I reviewed a total of 64 titles this year ( see the full list here ), a slight dip from the 70 I managed in 2024. The number is usually dependent upon a few factors like the actual pool of published titles that are available for the year, my modest financial ability to acquire them as well as the time I might have to review them ( my day-time job is a VFX artist and reviewing books is purely a hobby that I indulge ).

I’m fairly confident the number would have been higher than 2024 had I not been extremely busy with work around the last 2 months of this year, and also because the release dates for a good number of books that I’ve lined up to review were bunched up together toward the end of the year, and I just didn’t have time to get to all of them ( one of them been Ian McQue’s most excellent Mileship ).

The silver-lining is that I have a glut of art books stacked up just waiting for me to review, so I’ll be well fed with great material moving into the new year.

My 12 favorite titles that I’ve picked below for this year are arranged in chronological order of my review dates ( earliest to latest ) and as always, please bear in mind that some of the books might have been published before 2025.

I hope you’ll find something that will excite or interest you in the list, and if you do decide to make a purchase please consider doing it through my Amazon affiliate links; it will cost you absolutely nothing, but will go a very long way in helping me to keep this ad-free blog sustainable. Have a Happy New Year 2026 ! –


1) Marvel Studios: The Art of Ryan Meinerding

For fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), I believe most would agree with me that the Infinity Saga is the golden age; right from the very first Iron Man film to Avengers : Endgame, and behind the success of these films lie the concept art of Ryan Meinerding, whose visual development ( or visdev as well call it in the animation/film industry ) work was pivotal to the wide gamut of captivating character designs.

This hard cover volume is a most sumptuous and comprehensive showcase of the artist’s impressive portfolio of concept art work, covering not only the 23 films that make up the Infinity Saga but also Phase 4 films like The Eternals, Spider-Man : No Way Home, Black Panther : Wakanda Forever as well as series work like Daredevil and ‘What If…?’

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2) Painting The Worlds Of Studio Ghibli

One of the biggest highlights and delights when watching any Studio Ghibli animated film has got to be the wonderful background art; the animation itself is always captivating for sure, but it is the background art that sets the stage and mood, enabling the characters to live out their stories. As such, background art paintings play an absolutely vital role in the animation filmmaking process.

This giant tome published by PIE International – ‘Painting The Worlds Of Studio Ghibli’ ( スタジオジブリの美術 ) is a grand celebration of the studio’s voluminous collection of background art, spanning 27 films from Nausicaa to The Boy And The Heron, with over 840 pieces of art spread across 568 pages. Indeed, this is one of the biggest Ghibli art books ever published, rivaled only by the 2 volume Hayao Miyazaki And The Ghibli Museum as well as the Studio Ghibli Layout Designs art book.

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3) The Art and Making of Arcane

The 2 seasons of Netflix’s animation series Arcane ( made by the French studio Fortiche ) is some of the very best animation work we’ve seen in recent years, be it on the big or small screen. The stunning visuals, from the spectacular environment to character/creature/prop designs and much more are now beautifully celebrated and showcased in this hardcover book.

I was very pleasantly surprised upon receiving my copy of the book that it was much bigger in print size than I had imagined it, and the large format really shows off the art work to great effect. Another accolade I should give is the splendid layout that the designers of the book clearly spent considerable effort on; the art work and designs are presented like they are part of an elaborate and material rich scrapbook, adding to the enjoyment and immersion of the reading experience.

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4) Kusamori Shuichi Anime Background Art

A Japanese animation industry veteran that has been working on background art paintings since 1980, this sumptuous hardcover volume showcases the extensive portfolio of art director Kusamori Shuichi (草森秀一) spanning over 40 years of work and includes background art paintings from such highly acclaimed films such as Metropolis, PSYCHO-PASS, Mamoru Oshii’s Ghost In The Shell and the sequel Innocence, Patlabor The Movie and many more.

