The 5 Best "Art Of" Books

Why "art of" books should be in every artist's library.
The Art of Pixar: amzn.to/2rnICMo
The Art of Masters of the Universe: amzn.to/2ti95HC
The Art of the Croods: amzn.to/2sxVWgD
The Art of Zootopia: amzn.to/2rXpTG1
The Art of District 9: amzn.to/2sYAxuz
The Netflix of Art Training: svslearn.com
My list of art tools and materials that I use: mrjakeparker.com/tools
Artsnacks 10% Discount: www.artsnacks.co/jakeparker
Website: mrjakeparker.com
Twitter: / mrjakeparker
Instagram: / jakeparker
Facebook: / jakeparkerart

[@spencerhawkes5435]

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!

[@sashhshshshsshsaaaa]

love me a thicc art book

[@christophergoothrox938]

Afiq Amran S P I C Y B O I

[@wei55_]

don't be so crood!

[@s0urc4ndy____24]

Thicccccccccccccccccccccccc

[@poki7708]

I like how they fit on the shelf’s but overall I disagree. Like the Four “ruff stuff” books by J. Scott Cambell.

[@weirdloverwilde]

Same 🥵🥵🥵🥵

[@passage2enBleu]

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.

[@Beanie84]

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.

[@gnendo8975]

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)

[@jakeparker44]

Oh yes! My son has that book, it's a gem.

[@giulyanoviniciussanssilva2947]

And Spiderverse.

[@handouts5555]

bruh they're worth 200 to 800 now 😭😭 and i want one so much

[@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.

[@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!

[@rachaelvtstudio2579]

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.

[@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.

[@hakobo1327]

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

[@kathrynsloan4694]

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

[@anthonymervin4499]

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.

[@msalyssa6604]

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 :)

[@StylusRumble]

This video is going to cost me so much money!! lol

[@agfagaevart]

never pay full price...

[@jacobshort6528]

Yeah. Get them at discount book sellers and out of used book catalogs. Like Bud Plant.

[@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.

[@gardensofthegods]

I'm definitely going to be checking them out ... thank you so much

[@jacobshort6528]

👋 Hey. I, too, have a copy of one of Chris Sanders' sketchbooks. The one with the blue-skinned cow monster and some big yellow guy walking on the other side of a wall from a couple kids, who wouldn't look out of place in Lilo And Stitch.

[@jacobshort6528]

I bought them from the Bud Plant book catalogs.

[@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.

[@rashmika9742]

Yes, his books are amazing! He explains colour theory so beautifully as well.

[@artsideoflife]

Agree! His color&light work is amazing!!!

[@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.

[@jonathanenck3814]

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.

[@jakeparker44]

Oh man, I love that Phantom Menace book too. I actually want to do a video JUST on Star Wars art books.

[@Chimunculous]

The two last Star Wars art books (The Force Awakens and Rogue One) were really fantastic. I can also recommend 'Shadowline: The Art of Iain McCaig' for more SW goodness as he designed Darth Maul and Padme, along with loads of other prequel stuff!

[@taliesinian]

I have almost all of the Star Wars art books and all of them are incredible. the Story board ones too.

[@nagudelomusic]

Jonathan, the art books for the Lord Of The Rings classic trilogy are good but a bit short. In contrast, the art books created for the Hobbit movies are simply amazing. In my opinion are way, way better (bigger, more comprehensive) than the LOTR ones.

[@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.

[@TaylorGessler]

The art of TANGLED omg glen keane though

[@rockabillylaker]

My 2 favorite Art of Books. I saved my Christmas money and had my take take me to get: Art of Aladdin and Art of Street Fighter 2.

[@blueskyexpo]

Thanks for sharing the Art of He-Man. I'll have to buy that. I've collected art of books since the 80's. My faves are the Art of Nausicca and Art of Macross.

[@jakeparker44]

Both solid books. I got the Macross one back in the 90's at a used book store. I thought I struck gold!

[@blueskyexpo]

You did!!!

[@levisimpson516]

Would love a part 2 to this video. I love art books.

[@krock90]

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

[@docas518]

Krock me too

[@SquiffleQwimply]

Krock same

[@drej1934]

Krock Was sane xd

[@drej1934]

Same*

[@Popcorn_ART]

hahaha

[@victor2410]

I remember having the making of space jam book as a kid, it was the first time i ever saw construction lines on a cartoon drawing, and it all made so much sense all of a sudden.

[@TheBaxstar1]

Jake! I love that you are doing videos again! Thanks man.

