ILLUSTRATION 2020 presents the “NOW” of Japan’s illustration scene, showcasing art work from 150 artists spanning over 300 pages of illustrations. Every artist’s page comes with a short profile together with some of his/her most representational art work.

This year’s edition of the art book comes with a variant blue cover, which is the version I’m reviewing. The regular edition comes with a salmon/magenta cover. The contents of both books are identical.

Most of the artists reviewed are new to me, with a few familiar artists whose art books I’ve covered previously. I’ve included links to them below.

(image above) Art work by Demizu Posuka. Check out the artist’s art book Pone.

(above) The colorful and whimsical illustrations of Malbeni Akane. Check out her art book here.

(above) Art work by the popular HongKong based illustrator Little Thunder. There’s a special interview about her work at the end of this book. I’ll be reviewing her art book soon.

This huge volume is the best way to catch up with the top illustrators working in Japan right now, as well as to review the zeitgeist and visual trends in Japanese illustration now. Recommended.

PS – The edition I’ve reviewed is the special edition variant cover. The regular edition comes with a salmon/magenta cover. The contents of both books are identical.

“ILLUSTRATION 2020” art book details :

– Dimensions – 10.2 x 7.6 x 1 inches
– Softcover, 320 pages
– Full color, in Japanese

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