Artists

This list could be many times longer, but here are the ones on my bookshelf, including a few of the best compilations of my favorite artists.

These showcase one artist per book.

Leonardo Da Vinci: 1452-1519: The Complete Paintings and Drawings
Frank Zollne, Johannes Nathan
Unbelievable. The high resolution is like nothing anyone ever saw before. Jaw-dropping reproductions, but be careful – it may weigh more than you.

Michelangelo: The Complete Sculpture, Painting, Architecture
William E. Wallace
Big, heavy book. But what a collection.

Van Gogh: Complete Works
Rainer Metzger, Ingo F. Walther
The Great Collection. Glad I bought it before the price skyrocketed.

Arthur Rackham
Fred Gettings
Inferior reproductions, but biographical with worthy observations. I found it inspiring.

Arthur Rackham
James Hamilton
Good reproductions

Alphonse Mucha: The Complete Graphic Works
Ann Bridges
This has the best reproductions of the older books – superb collection and color printing.

Impossible Worlds (Escher Collection)
MC Escher, Bruno Ernst
There are many good Escher books. This one combines four of the best.

Fantastic Worlds: The Art of William Stout
Ed Leimbacher
Near-Definitive work on his career, but don’t miss The Comics Journal issue devoted to William Stout.

A Sketchy Past: The Art of Peter de Seve
Peter de Seve
Wonderful book of the history of his art and career.

Bernie Wrightson: A Look Back
Bernie Wrightson
Yes, I paid $350 for my copy, but it was and is the book about Bernie’s career with lots of stuff you can’t find anywhere else.

The Art of Rick Griffin
Rick Griffin
The first book of Rick. I bought multiple copies of this in the 80’s to look over with friends in admiration of his iconic images.

Heart & Torch: Rick Griffin’s Transcendence
Multiple Authors
This book first sold at the Laguna Art Museum in 2007 – a worthy collection of images and thoughts about one of my favorite artists growing up.

The Extraordinary Works of Alan Moore
George Khoury
Lots of attention to the Mystery Man of Talent

Stars by Kruger
Sebastian Kruger
Famous people skewered by the man I think is the best caricaturist in the world.

Winslow Homer: The Color of Light
Mulitiple Authors
Great reproductions and technical info about Homer’s watercolors

John Singer Sargent
Kate Jennings
Excellent reproductions but a number of them cross pages.

American Watercolors
Kate Jennings
Excellent reproductions.

NC Wyeth
Kate Jennings
Excellent reproductions but some of them cross pages.

JC Leyendecker
Cutler & Cutler
We waited for decades for a new book with good reproductions. This was it.

Rembrandt and the Bible
Hidde Hoekstra
One of the best art books in my library, and the best reproductions of his little, scruffy, glorious drawings anywhere in print that I know.

Albrecht Durer

Vulgar and glorious. I fell in love with his work at the age of 11.

Heinrich Kley

If you don’t know his work, you’re in for a treat. Go here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OjlUdU7CsuE

Winsor McCay

Lots of repeat images here, but so many good McCay books.

Norman Rockwell

Many books on Rockwell. These ones I know and like.

Andrew Wyeth

The son of N.C. Wyeth. Hard to say whose work I like more, but they are so different.

Marshall is a participant in the Amazon Associates program and may earn a small commission on products purchased using these links. The product price is the same whether or not you use these links, but by using them, it helps offset the cost of running this website.