Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones (1833 – 1898) was an English artist and designer closely associated with the later phase of the Pre-Raphaelite movement, who worked closely with renowned textile artist William Morris on a wide range of decorative arts.

Readers who frequent my blog will know my absolute adoration for the work of John William Waterhouse, and by extension any work of the Pre-Raphaelites, so Burne-Jones’ paintings are definitely in my corner. On top of this, I’m also a big fan of Arthurian legend art, of which the artist is also known for.

This hardcover volume by Tate Publishing collects 150 works spanning 224 pages in different media, including painting, stained glass, and tapestry and was published to accompany a major retrospective at Tate Britain.

(above) My copy of the book seemed to have shipped with the jacket cover missing, something I’m none too pleased about. It should feature the image in the Amazon purchase link below.

An excellent collection of Edward Burne-Jones’s beautiful paintings and art work, this is a worthy addition to the library of any Pre-Raphaelites fan. Recommended.

“Edward Burne-Jones″ art book details :

– Dimensions – 11.7 x 10.2 x 1.3 inches
– Hard cover, 256 pages
– Full color

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Yamamoto Nizo is a veteran background artist who have worked on such esteemed films as Madhouse’s A Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Ghibli’s Mononoke Hime, Laputa – Castle In The Sky, Grave Of The Fireflies, and more.

This art book, titled 100 Views ( Hyakkei – a reference to the 100 famous views of Japan ) collects 100 background art pieces that the artist has painted over his 40 years of work. There is also a small collection of concept art and color keys the artist created for films like Graveyard Of The Fireflies and The Girl Who Leapt Through Time that can be found at the end of the book.

Fans of Yamamoto Nizo who previously purchased his older art book will want to know that there are some identical content/art work featured in both books; this new volume however is more expansive and features more of the artist’s personal works.

Readers who are new to his work however, I give this book my highest recommendations.

“100 Views – Yamamoto Nizo Background Art Book” art book details :

Dimensions – 29.6 x 22.4 x 1.6 cm
Soft cover, 175 pages
Color, in Japanese

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The March 2019 issue of Japanese magazine Illustration is a special feature on the work of Eguchi Hisashi. I’ve reviewed 3 of his art books so far ( Step / King Of Pop / Works ) and as you can surmise a big fan of his work.

Eguchi Hisashi’s distinctive art style is always easy to spot; with art work/characters rendered in flat, simple colors but always with expressive facial expressions, especially the eyes. This magazine special showcases illustration highlights from his 40 year old portfolio as well as an extended interview.

(above & below) A sneak peek of the artist’s bookshelves. Do you spot any comics/art books you like as well ? I spot Jiro Taniguchi’s art book on one of the top left shelves.

(above & below) The magazine comes with bonus calendar set. Even if you don’t use calendars they are like a beautiful set of post cards.

Illustration magazine is a fantastic way to catch up with the best artists working in Japan right now. Check out some earlier issues here, here and here.

“Eguchi Hisashi – Illustration Magazine” details :

– Dimensions – 28.2 x 21 x 1.7 cm
– Softcover, 118 pages
– Full color, in Japanese

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Renowned Japanese illustrator Katsuya Terada is back with a new art book titled Real Size – a splendid collection of his black marker art works, many of which were created during his live drawing events. The title refers to the print size of the reproductions which are at 100% scale of the original art works, large mural pieces which are cropped and presented across several pages in the book. The complete drawings are also included, scaled down to 16% of the original size.

Any artist who has attempted a large piece of art work recognizes the challenge of getting scaled up proportions correct; yet all of Terada’s art work featured in this book were done with no rough drafts, a true testament to the amazing skill of the artist.

“Codex Binding” has been used for this book, which allows for the spine to be spread fully and allows for great appreciation of the art work.

The publisher of this art book ( PIE Books International ) has been releasing high quality titles for the past few years ( like Otomo’s Posters art book ), and this volume is no exception – Terada’s stunning marker drawings are beautifully reproduced, and each page pack a fantastic visual punch. This book gets my highest recommendations.

Note – An English language version of the book is due to be published in October, with a slightly bigger page count ( 218 pages compared to this Japanese edition’s 202 ). The price is fairly higher, and while this is purely speculation on my part I do not suspect the contents to be radically different from this version; the book is almost 100% images and contain very little text, so almost nothing is lost by way of translation.

“Real Size – Katsuya Terada” art book details :

Dimensions – 30.2 x 18 x 2.2 cm
Hardcover ( codex binding ), 202 pages
Full Color, in Japanese ( book contains mostly images )

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The climatic finale to Marvel’s cinematic universe is almost upon us with Avengers : Endgame, and Japanese artist Takumi has created this spectacular set of illustrations featuring the Avengers characters in Ukiyo-e ( a genre of Japanese woodblock prints ) style.

