This god ascended from his mighty throne one day in early 1983 and announced that he had done a survey. And, according to the survey, people who played the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® game wanted more dragons." And more dragons they got. The prolific and extraordinarily popular writing duo of Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman produced a veritable treasure trove of books telling of the heroic exploits and dastardly deeds of the denizens of their fantasy world. The Art of the Dragonlance Saga, long out of print, collects all the art from the novels, calendars, and game products that the God of Marketing created. This is an extremely rich collection, with sketches, paintings, drawings, and studies of beloved characters and settings. It is also full of artist's notes, character development, and explanations of the ways in which the books and the art coevolved. A must-have for Dragonlance fans, The Art of the Dragonlance Saga is also wonderful eye candy for all swords and sorcery fans. --Therese Littleton

    With more than 250 blueprints, 500 photographs and illustrations, and ten stunning gatefolds, Star Wars: The Blueprints is a deluxe volume that reveals the work of the engineers, designers, and artists who dreamed up the look and feel of the Star Wars universe. Best-selling author J. W. Rinzler explores the complex process of envisioning and creating the Star Wars films throughout this collection. Witness first-hand the technical expertise and jaw-dropping detail involved in every part of the process, from concept sketches to final scenes. Star Wars: The Blueprints showcases the transformation of careful technical drawings to now-iconic sets--the rebel blockade runner, the Millennium Falcon , the bridge of General Grievous’s flagship, Jabba the Hutt’s throne room, and many others. Meticulously researched and packed with gorgeous artwork and little-known details, Star Wars: The Blueprints tells the story of the brilliant minds and technical prowess that brought this extraordinary epic to life.

    Build a career doing what you love. In this practical guide, professional artist Lisa Congdon reveals the many ways you can earn a living by making art—through illustration, licensing, fine art sales, print sales, teaching, and beyond. Including industry advice from such successful art-world pros as Nikki McClure, Mark Hearld, Paula Scher, and more, Art, Inc. will equip you with the tools—and the confidence—to turn your passion into a profitable business.LEARN HOW TO: • Set actionable goals • Diversify your income • Manage your bookkeeping • Copyright your work • Promote with social media • Build a standout website • Exhibit with galleries • Sell and price your work • License your art • Acquire an agent • And much more

    Author JoAnneh Nagler wants you to welcome your creativity and continue to make art—but to do so with a plan. In this groundbreaking book, she provides step-by-step strategies to teach writers, sculptors, painters, musicians, designers, and other artists how tohave a well-supported, well-lived life—and make art at the same time.Learn how to:Answer your own artistic callings and get to your art workGive up starving and struggling and build a supported, creative daily lifeManage time, money, and day jobs with easy-to-learn, simple toolsDevelop rock-solid creative work ethics and motivational skillsNo matter what kind of creative person you are, this book has the tools you need to live the life you’ve always wanted to live—right now, and for your whole life long.

    Silencing that stifling voice once and for all, this salve for creatives introduces ten truths they must face in order to defeat self-doubt. Each encouraging chapter deconstructs a pivotal moment on the path to success—fear of the blank page, the dangers of jealousy, sharing work with others—and explains how to navigate roadblock. Packed with helpful anecdotes, thoughts from successful creatives, and practical exercises gleaned from Danielle Krysa's years of working with professional and aspiring artists—plus riotously apt illustrations from art world darling Martha Rich—this book arms readers with the most essential tool for their toolbox: the confidence they need to get down to business and make good work.

    Tolkien.When J.R.R. Tolkien wrote The Hobbit, he was already an accomplished amateur artist, and drew illustrations for his book while it was still in manuscript. The Hobbit as first printed had ten black and white pictures, two maps, and binding and dust-jacket designs by its author. Later, Tolkien also painted five scenes for colour plates which are some of his best work. His illustrations for The Hobbit add an extra dimension to that remarkable book, and have long influenced how readers imagine Bilbo Baggins and his world.To celebrate the 75th anniversary of the publication of The Hobbit, the complete artwork created by the author for his story has been collected in The Art of The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. Including related pictures, more than one hundred sketches, drawings, paintings, maps, and plans are presented here, preliminary and alternate versions and experimental designs as well as finished art. Some of these images are now published for the first time, and others for the first time in colour. Fresh digital scans from the Bodleian Libraries in Oxford and Marquette University in Wisconsin allow Tolkien’s Hobbit pictures to be seen more vividly than ever before.The Art of The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien has been written and edited by Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull, two of the leading experts on Tolkien and authors of the acclaimed J.R.R. Tolkien: Artist and Illustrator, The Lord of the Rings: A Reader’s Companion, and The J.R.R. Tolkien Companion and Guide.

     Awake in the Dream World is a mid-career retrospective of artist and author Audrey Niffenegger (The Time Traveler's Wife, bestselling novel turned feature film), reflecting her talent for cultivating a captivating narrative exclusively through pictures and her own confrontations with life, mortality, and magic.Niffenegger's fantastical body of work is reminiscent of renowned pen and ink predecessors such as Edward Gorey, Aubrey Beardsley, Egon Schiele, Edward Dulac, and Horst Janssen, but with a brutally honest and unapologetically strange female perspective that touches upon the universal trials of life—death and decay, love, jealousy, redemption, and the inevitability of change. Her works on paper, lithographs, and aquatints reflect the often surreal narratives of her artist's books. Through self-portraiture, Niffenegger reveals her own self-assurance and whimsy alongside anxiety and loneliness, probing darker corners of the human heart and mind, often exploring the hopeless struggle with what Shakespeare called "this bloody tyrant, Time."Essays by Audrey Niffenegger, National Museum of Women in the Arts Curator of Book Arts Krystyna Wasserman, and Art Institute of Chicago Curator and School of the Art Institute Professor Mark Pascale explore the artist's influences and work. Published in conjunction with the June 21—November 10, 2013 exhibition at the National Museum of Women in the Arts.

