The Marvel Art of Marko Djurdjevic [Hardcover]

John Rhett Thomas (Author), Marko Djurdjevic (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 22, 2009

Marko Djurdjevic burst onto the scene from obscurity, a passionate artist sharing his work online. The quality of his illustrations needed no explanation beyond that which was obvious at first glance: the sleekly stylized figure work, his masterful command of colors, and the layers and subtext that formed an essential part of his vision. It was a short trip from anonymity to his current status as one of Marvel's most compelling cover artists. This lush art book features a treasure trove of Marko's cover illustrations - plus sketches, designs, and extensive discussion about the process that has made him one of Marvel's most popular artists. In collaboration with the artist himself, and with input from his peers, The Art of Marko Djurdjevic is the kind of deluxe art book you'll be proud to show off to friends and fellow art fans.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Marvel (July 22, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0785139621
• ISBN-13: 978-0785139621
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 0.8 x 11.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #191,394 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Really great art and writeup, July 19, 2009

By 

Parka (Singapore) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: The Marvel Art of Marko Djurdjevic (Hardcover)

Length:: 0:19 Mins

Marko Djurdjevic is a German illustrator who has only started drawing comic covers for Marvel since 2006. In these three years, he has amassed a ton of top quality art to create his first portfolio art book, The Marvel Art Of Marko Djurdjevic

This book features the cover art he has drawn for X-Men First Class, Blade, Thunderbolts, Daredevil, Mystic Arcana, Wolverine: Origins, Thor, Spider-man-One More Day, Avengers, Hulk, Magneto and many more. The lavishly painted illustrations are accompanied by the original sketches, including rejected pieces by editors. In the last chapter, there are even character designs and sketches which got him talent scouted by Chris Allo, talent manager at Marvel.

The hardcover opens up to a concept sketch of Thor battling skeletons drawn with intense cross hatching. Straightaway you know this book is going to be good. The comic covers are reproduced brilliantly and big on the semi glossy paper. The quality of art is amazing, of course. He's got all his foundational skills down - composition, form and anatomy.

Although he has a lot of dynamic pieces, his strongest ones are actually the quieter and subtle pieces which capture the mood perfectly. The piece I like is the one with young Magneto in tears watching people being burnt in Nazi camp furnaces. It makes readers really feel for him. It's incredibly difficult to tell a story with only one panel. This illustration did it. It's really a powerful and emotive piece.

All the illustrations are accompanied by captions. Marko Djurdjevic shares his thoughts on the covers, colour choices, comments and criticisms, among others. There's also the story of him breaking into the comics industry, which is really inspiring considering he did it through sheer determination, discipline and passion. The closing interviews by Coro Kaufman and Andrew Jones give even more dimension into his personality. He self taught everything himself, was a heavy drinker before he met his wife, draws with a pen to build confidence. Very interesting read.

I love art books that talk about the artists in addition to the art. This is definitely one of my favourite art books in 2009.

Most highly recommended.

(More pictures are available on my blog. Just visit my Amazon profile for the link.)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another master piece!, February 18, 2010

By 

Bookworm - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Marvel Art of Marko Djurdjevic (Hardcover)

I love comic book art, especially when they're from talented artists such as Marko! I've seen many covers he's done for Marvel, and it's amazing how he's self-taught, too! From working for the gaming concept company, Massive Black, to posting his own renderings of Marvel super heroes on an art forum, and then getting a job at Marvel after they saw how good he is, is just an incredible back story on the artist.

Like I said before, this guy taught himself how to draw and digitally paint. You can't pass up this book! His artwork is interesting because he has a different style that distinguishes him from other comic book artists. From Daredevil to Ghost Rider, he's got a load of characters among these pages that will give you a nice perspective on his creativity. Each chapter has some insight about the artist, and Marko himself gives some input on some of his works as well.

GET THIS BOOK!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book!, January 4, 2010

By 

Adam Murray (Utah) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: The Marvel Art of Marko Djurdjevic (Hardcover)

This has quickly become one of my favorite art books. I bought this book within minutes of seeing it available for sale and I am completely satisfied with my purchase. My little kids love to look through it with me and will easily spend an hour admiring the pictures (although some of the paintings do depict violence and/or blood etc. Also, the pages are a bit thin for little fingers and a couple of pages have already been torn a bit.)

If you're a fan of Marko Djurdjevic or Marvel comics, or just plain ol' quality artwork you should get this book.