One question we get asked a lot: What book is best for cartoonists?
This is one of those questions. What most people want to know is, which book is most likely to have The Secret. (Or Secrets; some folks now realize there's more than one.)
We can't say which books are best. If someone said our studio was about to be destroyed and we could only save three books, and asked us which books we would save... at least one of the books would be a construction manual for a reliable time machine so we could go back and save all the others.
However, there are some books we can recommend as being the core of our How-To library - books we can (and do) suggest any creative artist might read to expand their horizons a bit. We've finally decided to put that list online where anyone can check it out.
One caveat: there is no one way to approach art, and no one book or set of books is perfect for everyone! These books work for us and we like them, but they aren't a be-all and cure-all for all artistic creators. Everyone has different interests, talents and experiences, so there may be other books that would be better for you than the ones listed here.
With that firmly in mind, here are some of our favorite books on the art and craft of artistic creativity. (We'll add to it as we go; this is definitely only a starter set!)
In no particular order....
- Christoper Hart: How To Draw Animation
Christoper Hart: Drawing On The Funny Side Of The Brain
Two good overall cartooning books, from an ever-growing series of How To books by Hart. The first is very good on drawing in general; the second better covers the mechanics of comics-oriented production.
- Joe Kubert: Superheroes - Joe Kubert's Wonderful World Of Comics
Another good book on the mechanics of comics production, specifically geared towards costumed heroes and heroines.
- Jack Hamm: Drawing The Head & Figure
Jack Hamm: How To Draw Animals
Good reference books with lots of How To-type info. (The latter is not that great, but it has somehow become a standard carry-along reference for a number of beginning animal-oriented cartoonists and the 'furry' crowd.)
- Ken Hulgren: The Art Of Animal Drawing
A somewhat better book on drawing animals, for us.
- Preston Blair/Walter Foster: (various titles)
The ones we like were originally two large-format books on cartooning and animation, but recently they've been reformatted and reprinted in an incredible variety of publications - which makes it hard to suggest a specific title. The original versions were well laid out and presented a lot of good information on animation-style cartooning.
- Burne Hogarth: Dynamic Figure Drawing
Burne Hogarth: Dynamic Light & Shade
Burne Hogarth: Dynamic Wrinkles & Drapery
THE How-To books on drawing humans, on rendering light or shadows, and on drawing clothes or fabric. He's somewhere between Michaelangelo and Warner Brothers, style-wise, and very informative.
- David Chelsea: Perspective! For Comic Book Artists
If you're wanting to do 'realistic' cartooning, you'll be working on perspective at some point. This book teaches a tough subject in comic book fashion (which works for some people better than other methods).
- Will Eisner: Comics & Sequential Art
Will Eisner: Graphic Storytelling
These are mostly geared towards storytelling and layout - specifically for comic books or 'graphic novels' - but there is a lot of great info on general cartooning here.
- Scott McCloud: Understanding Comics
If you're thinking of being a comic book creator, this is the book to have. A lot of people don't understand it - and that in itself is a good test to see if you're serious about creating comics or if you're 'merely' wanting to draw cute pictures. (We have nothing against just drawing cute pictures, actually....)
McCloud's second book, Reinventing Comics, is not nearly so upbeat. To synopsize: print media is mostly dead for the small-time comic creator, and the Web is the way to go - if someone could just figure out a workable way to get paid for it.
- Mort Walker: Backstage At The Strips
This book is a little dated, and it is specific to strips as opposed to animation or comic books; but it's fun, and it is very inspirational in that it looks at the world of comics from the wacky and creative side of things.
If you have a book you think is The Book for artists and cartoonists, click here and let us know why you think it's the cat's pajamas. We're always interested in hearing what works for other people, and our FoxWeb Friends are some of the best people Out There... so!
We'll add to this list as time goes on, with books on painting, rendering and illustrating. Check back from time to time.
