The Creative Eye

The Creative Eye – vision, drawing and the brain is a textbook for the next generation of visual artists about How To Draw – the very act of drawing and the act of human sight.

This book takes the teaching tradition of the previous 80 years and hauls it into the 21st century. It provides a masterclass of research and practical examples for students, instructors, professional artists, life drawing classes, and any reader curious about creativity. The Creative Eye closely examines the act of drawing, the act of human vision, includiong depth vision, not just “seeing flat” as is taught by recent how-to-draw manuals. How do the eyes really see? 

The Creative Eye accesses new research explaining what goes on in the hard-working visual brain - even what hinders us as we try to draw. Spears' method, developed over nearly half a century of international teaching, obsessive drawing and more than 20 books published, began as studio experiments and emerged as unique exercises in drawing. The book uses hundreds of illustrations of her own and student work, research on visual perception, and quotes and anecdotes of artists and poets. Heather persuades, informs and stimulates both the student and professional artist, injecting the fun and enthusiasm of the classroom into this new and amazing work. The Creative Eye stands highly praised, a modern classic in the theory and practice of drawing.