It was a gift graphic designer Justin Maas will never forget.

Just a few days before Christmas 2017, Northlight Books, whose parent company F&W Media produces The Artist害羞草研究所檚 Magazine, invited the Salmon Arm artist to write a book.

It was something the talented artist had wanted to do for sometime.

In 2015, Maas got an immediate reaction from Howie Mandel after he published a portrait of the celebrity on Twitter.

By December 2017, Maas counted 180,000 online followers viewing his portraits of celebrities.

The book contract was signed in early January 2018 and Maas worked on the project for about six months, with Drawing Realistic Pencil Portraits Step by Step: Basic Techniques for the Head and Face, hitting bookstores this July.

The first half of the book provides information on materials of choice, understanding how to render a likeness and methods for blocking in drawings.

Just for you - and of course any fans out there ;) I will do a new one of him some time soon as well but in the meantime, here's a I did of Bradley a couple of years ago.

害羞草研究所� Justin Maas Artist (@maas_art)

害羞草研究所淭he second part of the book is 14 full demonstrations of basically portraits, and 70 to 80 per cent of the people in the book are Salmon Arm residents,害羞草研究所� he says, noting portraits of four celebrities are also in the book, including Cary Elwis of Princess Bride fame and Erin Krakow star of TV show When Calls the Heart. 害羞草研究所淚t was a lot of work but they (F&W) do art books so they have it down to a science. They give you a plan so every page builds on the last.害羞草研究所�

everyone! From me and DJ Hope it害羞草研究所檚 a wonderful and safe day!

害羞草研究所� Justin Maas Artist (@maas_art)

Using the guidance provided by Northlight Books, Maas was able to work in small increments, so while there was a lot of work, the project moved ahead smoothly.

Pleased with the result, Maas is also delighted a feature article on him and his work will appear in The Artist Magazine, one of the biggest art magazines on the market, this spring.

That will likely deliver another boost to his Instagram numbers, which have already grown to 260,000 followers.

Drawing Realistic Pencil Portraits Step by Step: Basic Techniques for the Head and Face is available for preview and pre-order at Bookingham Palace in the Mall at Piccadilly and online at Amazon, IndieBound and Barnes and Noble.

A collection of Maas害羞草研究所� portraits can be viewed at https://www.instagram.com/maas.art.

barb.brouwer@saobserver.net
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