Celebrations for The Queen’s 90th birthday have boosted sales of a book that helps children to draw the royals.
Artist and teacher Linda Nissen Samuels is currently busy taking orders from the Royal Palaces shops for Draw Queens, Kings and All Things Royal (£5.99).
Published by her own imprint Pato Press, like her previous book Draw Water and Other Things it breaks down images such as Buckingham Palace and Henry VIII into easy steps for budding artists.
“I was inspired to do the first book because there are no books teaching very young children how to draw,” she says.
“A lot of people don’t agree with teaching children how to draw because they believe they should do it naturally, but so many are put off when they see their peers can do it and they can’t.
“I searched for books that taught you to draw different subjects but there were only specific ones on things like dinosaurs.”
Nissen Samuels says you can open her books at any page because the step by step “very simple” method of building up a picture is the same whatever the image.
“Grandparents like doing it with their children. Five and six-year-olds love it because they suddenly realise they can do so much more than they thought they could. Teenagers who think they can’t draw suddenly realise they can.”
Nissen Samuels who has sold 4,000 copies of Draw Water started on the Royal book at the urging of her graphic designer Irene Malvezi.
“She’s worked for the Royal collection and suggested we do a Royal book so we went to St James’ Palace and showed them a mock up because I wanted to be sure before I invested money.
“Although they didn’t commit themselves, they liked it and said go ahead and print it. They started ordering in September and have been ordering it ever since. I am hoping to sell more as the celebrations for the Queen’s birthday continue.”
The book which is also available in Daunt Books and Waterstones also teaches budding artists how to draw, the Tower of London, Hampton Court, the crown jewels, horses and guards, princes and princesses and major figures such as Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Victoria.
South African-born Nissen Samuels, who lives in Finchley and has taught art at the former LJCC, Cass Art, is planning to run workshops in the summer with the Royal Drawing book at the O2 centre in Finchley Road.
“It’s very simple to learn to draw these things in small steps – it’s always lovely to help people who think they can’t do it.”
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