?????????????????????????????????
??#??????? #ENDGAME #AvengersEndgame #0426??? pic.twitter.com/zeoAHReW57

— TAKUMI (@takumitoxin) April 23, 2019

This isn’t the first time the artist has created amazing fan art from films; back in 2015 he also illustrated a hierographic version of Mad Max : Fury Road –

????????????#??????? #?????????? #MadMax #MadMaxFuryRoad pic.twitter.com/opeugTYgNL

— TAKUMI (@takumitoxin) August 23, 2015

Sadly these beautiful illustrations can never be featured in an official art book because the artist doesn’t own the intellectual property they are based on, however Takumi has published his own art book for fans who want to check out his personal art work.

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Akira creator Otomo Katsuhiro and writer Toshihiko Yahagi is back with a 2nd sequel to their first manga collaboration Kibun Wa Mou Senso ( The Mood Is Already Of War ). The story continues 38 years after the fictional war happening on the Sino-Russian border, with 3 of the protaganists returning; Hachimaki, Megane and Boi.

The first chapter is now published in the April issue of the omnibus manga Action, and comes with a foldout poster. ( see image further down )

(image above) The first chapter ends with an old Taepodong ballistic missile exploding; I guess we’ll find out what happens next in chapter 2.

(below) The manga comes with a poster and postcard.

As I mentioned in my review for the original Kibun Wa Mou Senso manga, the war genre probably isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but Otomo’s art work is gorgeous as always, with plenty of detail in every drawing to marvel at. These pulp comics sell out pretty fast so Otomo fans might want to wait till the Tankobon is released before they purchase, but that would take a while of course.

This particular issue is well worth it for the poster that comes attached.

The Mood Is Already Of War 3 – Otomo Katsuhiro Manga” book details :

– Dimensions – 25 x 17.4 x 1.2 cm
– Softcover, 450 pages ( The Mood Is Already Of War 3 covers only the first 20 pages ).
– B&W, in Japanese language

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Industrial Light & Magic Presents : Making Solo: A Star Wars Story is a handsomely photographed making of book by Rob Bredow, the SVP, executive creative director, and head of Industrial Light & Magic.

As a child, the production photographs of the AT-ATs from The Empire Strikes Back inspired Rob to become a filmmaker, and in meticulously documenting the progress of the production on Solo he hopes to do the same – to inspire the next generation of artists, engineers and storytellers.

The beautiful set photographs gives readers an intimate glimpse into the journey that Solo took from pre-production, production, and post-production, fully documenting how this film came to the big screen.

Despite Solo’s somewhat poor performance at the box-office, the incredible VFX and visuals of the film cannot be overstated and I really enjoyed the film myself. Browsing through book has given me a renewed interest in the film and also in filmmaking, and I hope to revisit the movie on blu-ray again very soon.

This book is a great companion for the equally fantastic Art Of Solo – A Star Wars Story, which focuses on the concept art behind the film.

“Making Solo: A Star Wars Story book details :

– Dimensions – 11.1 x 1.1 x 11.6 inches
– Hard cover, 256 pages
– Full color, In English Language

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Just earlier this week Marvel and Sony Pictures released the 2nd trailer for the upcoming Spider-Man : Far From Home trailer. Check it out below :

So the reason my blog updates have been slower these past month or so is because I’ve been crazy busy working on the VFX for this film, including shots that are featured in this trailer. One of the biggest shots I’ve been assigned to work on is one below where Mysterio ( played by Jake Jake Gyllenhaal ) flies in to battle one of the elemental creatures that appear in the film ( it’s a terrible looking screenshot because of the heavy motionblur + youtube compression ) –

There’s a whole lot of CG elements that I have to wrangle to complete the shot but I’m excited to see it on the big screen in July. I think it’s going to be a fun movie ( but first I need to finish my work on the show ) !

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Yuunarebahana ( ゆうなれば花 ) is the first art book by Japanese illustrator Nakahara Arisa. I first featured her art work in my review for the art book Bijinga Zukushi.

An Okinawan native who graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts, Nakahara Arisa specializes in illustrations created by way of Nihonga; traditional Japanese painting techniques, just like the artist of One Hundred Nights Of Bliss Ikenaga Yasunari. Her drawings are a dazzling and colorful blend of Bijinga and elaborate flower motifs.

Just like Ikenaga Yasunari, Nakahara Arisa’s beautiful illustrations are a beautiful blend of Nihonga and Bijinga, and is certainly one of the up and coming Japanese contemporary artists utilizing traditional Japanese painting techniques. This book is a bountiful collection of her illustrations and comes recommended.

“Nakahara Arisa Illustration Works Art Book” details :

Dimensions – 25.7 x 18.2 x 2 cm
Soft cover, 128 pages
Full color, in Japanese

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Tatsuyuki Tanaka is one of my all time favorite artists, a creative genius that excels at illustration, concept art design as well as animation. Just earlier this year he released an instructional guidebook detailing many secrets of his trade – read my review for the book.