The whopping page count is close 400 pages and it is impossible for me to showcase the true scope of the book with just the select preview images included in my post, so I have chosen some of the more iconic ones from Metropolis as well as Ghost In The Shell.

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5) James Tissot

It is always a delightful surprise whenever I get to discover artists and painters that are completely new to me, especially when I am utterly enthralled by their work. This is the case with James Tissot, a very recent find for me after chancing upon one of his paintings posted on my twitter stream.

James Tissot’s work is really fascinating because it encompasses several different art movements and styles, all of which I love; early Impressionism, Realism as well as Academic art ( William Bouguereau / Lawrence Alma Tadema ).

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6) Raphael : The Complete Works ( Taschen )

Raphael (1483–1520) is considered the most important artist of the Italian High Renaissance alongside Michelangelo and Leonardo. In his short lifetime he created around one hundred paintings and numerous frescoes, including nine fresco cycles, on an unsurpassed variety of themes – from sensual female beauties, antique myths and portraits of wealthy Romans and church dignitaries to history cycles and biblical scenes. He produced altarpieces, as well as designing tapestries for the Sistine Chapel and directing the construction of St Peter’s Basilica. His Sistine Madonna is one of the most frequently reproduced religious paintings of all time.

This XXL edition is the most comprehensive work published on Raphael. The volume encompasses in total 112 paintings and all the frescoes, architectural projects and tapestries in many new photographs and numerous details, as well as the most extensive catalogue raisonné of the artist’s oeuvre. A team of Raphael experts introduces the reader also to the fascinating interplay of art and power in the High Renaissance.

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7) This And That – Katsuya Terada

‘THIS AND THAT’ (アレコレ) is the latest illustration art book by renowned manga artist Katsuya Terada, a most splendid collection of his drawings, sketches, doodles and colored illustrations compiled from his more recent commissioned work as well as those from live-drawing sessions and exhibitions. If I am tracking his bibliography accurately, this would be his first published art book in 4 years since the 2021 SKETCH ( read my review here ).

The contents here are really strong and varied; showcasing both the artist’s elaborate colored illustrations as well as his incredibly detailed black & white drawings/sketches, some done using sharpies for his live-drawing sessions and other smaller, more intimate pieces with graphite and/or charcoal sticks.

There is also variety in the presentation here, with some of the first few pages printed on a more glossy, silver reflective paper stock that is really nice to look at. To top it off, the last few pages of the book also includes written captions by Terada where he shares his working/thought processes and art tools/media used on some select pieces, both in Japanese and English language. There’s even a sticker set thrown in on the last page.

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8) Shirow Masamune Art Works In The Shell

Released in commemoration with ‘The World Of Shirow Masamune Manga Exhibition’ held in Tokyo in 2025 ( read about my visit to the exhibition here ), this 304 pages whopper of an art book celebrates the art and illustrations of the legendary comic artist who bought us Appleseed, Ghost In The Shell, Dominion Tank Police, Orion and many more.

The art book is an unadulterated, no-nonsense volume with nary a page of text and is packed literally from cover to cover with Shirow’s bold and colorful illustrations, numbering some 260 in total. At double the page count, the scope of the contents covered well exceeds what was collected in his excellent 1992 art book Intron Depot ( read my review here ).

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9) The Artwork Of Berserk – Miura Kentaro

Berserk (ベルセルク) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Kentaro Miura (三浦 建太郎), who we sadly lost in 2021. Set in a medieval Europe–inspired dark fantasy world, the story centers on the characters of Guts, a lone swordsman, and Griffith, the leader of a mercenary band called the “Band of the Hawk”. The series follows Guts’ journey seeking revenge on Griffith, who betrayed him and the rest of their comrades.

This sumptuous 220 pages hardcover art book is the official catalog for ‘The Great Berserk Exhibition -32 years of Kentaro Miura’s art career-‘ (大ベルセルク展〜三浦建太郎　画業32年の軌跡〜) that was held in major cities across Japan ( and also Seoul ) from 2021 to early 2025, showcasing a huge collection of the artist’s drawings and colored illustrations from the manga.