[@Castleman711]

Awesome video!!! I was on the fence on buying two of these books. Thanks for flipping through them. I will definitely pick them up.

[@DeaDerV23]

Art of District 9 ordered last night! :) Good video, would be nice to see some more recommended art books from you!

[@leafninja247]

I have both Hyrule Historia and Okami: The Complete Works. Both of these games are so near and dear to me and Okami impacted my artistic life in a great way. I HIGHLY recommend you play it and look at the art, especially if you're into the old school Sumi-e and woodblock prints!

[@Falarson92]

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.

[@AnimeOtakuDesuu]

Just as how mangaka don't get royalties from anime of their manga. In the context of manga, all that good stuff belongs in large part to the publisher. I suppose the case here is the same.

[@saber1992]

they probably do have social media, but its in japanese which means you wouldnt be able to find all of them with the regular character keys even if you wanted to.

[@DeepSeaLugia]

psst some artists may have twitter, nico nico, pixiv? The guy form One Punch Man has one: @ONE_rakugaki

[@Lusithane]

Uhm, actually that's the twitter from the story creator, the one who did the original web manga, if you're looking for the artist of the manga that came later (where the anime design is based on) is @NEBU_KURO his name is Yusuke Murata.

[@Clyman974]

Yeah the Dark Souls artbooks don't credit the artists either

[@JGonzalezArt]

Absolutely loved this video and everything you covered. Great stuff Jake!

[@cynthiadesgagne8548]

Great recommendations! I really love The Art of the Book of Life (visual development for the different environments) and the Art and Making of Arthur Christmas for its graphic design (all the uniform patches, computer screens and the stamps!). Have you seen any of those two?

[@fabulousRiOT]

Never clicked a video so fast, you are my fave youtube and I LOVE art books so this is the best!!

[@StruttinStrayCat]

I’m so glad you made this video; thank you for expanding my art arsenal.

[@kattoledo1501]

never tought about any of this! Thank you so much! love your passion!

[@Demico_art]

I have the Zootopia artbook! It's great!

[@loadedburrito6699]

i highly recommend the art of ooo book adventure Time

[@paulashinn]

THANK YOU! I was just asking myself about this! The timing couldn't be more perfect!

[@jamiethomas18]

Thank you for posting this video, it's inspiring to see someone so passionate talk about art of books. I personally love the Marvel Art of Books that accompany the release of every new Marvel film.

[@woeandgrow]

I love collecting Art Of Books! I would highly recommend the Art of Avatar the Last Airbender, Legend of Korra (which has multiple), and How to Train Your Dragon 1 & 2 (two books!)! Also the Legend of Zelda Hyrule Historia & Art & Artifacts books!

[@Matheus_h0t]

You change my vision about the artbooks... after this, now i know how to find a good artbook with great quality and content that will help me to learn what i want

[@Dtokyopop]

Thank you for going over this topic! I've been fortunate enough to buy great Art Of books, but this let's me know exactly what to look for. And thank you for these amazing suggestions. My favorite Art Of book I own is of The Matrix.

[@lindenmassie209]

so happy you're back to making videos on here again

[@daniellee416]

I feel like I need to get some of these now. The Pixar and zootopia ones in particular.

[@Chimunculous]

Great video, Jake! I'm a self confessed 'Art of' book junkie and it was great to hear your take on them. I LOVE my Masters of the Universe book, it's so much fun and seeing all of those old designs certainly took me back to my childhood! Here are some of the other favourites in my collection: - The Art of Tangled/Wreck-It-Ralph/Big Hero 6/Zootopia/Moana (the Disney ones are just the best) - The Art of The Book of Life - The Art of Kung Fu Panda 2 - The Art of Borderlands 2 (crazy amounts of character/weapon and environment designs) My most recent purchase was the 'Art of Dofus, Livre 1: Julith' book. I haven't seen the movie yet but I heard you talking about it on the Bancroft Bros. podcast so I looked into it. Great recommendation!

[@josiahh.3437]

That feeling when Jake shows off the Croods book and my aunt's name is on the cover. Only have the Croods book. I'm going to have to get the rest of these books.

[@midna6364]

Woow that's so cool :D

[@peteroffline6616]

I love this video, great coverage on the books!

[@mauricesanchez6804]

Excellent points! Definitely will have a look at your suggestions! Great categories to have when purchasing books for artists!