One of the many gigs that popular illustrators in Japan can expect to get are cover art illustrations for short novels, and Tatsuyuki Tanaka is no exception. Collected in this post are some of his cover art work for several novels published in the past few years –

It is interesting to note that the cover art for his own art book Cannabis Works 2 was actually a short novel cover art as well.

I hope the illustrations featured in this post will eventually find their way into his Cannabis Works 3 art book ( whenever that happens ) !

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Warning : The following post contains nudity/adult content.

Voluptuous Terrors explores classic Italian film poster designs that sprang forth from the post-war period through to the 1980s, focusing on science fiction and the horror genres, often with compositions almost invariably including curvaceous female figures in jeopardy, juxtaposed with the iconography of fantasy and terror.

The visual style of the art work featured in this art book is in the same vein as two other volumes I’ve reviewed previously – Sex And Horror – The Art Of Emanuele Taglietti, and Sex And Horror – The Art Of Alessandro Biffignandi, although this book features less female frontal nudity, and with a stronger focus on science fiction horror. The quality of the art work and composition nonetheless is of exceeding quality.

The bold eroticism of these art works can seldom be found in commercial film posters these days, even those for horror films, and this art book is a great way to appreciate and reminisce an esoteric cinematic visual style for film poster art that has passed on and will never return. Recommended.

Voluptuous Terrors art book details :

– Dimensions – 8.5 x 0.5 x 11 inches
– soft cover, 128 pages
– Full color, in English ( book contains mostly images )

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Japanese Cup Noodle maker Nissin is back again with a new series of anime themed commercials, this time featuring characters from the super popular manga One Piece. The commercials re-imagine the One Piece characters as they would appear in a contemporary, modern day setting; like students of a Japanese high school. Check it out below –

The character designs are once again created by illustrator/concept artist Eisaku Kubonouchi, who also worked on the 2 previous anime themed Nissin Cup Noodle commercials.

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Nausicaa Of The Valley Of Wind ( Kaze No Tani No Naushika ) is a manga written and illustrated by renowned anime director Miyazaki Hayao. The manga was first published in chapters by Tokuma Shoten in their monthly magazine Animage from 1982 to 1994, and when completed was collected into 7 Tankobon volumes as it appears in this boxset.

This special deluxe edition ( made up of 2 volumes ) was published in 1996, and comes in a bigger print size ( though still not 1:1 size of Miyazaki’s original drawings for the manga, I think ) and also better quality paper. The 7 Tankobon Vol boxset is printed on somewhat pulpy paper, and this deluxe edition is printed on a smoother and thicker paper grade which shows off the art work better.

(above & below) The first few pages of the book showcase Miyazaki’s gorgeous watercolor illustrations for the manga. A full collection of these Nausicaa illustrations are collected in this gorgeous art book.

(above & below) Close-ups of the drawings show Miyazaki’s amazingly detailed line-work – look at the cross hatchings on the Ohmu’s eyes !

(above & below) The hardcover volume comes in a cardboard slipcase, itself protected by an outer cardboard shipping case.

Nausicaa is a manga masterpiece, and this deluxe edition offers beautiful reproductions of his art work for great reading. My highest recommendations – I hope to acquire Vol 2 in the near future to complete my collection.

If you’re on a tighter budget but still want to own the entire collection, the Tankobon boxset is the way to go. For English readers, check out the Viz Comics Boxset.

Nausicaa Of The Valley Of Wind Deluxe Edition Vol 1 Manga details :

– 32 x 23 x 4.8 cm
– hardcover, 547 pages
– Monochrome, in Japanese language

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Netflix has just released the first teaser trailer for the The Dark Crystal : Age of Resistance, a 10 part prequel series to the original 1982 film. Check it out below :

I’m pretty excited about this one, as a big fan of the original Dark Crystal film, and also because I love the character designs and concept art of Brian Froud, who also worked on Jim Henson’s Labyrinth.

Apparently no CGI has been used in the film, only puppets, which would be pretty rare for any film production involving visual effects in this age. In any case, look out for the series on Netflix on August 30th.

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Not unlike the menagerie of magical creatures featured in J.K Rowling’s Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, creature designer Yamamura Le’s first and aptly titled art book Creatures showcase more than 100 fantastical animals designed by the artist. Yamamura’s imaginative and beautifully illustrated beasts quickly garnered a big following on twitter with the trending hashtag #東京CREATURES, as well as his equally popular doujinshi featuring said illustrations. These creations are now collected into this delightful art book.

(image above) The dust jacket folds out to become a beautiful mini poster.