    The authors, Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, worked with Walt Disney himself as well as other leading figures in a half-century of Disney films. They personally animated leading characters in most of the famous films and have decades of close association with the others who helped perfect this extremely difficult and time-consuming art form. Not to be mistaken for just a "how-to-do-it," this voluminously illustrated volume (like the classic Disney films themselves) is intended for everyone to enjoy.Besides relating the painstaking trial-and-error development of Disney's character animation technology, this book irresistibly charms us with almost an overabundance of the original historic drawings used in creating some of the best-loved characters in American culture: Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck, Snow White and Bambi (among many, many others) as well as early sketches used in developing memorable sequences from classic features such as Fantasia and Pinocchio. With the full cooperation of Walt Disney Productions and free access to the studio's priceless archives, the authors took unparalleled advantage of their intimate long-term experience with animated films to choose the precise drawings to illustrate their points from among hundreds of thousands of pieces of artwork carefully stored away.The book answers everybody's question about how the amazingly lifelike effects of Disney character animation were achieved, including charming stories of the ways that many favorite animated figures got their unique personalities. From the perspective of two men who had an important role in shaping the art of animation, and within the context of the history of animation and the growth of the Disney studio, this is the definitive volume on the work and achievement of one of America's best-known and most widely loved cultural institutions. Nostalgia and film buffs, students of popular culture, and that very broad audience who warmly responds to the Disney "illusion of life" will find this book compelling reading (and looking!).Searching for that perfect gift for the animation fan in your life? Explore more behind-the-scenes stories from Disney Editions:The Art of Mulan: A Disney Editions ClassicWalt Disney's Ultimate Inventor: The Genius of Ub IwerksOne Day at Disney: Meet the People Who Make the Magic Across the GlobeThe Walt Disney Studios: A Lot to RememberFrom All of Us to All of You: The Disney Christmas CardInk & Paint: The Women of Walt Disney's AnimationOswald the Lucky Rabbit: The Search for the Lost Disney Cartoons, Revised Special EditionDisney Villains: Delightfully Evil - The Creation, The Inspiration, The FascinationThe Art and Flair of Mary Blair: An Appreciation, Updated Edition

    Readers will discover:Rules on perspective that will aid inn capturing landscapes, buildings, and objects accuratelyTips for capturing the essence of people in sketches when subjects are on the moveThe art of adding notes, commentary, and even speech to sketchesChapters on sharing sketches through social media, joining the international urban sketching community, digitizing work, and more make this new guide the quintessential resource for anyone interested in joining the exciting art movement. More than 350 full-color illustrations throughout.

    The story will soon be immortalized in the upcoming film starring Salma Hayek.

    These crippling fears are laid to rest through insightful discussions of personal experiences, the struggles of famous artists, and the rewards of producing art that comes from an authentic creative core. Providing sensitive reassurances that these struggles are normal, these essays encourage artists to focus on the development of their crafts and find inspiration to work through self-doubt.

    Through extraordinary, stylized photography and detailed close-ups of designs, the embroidery art in Stitchcraft is entirely achievable with basic stitches and easy-to-follow instructions, enchanting beginners and expert crafters alike. Stitchcraft features: - 30 intricate embroidery designs, using a combination of nine basic stitches- Insights from the author on how she created each piece - 30 basic patterns to get you started embroidering your own version of her designsFrom the anatomy of a snake to floral skulls, from palmistry hands to botanical hearts, readers will be inspired to recreate Partridge's spellbinding designs and to make them their own.

    Author Carol Marine was herself suffering from painter's block--until she discovered "daily painting." The idea is simple: do art (usually small) often (how often is up to the individual) and, if you desire, post it and sell it online. Today Marine is among the best and most celebrated daily painters, and the curator of the popular online gallery dailypaintworks.com. In her debut, "Daily Painting," Marine reveals the tips and tricks that helped her and other daily painters pick up the paintbrush and start creating beautiful, bountiful, marketable work.

    I spent hours pouring through them, wondering to myself, 'How does she do this?' With Traci's new book, The Art Journal Workshop, you get to see exactly how." - Christine Olivarez, Somerset StudioMany people want to express themselves through visual journaling, but are stuck or intimidated with how to get started, what to write, or how to move beyond gluing down a few images or putting some paint on the paper.With beautiful illustrations, The Art Journal Workshop breaks down the entire working process of journaling with step-by-step photos and instructions from start to finish. You'll learn how to use different media such as paint, photographs, and collage, while following journaling prompts and exercises to help you dig deeper and enrich the journaling process and experience. Traci Bunkers discusses the benefits of visual journaling, and walks you through battling a creative funk when you're feeling down or uninspired.Additionally, The Art Journal Workshop provides exclusive access to online videos that show the author creating six visual journal pages from the book, start to finish, through time-lapse video clips. This visual guide enhances the information in the book, showing her work progress in a way that goes beyond what can be captured in still photographs or through text.

    Based on John Dewey's lectures on esthetics, delivered as the first William James Lecturer at Harvard in 1932, Art as Experience has grown to be considered internationally as the most distinguished work ever written by an American on the formal structure and characteristic effects of all the arts: architecture, sculpture, painting, music, and literature.