[@ajilanpotter1666]

I collect Art of Books and it makes me so happy to see a video like this on KZbin

[@JeromeTheInvigilator]

The Art Of Journey is easily one of my favourites. What do you guys think??

[@jakeparker44]

That's a great book too!

[@taliesinian]

I have been sad I did not pick up on time and the price rocketed up. :(

[@CampingforCool41]

It looks really good, but too expensive.

[@first3numbers]

I did not know you had a KZbin channel! I've only seen you on Instagram...I'm really happy though!

[@Kassuhday]

Yes I've been looking for some good art of books!!!! This is so helpful!

[@pastichehaus]

Definitely need to invest in some art books. Love this. 🥰

[@theartofstory9487]

Great Video! I gotta say, I'm amazed you didn't include the art book that started it all, the one all other "Art Of" books aspire to be like -- The Art of Open Season." It is BY FAR the most thorough, comprehensive, generous books on any single project I've ever scene. It's so chock full of art it literally included smaller paper back books from specific artists WITHIN THE ACTUAL BOOK! If you haven't seen one you should get your hands on one.

[@gum307]

just discovered your channel and i am just wow...so much nice condensed knowledge! man i am so excited to watch your videos...thank you for sharing! really appreciate the effort you put in making these :) feels like fuel for our artistic fire woohoo

[@averywells9983]

I've enjoyed your videos for a while now. Not just for the art, which is great, but for the insights and information you have imparted. My resources are a bit limited, but I've managed to pick up a couple of Art Of books. I have Art Of Destiny, which has some great design stuff in it, including graphic design (which is what I went to school for). I also have Art Of Blizzard Entertainment. This was a great find for me. The original cover price was $75, but Barnes and Nobles had it in their bargain section for $20! I enjoy looking through both of those books to get ideas for stuff.

[@wildcrackers4915]

great video!!thank you so much that you make them ...they help us so much!

[@jennygetyourgun]

I have the Zootopia one, and I'm so glad I grabbed it while it was on sale. It's SO good. Thank you for this highlight video, definitely going to check out them out. :)

[@artsideoflife]

The Art of Croods and The Art of Pixar are my all time favorite!! Thanks for sharing 😊

[@zkull777]

I was wanting to know if you could do a video about your books that are sitting on your shelf that you go to for inspiration?

[@taliesinian]

Jake, do an episode just on the Hell Boy library books always in the back ground. amazing books.

[@kylehammond8345]

Great advise Jake. I don't have enough books like this. I do have a book on drawing super hero comics from Marvel. It's great because it really breaks down the human form as well as showing you how to create action with your characters by almost over exaggerating their motion. Like if a guy is throwing a bunch or running. I thinking the human form is even more difficult to draw when trying to show movement or motion. But it is also such a huge tool to help tell a story without having to use words.

[@RodrigoOtaguro]

Very cool content as always!! Thanks for sharing!

[@endo7856]

Jake, can you do a special edition of your art books with all of them in like a hard cover and never seen before art?

[@tessimothompson6018]

just found your channel, great content man thanks so much!

[@mudmudmud7007]

My favourite Art Of book is Art Of Over The Garden Wall. It goes from pitching the show to the pilot to the finished episodes and theres so many sketches.. its really cool!

[@RailroadJerk]

Thank you so much for this, Jake.

[@oonadoodles]

I haven't bought it yet but I've pretty much read all of it at a bookstore: art of Charlie Brown (blue sky) was incredible. Really shows the 3D pipeline and their methods to making a 3D film faithful to the 2D art style and comic strips.

[@kingtigerbooks1162]

Great video -- great channel. Thanks ! To whom it may concern: these are my favorite art books on Amazon: - Fantasy Art Paintings by Mike Hoffman - Infinite Worlds by Vincent DiFate - Great Fighter Jets of the Galaxy 1 by Tim Gibson

[@catsymousie7611]

Great recommendation! Thanks a bunch!

[@Rettomus]

I really enjoy 2D fighting game artbooks (like artbooks of games from Arcsys). Especially the story boards for the combat animations in them, the details and the amount of thought put to the movements are very useful, if you have any interest in animation.

[@chronorust7220]

Was planning on collecting these, and it all started back around 6 years ago when I first saw Legend Of The Guardians back in 2012. The 'Art Of' book for that astonished me. Guess it started there.

[@Lesimages2Renata]

Thanks a lot for this 5 advises, I love a lot the 4th !

[@ParasolMushroomStudios]

I actually really liked the Croods! The colors alone are worth the watch, but I thought it had a nice message too. I hope to one day be able to afford art of books, they look so magical!

