MK’s Recommended Reading
Hello Fellow Arters and welcome back to Draw Daily!
If you ever wonder what how to draw books are worth investing in, check out MK’s Recommend Reading list to see what’s on it!
DRAWING BASICS AND VIDEO GAME ART
Chris Solarski
If you are just starting out as a beginner artist, Drawing Basics and Video Game Art is a great introduction into the world of art fundamentals. This book explains drawing basics in a way that is easy for anyone to understand and also provides guided exercises based on master works. If you need an easy, but practical place to start from; this book is for you. Recommenced for artists of all ages.
COLOR AND LIGHT
James Gurney
With Color and Light we are moving onto a set of books by James Gurney that elaborate on the ideas and theories of light and color first described in Art Fundamentals and much more. This is one of those books you keep earmarked and within arm’s reach so that you can reference it while you work. You may never need another book on the subject.
IMAGINATIVE REALISM
James Gurney
This book contains my ultimate favorite chapter on composition, and that alone makes this book worth buying. Imaginative Realism also includes a vast amount of knowledge on how to draw the fantasy you’ve created in your mind, including such topics as history, archaeology, creatures, architecture, and vehicles.
FORCE: LIFE DRAWING FOR ANIMATORS
Mike Mattesi
Bring your artwork to life with the power of the FORCE! Watch, listen, and follow along as Mike Mattesi demonstrates the fundamental FORCE line and explains dynamic figure drawing techniques through 30 videos that are launched through the book's companion App.
FORCE: DRAWING HUMAN ANATOMY
Mike Mattesi
The newest book in Michael Mattesi’s Force Drawing series takes movement to the next level. Force: Drawing Human Anatomy, explores the different facets of motion and the human body. Visit the companion website for drawing demonstrations and further resources on anatomy.
GESTURE DRAWING FOR ANIMATION
Walt Stanchfield
Walt Stanchfield led an entire generation of animators, and although he passed a way, his writings continue to teach artists of all kinds the importance of gesture and its ability to tell stories just through movement. Gesture Drawing for Animation is a compilation of resources Stanchfield created during his time as an art professor, sharing insights and ideas that will improve anyone’s ability to capture the energy and essence of a pose. If you have ever been curious about gesture, I can’t say I’ve found a better book to help explain it.
HOW TO DRAW
Scott Robertson With Thomas Bertling
How to Draw by Scott Robertson is the ultimate level-upper ‘how to draw art book’. If you are looking to become an expert in perspective and become a master builder with your pencil - creating architecture, vehicles, objects, or products - this is the book you’ve been looking for.
HOW TO RENDER
Scott Robertson With Thomas Bertling
This book is about the fundamentals of light, shadow and reflectivity; the focus is firmly on helping to improve visual understanding of the world around you. Rendering is the next step after drawing. Building on what Scott Robertson and Thomas Bertling wrote about in How To Draw, this book shares everything the two experts know about how to render light, shadow and reflective surfaces.
MORPHO
Michel Lauricella
Morpho is a 6 part series that breaks down the anatomy of the human body. Including the following titles: Anatomy for Artists, Simplified Forms, Skeleton and Bone Reference Points, Fat and Skin Folds, Hands and Feet, and Joint Forms and Muscular Functions. It is obvious that Michel is a master on the subject with page after page of skillful and precise anatomy drawings that show how at ease he is with the subject. This is an anatomy reference resource to challenge and build your body of anatomy knowledge.
FIN
It can be really difficult to find the right artbook for you. There are so many options and so many recommendations but many of the big names like Loomis, Bridgman, or Bargue tend to be a little too difficult for newbies. If you are a real beginner, stick with Drawing Basics and Video Game art by Chris Solarski first as he covers a variety of topics and gives just enough information to get the ball rolling.
What books have you fund that have helped you a lot? Let me know in the comments, I’m very curious to see what titles will pop up!
That’s it for today, thanks for reading!
I’m MK and this is Draw Daily!