Hayao Miyazaki And The Ghibli Museum (宮崎駿とジブリ美術館) is a sumptuous 2 volume art book set that explores the huge collection of illustrations, sketches and art work created by the famed Ghibli director for the many exhibitions held at the museum, located in Mitaka, Tokyo. Most of the art work included have never been published in any book before.

Go here to read part 1 of my review, which covers the contents of the volume CREATING SPECIAL EXHIBITS 2001–2020 ( 424 pages )

In this post I’ll review the materials found in the other volume of this 2 book set; CREATING THE GHIBLI MUSEUM ( 174 pages ), which showcases the sketches, imageboards and ideas that Hayao Miyazaki created during the early planning stages of designing and building of the museum. While the art work found in Part I are for special exhibitions that usually run for only 9-12 months, the art work shown here are for the permanent exhibits found in the museum.

(image above) The soft cover volume comes in a landscape format and is housed within a thin cardboard slip-case (image below).

These watercolor sketches by Miyazaki are conceptual designs of what the museum’s interior and decor might look like when completed; anyone who has visited the museum can surely attest to how faithful they are to the actual building; this Ghibli Museum photography book ( image below ) is a great way to appreciate the wonderful designs and decor.

(above) Sketch idea of the open courtyard in the museum with a sheltered well pump where the toilets and storage lockers are found; (below) Ponyo art director Yoshida Noboru’s delightful illustration of the same spot, available as postcards at the museum.

(above) One of the paintings done by Miyazaki when he was in University, which was bought to decorate the walls of the museum. I can’t quite remember where exactly it’s found in the museum though.

(image above) Designs for various items found at the museum’s Straw Hat Cafe. ( below ) Concept art sketch for the full size catbus playground.

(image above) Concept sketch for the lovely design for the museum entrance ticket stub, which features a random 35mm color slide of one of Ghibli’s animated films. These are great souvenirs and I’ve kept every single one I’ve collected from my numerous trips to the museum.

(image below) As I mentioned also in Part 1 of my review, one of the best and most helpful features of the book are the elaborate English translations of the Japanese captions which really help to add context and insight while enjoying Miyazaki’s beautiful sketches and illustrations.

(above) The flip-through for this book starts around the 5:10 mark in my review video.

If you haven’t already, go here to read Part 1 of my review of this 2 book set.

Hayao Miyazaki And The Ghibli Museum is undoubtably a very expensive item, but if you’re a fan of his wonderful watercolor illustrations like me, you’ll find the high price you pay to be worthy of value. At the time of writing this article, this book set has already seen its third batch of reprints, but there’s no telling how long the publisher will continue doing so. If your mind is set on owning a copy, I recommend picking it up while it is still in stock.

“Hayao Miyazaki And The Ghibli Museum Art Book 宮崎駿とジブリ美術館 イラストをオールカラーで900点以上収録した豪華な2冊セット” art book details :

Dimensions – 28.1 x 8 x 36.4 cm
Softcover, 598 pages ( 2 volumes housed in a thick cardboard slipcase )
In Japanese & English language

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