[@willdixon9525]

Beautiful artwork! Good video and Great tutorial work on art books. thanks for posting. new subscriber.

[@eldiego2059]

Thank you so much, fantastic recommendations.

[@ciscoponch67]

Hi, Jake. Thanks for another great video. Hey didn't you mention how you were going to explain how you came by that drawing desk and the artist who originally used it? Just curious. Thanks!

[@thomas41000]

I love all of your work Jake, I discovered your website not so long ago thanks to your Inktober challenge and you have become such.a source of inspiration for me !!! Thanks !!! I have some art books that I love wich are The art of : - Alice madness returns - Borderlands 2 - Fallout 4 - Skyrim - Substrata - all of World of Warcraft's art books - Wreck it Ralph - Pacific Rim - Mass effect ( the 1rst one is great, lots of drawings but the 2nd is more based on concept arts )

[@wolverinemarko28]

another great video JP

[@FloraNovax3]

I love these books , I collect them. They’re so beautiful 😍

[@jenniferhall1318]

Jake nice video man I do like art books and they do have a lot of good drawings

[@Lolrigami]

Art of....war....

[@jakeparker44]

hahaha, actually, I've been meaning to read that book and see how it applies to art.

[@passage2enBleu]

and then there's the equally brilliant 'War of Art'.

[@AnnaGlin]

personally I love the Laika artbooks the most, especially Boxtrolls and also Paranorman. So fascinating as I'm interested in StopMotion a lot as well! :)

[@SplendidDIY]

I love your studio!

[@Pkbucket]

Okami's art book is really amazing too if you are interested in growing your book collection its a video game but a really beatiful one.

[@sminturn]

"Dang good book." Lol, this video is amazing! I love you passion for these books and all of the processes that are involved in creating a game/movie. I need all of these!

[@emilypdx]

Loved this video!! I really love the iron giant and the force awakens art books, mainly cause those are two of my favorite movies but like you said, seeing the process that made those amazing movies is so cool! Also I was gonna ask about that print above your desk, the kylo/darth Vader one? It looks awesome from this angle, was wondering who you got it from if you have the info :)

[@Lopsider]

ayyyy new jake parker upload

[@HazrdBeats]

Viewpoint by Lorenzo Ceccotti is amazing as well. Mostly digital illustration from posters to comic books.

[@farmandoart5850]

The art of Rocksteady's Batman video games is awesome

[@PikaPetey]

im gonna buy all of these

[@user-nt2yq8xi1f]

Draw Like a Boss by Ashley Edge! Best book on learning to draw imo

[@narutardednerd]

I'm definitely putting these books in my to buy list. That Castle Grayskull toy is one of the coolest toys I've seen. I've been tempted to buy it several times.

[@jacobshort6528]

I once saw an old 1980s Castle Grayskull playset in an Antique store for 20 dollars, in the early 2000s. And I found Battle Cat's saddle in a box of toys at a garage sale. And a green tiger Battle Cat at the dump. A decade apart.

[@narutardednerd]

@@jacobshort6528 That's awesome!

[@TheWeeklingsCartoon]

Awesome video, the third act of the Croods is so great! Curious now to check out the book! Great video, just subscribed! :)

[@jakeparker44]

Thanks for the sub!

[@endo7856]

yes! been waiting for a video like this.

[@heikesiegl2640]

i just love my Okami-Artbook :) its so big and i like the stile

[@faliqazkaadeson2950]

heyy jake i really love your videos so i would love if you can do a studio tour PLEASSEEEE

[@tddavis]

Could you do a top 15 now haha?

[@legoblox01]

Have you see the Dark Souls art books? Great fantasy like art with a grim aesthetic

[@stevedavesteve4224]

Yes I have it. It's awesome!

[@Popcorn_ART]

nah but i will sometime in future

[@mlmattin]

Thanks for posting! I LOVE ART BOOKS! All good points about what makes a good art book. An important requirement for me is that the book must have a good mix of sketch/unpainted drawings and finished renderings. I prefer them to lean heavier on the sketches and black and white drawings. Some books are full of beautiful work, but they are all highly rendered/painted. I think it's easier to see the underlying shapes and construction of characters when they are not cleaned up and fully painted. Some of my other favorites are the World of Warcraft art books, Art of Tangled, Art of Wreck-It Ralph, and the Art of Monsters University. I can't ever really get enough art books. :)

[@alejandrop.1619]

Man... great video. Thank you very much.