The 5 Best 'Art Of' Books

Why "art of" books should be in every artist's library.

[spencerhawkes]

Hey Jake, I was totally taken off guard, but the paintings at 10:01 were done by my dad ages ago! It's the first time I've seen them! I'm sure he'd be surprised they've been printed after so long. Thanks for the great video!

[gnendo]

I have The Art Of Ooo and I definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to get into cartoon animation
Adventure Time's style seems quite simple, but it's really not and it gives great insight into the creativity that goes into it
Also, it's divided in clear chapters, it's hard cover and it's huge (around 350 pages long)

[Beanie]

The Art of Tarzan is one of my all-time favorite artbooks. My dad bought it for me in highschool and it's never left my side ever since. The book itself was a MASSIVE tome of art. Tons of character designs, story sketches, color concept art, environment art, and a few screenshots that didn't detract from the overall quality. The scale truly did the artists' work justice.

[rockabillylaker]

Not just for the fact that there is some work that cannot be seen online but, just to have something tangible that you can actually touch. The pages, the initial crackling of the binding when you first open it.

[thecat_iswatching]

My favourite art books that I have is the Art of Spirited Away and Art of Wreck it Ralph. They are loaded with inspiration. I also own a Chris Sanders sketchbook (a copy of it). Even though it's not an 'art of' it's a great way to study the way he draws his figures. It's like an endless perfect line.

[rachaelvtstudio]

I had always wondered about getting "Art Of" books for a while. I was worried that a lot of them would be just screen shots, but you have shown me that there are some out there that have actual development and descriptions. Plus all in all about learning from art books in general. I feel like I have gotten a much better feel for learning when I had an art book in my hands as opposed to just finding and saving pictures on the internet.

[JC_rusher_arts]

I really love The Art of Big Hero 6! It's also full of character designs and the study of san francisco and tokyo which is so amazing!

[jonathanenck]

They may not be as thorough in adding interview quotes and so on, but the three "Art of Lord of the Rings" have gorgeous spreads for those movies. (apparently not only is Weta good at getting artists but showing off what those artists do.) They have a mixture of environment and creature design as well as even the costuming concept art. They are vertical, but just so beautiful. I've also nearly broken the binding on the Art of Phantom Menace, which I must say was probably as electrifying for 7th grader me as the art of Star wars was for others. Whatever you think of the movie, the art behind it is great, particularly for environments and creature design.Again a bit sparse on text, but there are quotes and tidbits to work with.

[anthonymervin]

I appreciate that your videos are chock full of content. I was watching a video recently that had a compelling title, and the narrator hemmed and hawed for thirty minutes before almost forgetting his premise.

[msalyssa]

All time favorite is my Calvin and Hobbes complete hardcover collection. I absolutely LOVE Bill Waterson's stuff. plus he was a genius at comedy :)

[taliesinian]

Jake, thank you so much for sharing. For literally decades I have been a fan and collecting "art of" books. It started with the early Disney art books. I didn't know anyone else so obsessed with looking at the sketches and design concepts. I often noted the volume of work in the books were often better than the movies to me. I now enjoy a nice library I will often take a night and just flip through for pleasure and inspiration.

[unchilgisam]

Thanks for recommending Zootopia! I wasn't a fan of it so I never would have thought how detailed & expansive the artbook is. Really great reference to character design and world building.

[greggunther]

You're such a great mentor for us wanna-be artist storytellers. I plan to start my 'art of' book collection. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us.

[passageenBleu]

Pause to consider. You said '...that my dad got me'. Do you know how special those words are? Consider yourself truly blessed to have a dad who invested in your passion. Priceless.

[Falarson]

Great video as always, Jake! One of the things that pisses me off about some japanese art books (I'm looking at you, Zelda: Arts and Artifacts) is how they don't credit the artists! Sure, sometimes there's interviews or mentions, but not a 1 to 1 correspondance of names to artwork. Also, more japanese artists should have social media profiles so we can see more of their stuff.

[kathrynsloan]

I agree Jake. I love books in general and they are different from your computer. There is nothing like a book.

[suchasmango]

It's not an art book, per-say, but the Dinotopia series by James Gurney is so mindblowing! I used to look at the pictures for hours on end as a kid. He's a huge inspiration.

[TaylorGessler]

The art of TANGLED omg glen keane though

[hakobo]

I have this really old small square book that had a ton of old original Disney art, mostly concept sketches and such for the older princess movies and like Pinocchio and jungle book I love it

[krock]

Big mistake watching this in bed. Now I can't sleep, I just want to draw! 😅