He Sees A Red Door

That bounder Hugh Hewitt has finally gotten off his duff and come out with a new book. What's it been, three, four months since he cranked out the last one? I guess haste does make waste, so it's probably a good thing that Hugh spent several days crafting his latest work.

I have heard that some book reviewers have the temerity to write a review without ever even opening the cover. Not me. I devour every word, linger on every sentence, read and reread the index, and even double check every foot note in the card catalog at my local library. No detail is too small to escape my attention.

Here then is my review of Painting the Map Red by Hugh Hewitt.

This is a great little book! It is not a "How-to Guide" in the strictest, pedantic sense. It's an honest book by a serious artist intended for those new to map painting, just as the title suggests. That's not to say, however, that it would not be useful to more advanced map painters.

Those features that the book lacks are among its greatest qualities-there are no "10 Commandments" that are usually found in books of this genre. Most map painters approached to write a book of this nature feel obligated to forbid X and insist on Y (with some justification, perhaps) but this book is just a well-considered, sincere, very personal discussion of Hugh's approach to his map painting and all the craft that it entails.

Hewitt's strength as a writer comes from his balanced, encouraging, honest approach to his topic. Basically, in this book, he says what he does and why he does it. He is never condescending when he discusses the techniques that "many other map painters" employ. It's more as if he is inviting his readers to see things his way, if they are so inclined, (and to pick up some of his tricks) or to go the way that the Muse takes them.

I'd strongly recommend this book for map painting students, would-be writers, people interested in the art and craft of map painting and, of course, to anyone who wishes to "become a good (or better) map painter". I'll re-read this book dozens of times!

[Editor's note--Portions of this review may have been "borrowed" from another source.]