been through all the looking, seeing and thinking before you start to get the brushes out.Carole works with natural subjects – flowers, landscapes and water and her style is well beyond representation, while always retaining the essential essence of what is depicted. The abstraction comes from simplified forms, use of colour and technical manipulation. She includes plenty of basic instruction, exercises and demonstrations that explain her approach as well as developing your skills.Overall, this is one of the most thorough and complete guides to abstraction I’ve seen.

• Introduction 6Framing the mind 8The formal elements 14Exploring your Materials 52Towards the abstract 62Irresistible Resists 70River Birds step-by-step project 80Layers 88Nocturne step-by-step project 94Collage and Print 102Autumn Seed Heads step-by-step project 116Afterword 124Index 128