Painting can save your life : how & why we paint / Sara Woster.

"A TarcherPerigee Book."

The art store -- Color wheel/Mixing paints -- Shapes & color -- Filling the space -- Light & shadow -- Warm & cool colors -- Learning to observe -- Painting your Arcadia -- Painting the figure -- Telling a story -- Nocturne -- Making decisions -- Arbitrary colors -- Interiors -- Symbolism & still life -- What makes a painting great? -- How to be an artist.

"Artist and founder of The Painting School Sara Woster invites readers into the vibrant world of painting as a creative practice powerful enough to transform our lives. Sara Woster is a painter, teacher, and art evangelist. She believes in art as a form of mindfulness, a ritual for healing, and an outlet for self-expression. In Painting Can Save Your Life, Woster welcomes readers into this transformative art form, inviting them to pick up a brush and discover how painting can help you see the world in a whole new way. Weaving soup-to-nuts instruction on how to paint--from choosing the right materials to painting the human body--with her own story of discovering a passion for painting, this book includes: simple and easy techniques for painters of all skill levels; playful and challenging painting exercises; tips on how to build a creative community using art; insights on how to use painting to cultivate a sense of calm in a stressful world. Part how-to-paint, part sheer inspiration, Painting Can Save Your Life is a wise and inspiring guide to the power of painting."--provided by publisher.

Includes bibliographical references and index.