Stephen Silver has been a professional working artist, character designer, and teacher in the industry for over 30 years. He developed intellectual properties for some of the largest media companies in the world; such as Disney, Warner Bros., Nickelodeon, Sony, MAD Magazine, Reel FX, Bento box, Hasbro, Universal, DreamWorks, and more. Stephen is responsible for the visual character development and design of some of animation’s most iconic shows; including Disney’s Kim Possible, Nickelodeon’s Danny Phantom, and Disney’s Clerks: The Animated Series, to name a few.
I wrote...
The Silver Way: Techniques, Tips, and Tutorials for Effective Character Design
By
Stephen Silver
What is my book about?
The Silver Way: Techniques, Tips, and Tutorials for Effective Character Design by Stephen Silver offers invaluable instruction from one of the best teachers in the industry. Whether you’re a professional artist interested in improving your drawing skills, or an aspiring designer fresh out of high school looking to add to your portfolio, The Silver Way will help you build your confidence and strengthen your work in order to successfully design characters for any project, in any style.
Chockfull of helpful—and entertaining!—drawing techniques and easy-to-follow tutorials developed through his decades of experience as an artist on popular animated shows (Kim Possible, Danny Phantom, The Fairly OddParents) and as the owner of Silver Drawing Academy, The Silver Way is the kind of educational art book you’ll revisit again and again for guidance, encouragement, and inspiration.
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The Books I Picked & Why
Marc Davis: Walt Disney's Renaissance Man
By
Disney Book Group,
Marc Davis
Why this book?
This book is filled with artwork and sketches that are filled with energy. I love that Mark Davis offers a variety of different styles and development roughs that are so inspiring and make you want to sketch. The value I received from acquiring this book was giving me a greater sense of appreciation for playing with different mediums.
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How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way
By
Stan Lee,
John Buscema
Why this book?
How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way teaches artists step by step how to build construction and energy into their poses. Helping you create more dynamic versions. I love that it is really clear and simple to understand giving the artists extreme value that will guide them whenever they draw from imagination or from life.
When you buy a book we may earn a small commission.
Cartoon Animation with Preston Blair: Learn Techniques for Drawing and Animating Cartoon Characters
By
Preston Blair
Why this book?
I believe this is one of the greatest books for breaking down and understanding the emotion and simplicity of construction. I love that it offers a variety of animals and humans to draw from and it can save you so much time by teaching you the basic fundamentals of drawing cartoon faces that will guide you throughout your career.
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The Illusion of Life
By
Frank Thomas,
Ollie Johnson
Why this book?
This book offers so much knowledge into the animator's role in the animation process. I love that it covers a variety of positions in animation and offers some really fun sketches in there that inspire you to practice drawing. A book like this can be so valuable that you may not even have to take an animation class after reading it.
When you buy a book we may earn a small commission.
Drawing the Head and Hands
By
Andrew Loomis
Why this book?
I feel like this book lays down the original context in how to draw the human head and body that thousands of teachers use to teach others. I love how he goes step by step giving you the opportunity to really learn what is important. A book like this can save you hundreds of dollars as it is the original source in my opinion.