The Artist's Handbook - Ray Smith

This book, published in 2008 is an update to a classic reference first released in 1987. It is hardbound, with spiral binding. With lots of color photo illustrations, Ray Smith explores materials, supports and grounds, drawing, painting, printmaking, and so forth. There are sections on fresco technique, stained glass, mosaic, vitreous enameling and more. There is also a section on pigments, with all the details you might want - including chemical composition, permanence, tinting strength, toxicity and so forth. Overall, a great reference!