Anyone fond of imaginative creature designs will certainly find this of interest. I also enjoy the artist’s impressive color sense, which really ups the appeal of his designs. Recommended.

Creatures – Yamamura Le art book details :

– Dimensions – 5.4 x 18 x 1.8 cm
– soft cover, 144 pages
– full color/B&W, in Japanese

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To commemorate the release of the film Godzilla – King Of The Monsters, BOSS Coffee ( a subsidiary of Japanese beverage maker Suntory ) endorsed this commercial titled “The Faceless Star”, which pays tribute to the original tokusatsu Godzilla, as well as actors the who donned the suit to played the monster. Check it out below –

I like how the commercial was shot with the same production techniques used when shooting the original series of Japanese Godzilla films; with a latex monster suit and meticulously crafted miniatures of Tokyo city streets. The 2 minute making of the commercial below is both entertaining and illuminating –

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Tokorozawa (所沢) is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. It is also the setting behind Ghibli Studio’s much beloved film My Neighbour Totoro. This art book by Miyazaki Akemi ( an animator who worked on Totoro and also wife of director Miyazaki Hayao ) is a collection of delightful watercolor drawings showcasing the different flora that can be found in Tokorozawa over the four seasons.

Totoro concept art boards as well as an interview with Miyazaki Hayao and also a short section on Ghibli producer Suzuki Toshio photography field trip in the forests of Tokorozawa are also included.

(above & below) Totoro concept art boards by Miyazaki Hayao. Miyazaki-san drew inspiration for these drawings from the walks he told in Tokorozawa. Some of these art work are also included in the Totoro picture book as well as the Art Of Totoro book.

During my 6 years of stay in Tokyo I was living in Tanashi ( current day Nishi-Tokyoshi ), which was relatively near to Tokorozawa by way of the Seibu-Shinjuku line, so I have a very fond memory of the area.

Ghibli fans and folks who are interested in just the art work in Totoro will probably like the Art Of Totoro book more. If you can understand Japanese and are keen to learn a little more about the background and setting behind Totoro, this is a great book to pick up.

“The Birthplace Of Totoro – Miyazaki Akemi” art book details :

– Dimensions – 19.6 x 17.8 x 1.2 cm
– Softcover with jacket, 80 pages
– Full color (watercolor), In Japanese

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I’ve been a big fan of Finnish illustrator Heikala‘s watercolor art works for quite a while now, and this art book – The The Art of Heikala : Works And Thoughts is a perfect opportunity to enjoy her stunning illustrations. The book was initially launched as a kickstarter, but is now available for purchase on Amazon ( more links below ).

The art book showcases not only Heikala’s art work but also touches on her thought processes as well as 2 instructional painting guides. In some ways her art work brings to mind the watercolor illustrations of another artist Koyamori.

(below) The forward for the book is written by the Tokyo based Polish illustrator Mateusz Urbanowicz, author of the brilliant Tokyo Storefronts.

I’m absolutely in love with Heikala’s beautiful illustrations and look forward to seeing more of her wonderful art work. This art book is a perfect place to start and comes highly recommended.

“The Art of Heikala : Works And Thoughts Art Book” details :

Dimensions – 9.2 x 0.8 x 10.8 inches
Hard cover, 152 pages
Full color, in English

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Warning : The following post contains nudity/adult content.

Tales Of Lady Snowblood is a spin-off manga based on the original Shurayuki-hime manga by the late Kazuo Koike, and illustrated by Kazuo Kamimura. The manga was adapted into the 1973 Japanese film starring Meiko Kaji as Lady Snowblood and was a huge inspiration for Tarantino when he was making the Kill Bill films.

Crying Freeman manga artist Ryoichi Ikegami takes over the illustration work for this spin-off, with the story again written by Kazuo Koike, who passed away in April 2019.

Readers of Crying Freeman will find the art work and visual style remarkably similar; with action scenes punctuated by the more than occasional nudity and violence. Ikegami’s art work is as expected, beautiful, although in my opinion he sometimes struggles when trying to depict movement.

(above & below) The manga comes with 2 mini foldout posters.

A beautifully illustrated manga featuring fantastic art work by Ryoichi Ikegami and one of Kazuo Koike’s last comic assignments. Fans of Crying Freeman and Lady Snowblood will want to pick this one up.

“Tales Of Lady Snowblood Manga” details :

Dimensions – 21.2 x 15 x 1.4 cm
Softcover, 192 pages
Black & White, in Japanese

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Japan’s NHK website has made available an exclusive 4-part documentary chronicling the creative process of the legendary Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki, charting 10 years of his creative years starting with the pre-production of Ponyo right up till The Wind Rises.

I’ve only seen part 1 so far, but I’m pretty sure every episode will have hidden gems of Miyazaki goodness that will inspire you. Definitely watch all of them !

10 Years with Hayao Miyazaki – NHK Documentary Series

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