Hey everyone its been awhile since I did one of these and I'm excited to share it. The aim of these is to inspire you, inspire artists, young readers, and more. Art books to me arebooks using visual art, photography, design, collage, and words to highlight a topic, art form, person, place, genre, discipline, or medium.
They are a great way to unplug when you've been staring at screens too long. They're great for traveling, road trips, flights, etc. They're great for getting inspired and they're a great way to get young people reading; as long as its about a topic they LOVE. Please watch and share.
I discuss 13 books in the video including my own art book: "The Art of Tekkenkinkreet / Black & White" - Shinji Kimura "Supreme Glamour"- Mary Wilson "The Art of Juanjo Guarnido" - Juanjo Guarnido "Shelter in Place" - Avy Jetter "Dinotopia" - James Gurney "Painting The Streets-Oakland Uprising in the Time of Rebellion"- Nomadic Press "Creations Vol. 1" - Derek Laufman "Iguana Bay" - Claire Wendling "Black Champions in Cycling" - Marlon Lee Moncrieffe "Maestrapiece- San Francisco's Monumental Feminist Mural" -Heyday Books "Art of Rob" - Robert Liu-Trujillo "Prince of Cats" - Ronald Wimberly
Dig this? Check out "My Favorite Art Books 2" the second video in this series. And if your local bookstore or library doesn't have any of the art books you're looking for, politely request them :)
If you'd like to purchase some of them I suggest ordering them from your local bookstore, Bookshop.org, or StuartNg Books in LA.
Wow, its only day 3 andmy Kickstarter is almost 80 % funded! Amazing! Thank you all. Here's a bit of info to share....
What is an art book? Who cares? An art book is a tool, an escape, a resource, a push, a friend, its anything you want it to be. Of course we’re talking about paper, binding, pictures, words, etc. But it's also a way to grab attention and get kids to take a break from the screens when you need them to. You can put them on the kitchen table, on your bookshelf, home library, or in a classroom. If you can’t buy them, you can check them out at your local library. But why? Art books are a great way to encourage young creatives! There are lots of different types of art books. Here are a few:
1. Photography: "Reflections in Black by Deborah Willis"
Its a book cataloguing Black photographers from 1840-2000. It has essays, memories, think pieces, and tons and tons of photographs. Black & white, color, experimental, and more. #photography
2. Animation:"Into the Spiderverse"
This is an art of book. Whats that? Well many feature and animated films have art departments that develop the look and feel of a film from the way actors act, to the designs of their clothing. An art of book for a film that you like can expand your understanding of how it was made and who did it. This book features many departments of the film making process. #animation
3. Murals:"Maestrapiece: San Francisco’s Monumental Feminist Mural".
This book celebrates the herstory of a really huge mural painted in the Mission District of San Francisco on one of the first buildings ever dedicated to the lives of women; The Women’s Building. The book is full of old and new images, memories, and writings about how this crew of bad assess women painted this mural and why it means so much. #murals
4. Graffiti: "Piecebook the secret drawings of graffiti writers" by Sacha Jenkins and Chino BYI.
This is an ill book featuring some writing but mostly sketchbook drawings of pieces, characters, throw ups, and more by graffiti writers from the 70s to the 80s I believe. For any kid who was interested in Graffiti or street art this is a must have because it shows you a world that you wouldn’t get to see unless you were a part of the culture. #graffiti
5. Fashion: "The Sourcebook of Fashion Design".
This is a dope book featuring how to’s , writing, and tones of photographs of sketches, designs, fabric, outfits, and garments from the designer fashion industry. And I mention this because you might have a kid who loves fashion. Get them some fashion designer books! #fashiondesign
6. Architecture: The Future of Architecture in 100 Buildings
This book features beautiful images of buildings of the future and some that echo the past. It spans the globe and features captions and short written pieces about the buildings. Got a kid in your life who loves architecture? #architecture
7. US History: "Celebrate People’s History" by Josh MacPhee
is a book of poster art. The art in this book features work by movement artists, groups, and more. The subject matter ranges from individual figures to historic events, places, and groups. And it talks about labor, laws, social justice, ethnic studies, and more. Because each poster has a very short reference it leaves it up to the viewer to look up what strikes them as interesting. #UShistory
8. Makers/ Builders: "Girls Garage" by Emily Pilloton
is an awesome resource for girls about how to build things. It features history, facts, and an encyclopedia about tools and lots of DIY tips on projects. One of the coolest things in it are profiles about women young and old who have built shit!! #builders
9. And lastly, I threw my book in there to illustrate the point that there are lots of different types of art books and mine is one of them. An artist sketchbook with character designs and other things. Thank you for supporting my kickstarter to make this art book a reality. Not only for me but hopefully for some young students out there.
