The Famous Artists School Illustration and Design textbook, Volume One (of a four-volume set) covers the following topics: Introduction to Design: The basic fundamentals of design-pattern, shape, balance and space. Good design excludes every inessential element. Observation: the Artist's Primary Tool: Learning to see closely and analytically. Using value contrasts, edges, and perspective to make pictures come alive. Figure Composition: The expression of emotion in pictures by the way the figures are used in the composition. How to make the figure dominate the scene. Mood and Emotion in Illustration: Successful pictures largely depend on communicating human feelings. Symbols, point of view, theme, rhythm and design.