In creating Berserk, Kentaro Miura cites a long list of eclectic artistic sources that helped to inform his narrative as well as art style, including films like ‘Hellraiser’ (1987), The Name of the Rose (1986), the art of M. C. Escher, and the Brothers Grimm’s fairy tales. He also mentions manga artists like Katsuhiro Otomo, Yoshikazu Yasuhiko, Go Nagai and Osamu Tezuka, just to name a few.

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10) Mercury – Entei Ryu Sculpture Works

‘MERCURY’ is the 2nd art book by renowned concept artist/illustrator/sculptor Entei Ryu (エンテイ・リュウ). While her first art book CHIMERA (2024 – read my book here ) showcased more of her concept designs, sketches and illustration work, this 2nd book is fully focused on her sculptural work.

And it is spectacular. As we have seen previously seen in CHIMERA, the artist’s impressive 2D art work and digital models are fully realized in stunning 3 dimensional sculptures, featuring a very rich line-up of personal works as well as guest art pieces for popular anime & game titles like Evangelion, Berserk, Ghost In The Shell, Death Stranding and more. Also included are detailed making-of breakdowns and drawings that trace each creation from concept and sculpting to final finishing.

Based in Tokyo, Entei Ryu works on art and design primarily for movies and games both domestically and internationally. Her transcendent works, themed around life, energy, and harmony with nature, fuse classical realism with the spirituality of Eastern art, captivating a wide audience through various media. In the past, she has contributed art to various titles such as “ASSASSIN’S CREED” and the “FINAL FANTASY” series, and is currently active as a concept artist at Kojima Productions.

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11) Steamboy Storyboards Vol 1 ( Otomo Complete Works )

Released to great anticipation in 2004 after an arduous 10 year production period, AKIRA director Katsuhiro Otomo’s epic scale steampunk animated film Steamboy ultimately failed to wow fans and critics, ending its domestic theatrical run in the red, earning only $18.9 million against a production budget of $26 million. At the time its release back in 2004, it was apparently the most expensive Japanese film ever made.

I like to think of the film as a failed masterpiece; the story and drama never quite reached the lofty heights of Otomo’s magnum opus AKIRA, but it is nonetheless a most visually stunning piece of animated cinema. The amount of creative labor invested is evident in the beautifully drawn, meticulously detailed storyboards; now collected in this new 2 volume set.

This new edition released with the Otomo Complete Works series of art books is in my opinion superior to the older, now out of print edition released back in 2004 ( read my review here ).

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12) The Art and Making of Frankenstein

Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein is one of my favorite films of 2025, and so I’ve been waiting eagerly to get my hands on a copy of this lavish art/making of book ever since I watched the film. It does not disappoint, not one bit.

This hefty hardcover volume spans over 330 pages and showcases all the extraordinary work by each filmmaking discipline/department that culminated in this gothic masterpiece, from costume/prop design to art direction, production design and cinematography. Also included are Guillermo Del Toro’s own developmental sketches and notes ( not unlike those collected in his most excellent Cabinet Of Curiosities book ) as well as many concept art pieces by Del Toro’s long time collaborator, comic artist/concept designer Guy Davis.

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And that just about rounds up my favorite art book picks of 2025; there are quite a few notable mentions that didn’t quite make it into the above list but are great as well like Mahiro Maeda – Zatsu, Kato Soichiro Artworks, Mud And Sludge – Dorohedoro, Porco Rosso Imageboards and more; here’s the full list of art books I in reviewed in 2025 ( 64 total ).

I also recommend my favorite art book lists from these other years –

2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012

If you need help with ordering on Amazon Japan, the FAQs below will guide you through, step by step.

Lastly, I’ll love you hear about your favorite art books this year too, if you have any to share. Happy New Year !

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