Art Inspiration Part 4: Hayao Miyazaki

Growing up, one of my favorite things to do is to read manga and watch anime with my family. From all the mangas I read and anime, I watched, I would find myself studying the drawings of various Japanese artists. One of my favorite Japanese artists in particular is Hayao Miyazaki. 

Hayao Miyazaki is a Japanese animator, director, producer, screenwriter, author, and artist. Miyazaki is known for his iconic work in Spirited Away, Princess Mononoke, Howl's Moving Castle, Castle in the Sky, Secret World of Arrietty, From Up on Poppy Hill, and many more. 

Looking at Miyazaki's art, one of the things I love about it is the softly painted water-colored backgrounds, creating an immersive fantasy-like atmosphere. Also, we can see the immense amount of effort and detail Miyazaki puts into the background of his works, which contributes to the overall fantasy-like environment.

Castle in the Sky Concept Art 

Princess Mononoke Concept Art

Another aspect of Miyazaki's art I like is the simplicity of the characters, the realisticness, and their expressiveness. In Miyazaki's sketches, his lines are very confident, simple and loose, while capturing a sense of realism within the illustrations. 

My Neighbourhood Totoro Concept Art 

 Princess Mononoke's Asitakha Concept Art

Overall, Hayao Miyazaki's artwork is truly beautiful as it is done traditionally with the use of pencil and watercolor. We can also see how passionate and imaginative Miyazaki is in combining realism and a fantasy-like world within his works; this is achieved through the detailed backgrounds as well as the fantasy-like creatures/characters he develops.

Lastly, my favorite art books by Hayao Miyazaki are The Art of Castle in the Sky and The Art of Howl's Moving Castle. Also, another book I really enjoy is Hayao Miyazaki by Jessica Niebel.

If I were to pick a favorite movie from Miyazaki, I will definitely choose Castle In the Sky because of the message of the movie s well as how beautiful the environment is in the movie. My second favorite movie will have to be Princess Mononoke or Howl's Moving Castle. 

Comment on this post and let me know what your favorite Miyazaki work is!