If you're looking for any of these books please go to your local bookstore or library and ask them about these art books!!!
Ruth E. Carter was born in 1960 and is from Springfield Massachusetts. In her early days of college she wanted to be an actress. Once after auditioning for a play and being passed over for the part she was offered the job of doing costumes for the play and she loved it. She loved it so much she began to design countless costumes for dance shows and theater productions at her school Hampton University. After getting some more schooling at USC and an internship for the Los Angeles Theater Center she would meet a young filmmaker named Spike Lee. In her early career she worked with Keenan Ivory Wayans, but it was with Spike that she would work on more than 12 of his projects. Films such as Malcolm X, Crooklyn, and Do the Right Thing. Carter described her process with a ton of research using photographs, oral history, and books. She uses many references to make a mood or inspiration board in her studio, set trailers, and online that is both physical and digital. Ms Carter has worked on over 40 films and TV shows to date with projects such as Being Mary Jane, Love & Basketball, Selma, The Five heartbeats, Meteor Man, Empire, Serenity, and most recently she designed costumes for Marvel's Black Panther. She has been nominated for an oscar, an academy award, an emmy, and she has won the "career achievement" award from the American Black Film Festival. Word has it she is training new costume designers as well.
Sources: Slate's Represent podcast, Fashionista, Imdb, Black Reel Awards
If this is your first time seeing this, I started a series of paintings called "Kindred Journey" last year celebrating my Asian American Pacific Islander folks for the month of May ( Asian Amer history month). Just like last year I'll be dropping some paintings of folks from the past and present making their grand parents proud.
This guy right here is Bobby Hundreds, the co-founder of the Street wear brand "The Hundreds". Bobby and Ben (then law students) started their company in 2003, decades after brands like Vans and Stussy, but not too long after Supreme and 10 Deep. They started with t-shirts that spoke directly to 80's and 90's kids using the iconic bomb, punk, hip hop, skater, pop culture, and California references. They then expanded to cut and sew products such as sweaters, pants, jackets, hats, and more. The brand Bobby helped build, design, market, and grow started with clothes and eventually opened flagship stores in LA (his hometown), SF, and NYC. Not only that they have created their own print magazine and a killer video presence that gives back to the next generation while inspiring new ones. If you have Asian parents or grand parents you know it is tough to get respect doing anything but law, medicine, or tech (now), but Bobby and his team have done it. Salute.
The first couple times I saw Dapper Dan's work I didn't even know it was his. In fact it wasn't until I saw the film "Fresh Dressed" By Sacha Jenkins that I realized I had been seeing it all along in hip hop culture. The first folks I saw rocking his work were Salt N' Pepa because my dad had the record (Push it 12") and Boogie Down Productions LP By Any Means Necessary. Dan is a fashion innovator and pioneer from Harlem New York, who in the early 80s began to custom tailor, cut, and sew his own pieces. We're talking about pants, bags, hats, jackets, cars even, and what he was doing was not unlike hip hop; he took fabric from established brands like Gucci or Louie Vuitton and cut them to his own style. He began to make clothing for hip hop cats of course, but the underground economists or hustlers out of NY, and once word got around people from all over began to come to his store, which was open 24 hours a day. I would love to see more documentary work done about his achievements, because back then these high class brands did not respect Black youth culture. So, he remixed it and created a self sustaining business. Salute the brother, he is still designing today.
Eiko was born in 1938 in Tokyo Japan. She began her young career in design by attending the Tokyo national university of fine arts and music, graduating in 1961 and embarking on a career of graphic design. She opened her own design studio and began working on advertising campaigns for cosmetic companies. She was hired to not only design promotional ads but commercials. She began working for films such as Dracula, The Cell, The Fall, The Immortals, and Mishima a small film directed by Paul Shrader in the '80s. Eiko's work also extended into theater, circus companies such as Cirque du Soleil, basketball, and design for The Olympics. Before she passed away in 2012 she was given many awards but what I loved most about her work that I saw in "The Cell" and "The Fall" was the bold color, the distinct curves and angels, and the directness of her pieces. A collection of her work is still up at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York.
Peace, my name is Robert Liu-Trujillo. I write and illustrate stories. I design characters, and I paint murals occasionally too. Parenthood, Ethnic Studies, Storytelling, Music, Social Justice, Film, Science Fiction, Design, & Publishing are regular thoughts. To contact me for commissioned art, freelance, or collaboration. Email me: info@robdontstop.com
