RESOURCES

Ottoman Levni’s Book of Festivities is just so great, and right up my street (very 1001 Nights somehow). Watch out for much of Levni's Turkish miniatures incorporated into upcoming TALES classes, and look out for those fancy hats! The TALES characters will also comprise Levni’s guilds, and I’ll inco

  https://artsandculture.google.com/story/five-great-masters-of-indian-miniature-painting/TQVROMtZxzvqlw?fbclid=IwAR21Elm2KueOrzpq3H3iM6TcN4ehDbm5DIwi6jfl5-4GImIVW1mCRH0uhIw

I have a few e-books on Persian painting and drawing, I've downloaded them years ago; free and legal from the MET museum, please enjoy but do not sell them. I hope this is the right categorie for it. The link is functional until next Thursday, the 18th of August 2022. https://we.tl/t-QDd5rLsLcF

Wonders of Creation by Qazwini--a free download of this book. Scroll through the pages to get to the illustrations https://www.loc.gov/item/2021667228/

Useful for brush handling and rendering techniques - we delve into this more in the Siyah Qalam class and I also explain the thinking behind each brush technique; here are the sample images for now to compare with miniature painting.

Here's the Fire class lecture so you can download and see all the images. I talk through these as part of the introductory spiel that makes up the first part of each Fire class and the students are welcome to keep these after (as long as they are for educational purposes, etc). The cycle of elemen

Here's the Rocks class lecture so you can download and see all the images. I talk through these as part of the introductory spiel that makes up the first part of each Rocks class and the students are welcome to keep these after (as long as they are for educational purposes, etc). The cycle of elem

Some more general info on miniature painting for beginners. I would say that there is differing opinion eg. on the use of egg white as starch, and also the legend about Chinese prisoners teaching the art of paper making to Samarqandis is apparently... well, legendary. Otherwise a good overall view:

Info on traditional colours of Islamic manuscripts: https://heritagesciencejournal.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40494-018-0217-y

Materials list for Practical Miniature Painting Online courses: SOFTWARE AND DEVICES: Up to date Internet browser to browse online painting collections Laptop and smartphone with camera, microphone, headphones and internet connection to participate in the online class Printer desirable MATERIALS:

Saral paper for tracing. This is wax free and leaves no residue, unlike pigment. In comes in several colors , including white. Here is an example of several colors used (sorry for the dirty paper).

Ruling pen information. Alan Adams is a master geometer who has posted a superb explanation of all things to do with ruling pens: where to buy the best, how to use them, method of cleaning and sharpening them, etc. His post is at: https://www.drawingislamicgeometricdesigns.com/blog/steel-pens-ruli

Wonders of the Age: Master Painters of India 1100-1900, by John Guy and Jorrit Britschgi - recommend buying the book, but in case access is hard I came across a PDF version of it here which you can download for free. Contains very useful info about Mughal masters: Basawan ‘Abd al-Samad - of camel f

I'm currently recreating The Court of Gayumars, my all-time favourite painting which is held in the Aga Khan collection in Toronto. Enjoy the quick video above! (In the live sessions, we've moved on much further.) Although the painting is apparently resting (thank you @Sayeda Habib for the info!),

Here's the Siyah Qalam class lecture so you can download and see all the images. I talk through these as part of the introductory spiel that makes up the first part of each Siyah Qalam class and the students are welcome to keep these after (as long as they are for educational purposes, etc). The c

Here's the Water class lecture so you can download and see all the images. I talk through these as part of the introductory spiel that makes up the first part of each Water class and the students are welcome to keep these after (as long as they are for educational purposes, etc). The cycle of elem

Part of the rarer Theory classes I have taught that situates miniature painting in context with other art stuff going on in Eurasia.

A modern Indian textbook entry on miniature manuscript paintings, written by Indians for Indians - illuminating to see how it is taught in schools in India today: https://ncert.nic.in/textbook/pdf/lefa101.pdf

YOU WILL NEED • Oil paints!* • Linseed oil • Oil painting varnish • This is the only smelly stuff: either turpentine, or artists’ white spirit, or Sansodor - a brush cleaner - and methylated spirits** • Brushes: brushes are available here: https://www.theperfectbrush.co.uk - the Humours series

• Weimann, Ingrid and Nedim Sonmez. Christopher Weiman: (1946-1988) A Tribute. Tubingen, Germany: Jackle-Sonmez, 1991. 107 pages. • Wolfe, Richard J. Marbled Paper its History, Techniques, and Patterns. Philadelphia: University of Pensylvania Press, 1990. 245 pages. • Nevins, Iris. Traditional Ma

https://artsandculture.google.com/project/life-in-miniature

Supplies: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1o2VmJVJ8UB_662YkwRnlkA9900slSRorgJsm895PNwc/edit?usp=sharing Classes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/10VKuqAMN98xdT0ZhjEuXQl2785IePMNsrBg1W_nqlTA/edit?usp=sharing

Students often ask me about the sources for miniature manuscript painting technique. There aren't many and only 2 major works I can think of, also heavily biased towards calligraphy (the 'higher' art form). Some excellent info here on manuscript painters and calligraphers - Minorsky's translation of

Here's the Introduction to Miniature Painting lecture so you can download and see all the images. I talk through these as part of the introductory spiel that makes up the first part of each Introduction class and the students are welcome to keep these after (as long as they are for educational pur

Here's the Ether class lecture so you can download and see all the images. I talk through these as part of the introductory spiel that makes up the first part of each Ether class and the students are welcome to keep these after (as long as they are for educational purposes, etc). The cycle of elem

Here's the Clouds class lecture so you can download and see all the images. I talk through these as part of the introductory spiel that makes up the first part of each Clouds class and the students are welcome to keep these after (as long as they are for educational purposes, etc). The cycle

For reminders and visuals about paper preparation.

This post was on the shorter public Facebook group, kindly posted by Mandana Barkeshli. The paper was researched and written by Mandana Barkeshli, Marinita Stiglitz and Sadra Zekrgoo. I am ever so grateful to them for providing this information! Enjoy the peacock ink recipe especially, and see if yo

Instructions I share in the Preparatory email I give to course students - if there are new students I take you through this process live: HOW TO PREPARE YOUR PAPER 1. Boil water and make yourself a cup of black tea - except with 3-5 teabags of black tea and in a bowl, not a cup. I find cheap tea

These images are from the Tang Losha, a mysterious magical book of fates/omens given to me by my student Saba Raven. Like a Persian Nostradamus, it predicts your fate and eventual date (and method!) of your demise so you can look up your birthday. She looked up mine and @Anastasia Doran 's if I rec