Warning : The following post contains nudity/adult content.
Pareidolia is a breathtaking art book by internationally renowned artist/illustrator James Jean ( Fables, Rebus ). Running at 288 pages, the book features art work that spans the majority of his career and includes a dust jacket cover that folds out into a stunning poster.
(above) I have profound respect for versatile artists and illustrators with an uncanny ability to switch styles, and James Jean is one of them; his gamut of work covers realistic paintings to near abstract, surrealistic images.
Fans of James Jean will probably want to know if there is much overlapping content from his earlier art book Rebus – I do not have my copy of Rebus on hand to do a page by page comparison but both books do share some material. This comes expected as Pareidolia is meant to cover works from the majority of the artist’s career. That said, I still believe there is enough new art work in Pareidolia to justify a purchase.
(above) A sneak peek of the artist’s workspace. Some pieces, like the painting of the girl lying prostrate are much bigger than I would have imagined.
(above) The dust jacket covers folds out into a magnificent poster.
James Jean is an extraordinary artist/illustrator and Pareidolia reproduces his beautiful collection of art work in glorious, stunning detail. I only wish the book could have come in hardcover format for a sturdier built, but that’s me nitpicking. Very highly recommended.
Many thanks to Sekizawa-san of PIE books for providing me with a copy of the book for review.
Note : Pareidolia has been released in Japan but not the US ( Oct 2015 ) or UK ( Nov 2015 ).
Pareidolia – James Jean Art Book details :
– Dimensions – 1.2 x 8.9 x 12 inches
– 288 pages, soft cover
– full color, in English and Japanese ( book is 99% art work )
Buy From Amazon.com | Amazon CA | Amazon UK | Amazon FR | Amazon IT | Amazon DE | Amazon ES
You might also be interested in these items :
Rebus – James Jean Art Book Review
DC Poster Portfolio : James Jean Art Book Review
Fables : Covers By James Jean Art Book Review
Fables Covers : The Art of James Jean Book Review ( New Edition )
James Jean MEMU : 100 Postcards
September 27th, 2015 at 2:18 pm
I pre ordered the book off Amazon.jp soon as i saw James Jean advertising it on his instagram. Right after flipping through and devouring all the pages i gotta say, i’m putting this book second in my list of favourites right below Otomo’s GENGA. Nothing beats GENGA as of now and i hope nothing ever beats it. Back to the book, wow it’s simply immersive. It’s dark. It’s full of light. It’s soft. It’s edgy. It’s everything.
September 27th, 2015 at 5:45 pm
In some way reminds me of Fuyuko Matsui’s works.
September 27th, 2015 at 10:10 pm
Awww man. this looks great. James Jean is a master. Been waiting for this review.
Sadly, my copy got held up by customs(Malaysia) last week.
won’t give up though.
Was wondering,does it contain any of his moleskine drawings?
great blog btw.
September 27th, 2015 at 10:23 pm
@Hafiz Otomo’s Genga is great. the book I’ve been dreaming about though for the past decade would be a Rakugaking 2.0 by Terada. Even thinking about it always makes me smile. lol
September 28th, 2015 at 2:35 pm
fony – Hi there ! I believe some, but not all of his moleskine drawings are found in this art book.
September 28th, 2015 at 5:01 pm
James Jean is one of the most important illustrator – original ? – of today. As I have two books (three ?) of his work, I wonder if this one is to buy. A lot of pictures are showing in previous books – best illustrator book is 30×30 from Moebius.
September 29th, 2015 at 6:17 am
magnificent!
October 1st, 2015 at 4:35 pm
James is an amazing talent. i was fortunate enough to meet him professionally during our mutual time at Vertigo while working on the FABLES franchise. I was so fortunate to meet him and very happy to have him as the cover artist for the series I worked on!
October 2nd, 2015 at 3:47 pm
Tony – So envious that you got to work with James Jean !
October 3rd, 2015 at 4:24 pm
It’s such a high point, truly. My first issue for Fables was #22 and the editor asked if I would like to see the cover…I was still drawing the issue, so I was amazed that there was a cover ready. When the image was emailed to me and I got a look at what James had done I was so pleased! I couldn’t believe the luck of having him on my issues. #22 cover was unique with is darker palette and reversed image reflected in a large mirror. I had modeled a small statue (to be used as a murder weapon) and James was able to work that into the cover art. The man is super talented.
November 10th, 2015 at 9:35 am
Yay. Finally got my copy.
was worth the wait.