American artist James Toogood has written a book which includes many of the paintings he did in Bermuda during his time as a Masterworks Foundation artist-in-residence at the Terrace Gallery in Dockyard in 2002.

Entitled ?Incredible Light and Texture in Watercolour?, its cover and many inside pages feature watercolours of Bermuda scenes in full colour.

The book was commissioned by publisher North Light Books, and is designed to appeal equally to non-artists and artists of all abilities who seek instruction on technique.

?Things are broken down into bite-sized pieces which are easy for the beginner to digest, or a seasoned veteran to out more about painting,? Mr. Toogood says.

?More importantly, I wanted the book to have a wide appeal to people who are interested in art ? not in the painting, but just seeing the imagery and wondering ?Why would somebody want to paint that? and what are some of the thought processes that went into it?? ?

Each painting has what the author says are ?little vignettes? describing, in some cases, where the scene is set, and why he wanted to paint it, so that a reader can skim the book, look at the art, and get a sense of the thought processes behind his work.

Like many artists, the watercolourist is always captivated by Bermuda?s sparkling light ? something he was particularly anxious to convey in his book.

?Bermuda?s light is unique. There are some paintings of the United States and the United Kingdom in the book, but when you see the Bermuda images you see the reflected light. In Bermuda you see light glinting from surface to surface, even up underneath the eaves of the buildings. It is up to the artist to exploit that.?

In fact, Mr. Toogood says that the book?s title is ?absolutely perfect? for the Bermuda paintings.

Printed on high quality, matte paper, the text is clear and easy to read. Different type faces provide subtle differentiation between technical and general information, and serve as ?mile markers? for the content of each section.

?Thumbnail sketches? provide what the author hopes are ?fun tidbits? for artists and non-artist alike to enjoy.

?Information is also given for those who want to know how to paint something themselves. That was the challenge,? Mr. Toogood says. This takes the form of a stage by stage, visual analysis of how he achieved features of his finished paintings ? a book to artists seeking to perfect their technique for, say, painting clouds, water, rocks or sand.

?It is awfully simple when you know how, and simply awful when you don?t know how so the book, in part, shows people how to break a painting down into its component parts, and then put it back together. So you demystify what seems at first complex and confusing,? the author says.

Following past exhibitions at the Masterworks Foundation?s gallery, as well as the Windjammer Gallery, many of the artist?s watercolours are now in local collections, and others are currently available at Windjammer. Mr. Toogood, a professional art teacher, has participated in other compilation publications by Northern Light Books (www.artistsnetwork.com), but ?Incredible Light and Texture in Watercolour? is the first which features his work ?cover to cover?.