An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators and Designers Paperback – December 1, 2008

This is the best book I've bought in a long time, and I buy a lot of books. Plus, I found it accidentally, while looking for another illustrator's book on Amazon. The author (Danny Gregory) appears to have collected a bunch of his friends, who happen to draw in sketchbooks. It feels like they all got together and showed their books to each other. What each artist has to say about his or her work (in their own words, first person) is as inspiring as what they have drawn.I am not a visual artist of any kind, but while reading this book on a bus in Europe, I started drawing the people around me. They were amateurish sketches, but people would lean in and say, "Wow, did you draw that?" That was in March, and I have been drawing in my dream book and on sheets of paper since then. I'm sure it'll only be a matter of time before I buy a Moleskin of my own and a nice Rapidiograph pen and some watercolors, or maybe some watercolor pencils.Speaking of which, each of the artists talk about their media. I love reading about what materials they like to use; everyone works so differently (although Moleskins do seem to be the predominant book of choice). I've already bought "An Illustrated Life" as a gift, too, for my son, who stopped drawing a few years ago but who has so much talent I wanted to inspire him to start again.Also, I keep marveling at the price. So much color, great design and layout, and tons of scans must have gone into the making of this book, not to mention all writing in such different voices. It's even edited well, and that's a little bit surprising, considering I always find tons of errors in everything I read! I want the price to stay the same so I can keep buying it as a gift for others, but I also think it's worth twice as much.

I loved all the varied approaches to sketching/journaling. Whether you already have your own style or are looking to develop one, just get this book!

Really enjoyed the views, comments and illustrations in this book. I am older though and I found this type too tiny even for my reading glasses. It certainly is not a take along book unless you have excelllent eye site.

Every now and then you find just the right book you need to fill a hole in your life. In many ways, An Illustrated Life filled that bill for me.I'm a writer and editor (my latest book, The New Horror Handbook, came out a few months ago), and spend most of my time editing other people's work, with little time left to actually enjoy the process of creation myself.When I stumbled upon this book, I had something of an epiphany. Here were people every bit as busy as the rest of us, yet they had found another way of saving their thoughts and documenting the world around them.So many different styles are represented in this book, from astonishing water colors to simple cartoons to the strange illustrations of Robert Crumb.But these full color illustrations are only half the story. The accompanying essays by the sketchbook artists themselves really spoke to me. I found it extremely inspiring to read about how these talented artists work, how they manage to snatch the time to sketch their thoughts, and perhaps most importantly, how making a sketch or watercolor of a scene in front of them actually allows them to better remember what they saw than simply taking a photo. If you've taken hundreds of digital photos of places you wanted to remember, only to barely remember them at all, you can see what a revelation this can be.Enough of my blatherings. This book is best summed up this way: A fascinating look into the creative process, and a good way to jump-start your own.

I have read this book from cover to cover and enjoyed every minute, a lot.This is a treasure. Ever wonder how artists work in their sketchbooks and how sketch books contribute to their lives and art? Here, then, if your book.I have long been an advocate for sketchbooking. Anyone involved in making art, pretty-much art of any kind, should keep one and work in it frequently, if not daily. And this is certainly true of people who draw and sketch and paint. To me, no better way to get better!But back to this book: Fascinating. You know what I found interesting? Not so much how these creative folks did things differently but instead how often they do things the same. Many like bound sketchbooks because they are unavoidably sequential, chronological, one page relating if you want to the next one. It's also hard to lose a drawing out of a bound book, as can so easily happen if the drawing is on a loose sheet of paper. A whole bunch refuse to tear out of their bound books a drawing or sketch that turns out sour--bad drawings are part of the story and good to learn from. Almost all of them pointed out how sketching a scene was superior to just photographing it because sketching involves them in the scene so much more deeply, because they remember so much more of it that way. And, so much more.Well, I took notes. So many good ideas I want to incorporate in my own sketching. By the way, a lot of eye-candy too!Highly recommended to everyone interested in art.

Full of wonderful inspiration and designs

I love this book, you can browse it a little at a time and appreciate the unique stories each artist has to tell with his/her images.

Me he leído por la facultad en la universidad, es un libro muy bueno con distintos artistas, se presentar los dibujos de ellos y se explican las idea varias manera de creación, darme mucho inspiración para mi trabajo.

I love this book and the illustrations in it. It inspires me

Très beau livre illustré par des créateurs et artistes qui composent des carnets originaux, de très beaux dessins ! ça donne vraiment envie de se lancer dans le skechtbooking !