Graphic L.A. is part practical instruction, part guided meditation on the importance of color values and objects in art. The reader is led by the professional instruction of Robh Ruppel; instructor at the Art Center College of Design, Gnomon School of Visual Effects, and Concept Art Academy. He is also a multiple award-winning art director of video games. By reducing environments down to basic shapes and colors (or “symbols”), Robh builds astounding images. Robh documents the progression of building an image while referencing basic techniques. By using color with surprisingly bold brushstrokes, he produces images of incredible depth with intricate handling of light and shadow. It is a rare exploration into simplicity without resorting to minimalism. Readers will be certain to take away both a sense of admiration for Robh Ruppel’s work and a greater understanding and appreciation for the importance of color value relationships in all forms of art.
Read more
77 reviews for Graphic L.A.
4.8out of 5
★★★★★
★★★★★
12
★★★★★
1
★★★★★
0
★★★★★
0
★★★★★
0
Write a review
Show allMost HelpfulHighest RatingLowest Rating
★★★★★
Geoff Shupe –
Ruppel is a master of his craft. This book is laid out simply and concisely, but explains things in way to give more insight into his blog posts. A must for artists and lovers of landscape art.
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
T. Austin –
This man is a genuine master. Beautiful work, amazing use of three point perspective, and clear about how to graphically break down shapes, perspective & tone. With laconic accuracy which includes a series of step-by-step illustrations of his process, you can witness an image go from a thumbnail sketch to a final painting. If values, shapes, and perspective is what you are looking for then this is the “ne plus ultra” on the subject.
But why four-stars? (I could not do 3.5 stars)
Color palette is never addressed, hue is completely absent from the discussion; not illustrated at all. Frustrating since the artist has obviously mastered that subject as well but is completely silent on the subject.
Hue also has value (tone) and the two subjects are nearly synonymous. This book could have been a “grand slam” and a “no-hitter” but rather it is just a home run.
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
Dani –
As a cocnept artist and a huge fan of Robh, I have to say this little book is a rare gem and full of helpful tips and absolutely worth every penny!
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
hrishikesh –
Really good quality book.
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
Raphael –
I bought this book thinking only for the plein digital paintings and a peek for the LA through Ruppel’s eyes. Turns out it was also filled with steps and learning advice that some artist much needed. Give this book a go!
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
Stefan de Groot –
This is a great book of the artist Robh Ruppel. The images and art are amazing in this book. I first learned about Ruppel’s work while watching Brother Bear. He painted a lot of backgrounds for that Disney movie. Then I discovered his other art on Instagram and his website. This book concentrates around his paintings of L.A. and progression images on how he painted them. The images are accompanied by his thought process on how he approaches art and his paintings. Most of them are painted digital, but there are also some samples from his sketchbook. This book is a must have for visual developers who want to learn about making better compositions, work on their values and improving as a artist.
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
J. Enete –
Amazing approach to digital rendering. Great illustrations. Great step-by-step explanation. On the downside, the graphic design did not do these beautiful pieces justice and the binding was camel crap. But the quality of the renderings supersedes poor font choice and Elmer’s glue.
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
hyeong –
As a fellow visual development artist, this book was one of the solid buy within my collection of inspiration and knowledge.
The Graphic L.A is a book that strongly portrays the storytelling based on simple, graphic, geometric shapes, which it is considered quite hard to some of the other artists where they tend to focus on details. This book on the other hand, teaches you to forcefully and critically think on how to come up with the most simplified, big, clear shapes and design language for the audience to understand.
This method of simplification and storytelling is simply amazing by the farthest. From the simple, geometric shapes, limited value patterns & clear lighting situation, and limited color palettes to tell the mood of the story. Honestly, this book is meant to be an artistic bible of shape language, which I highly recommended anyone to those who wish to tell a story with strong, shape-based language.
After reading the book written by the artist who worked on Spiderman: Into the Spider-verse, this is a great book to see his process and his critical thinking on how to tell a story with strong, shape-based language. As a concept artist and visual development artist who wish to create such pieces with design and story appeal, this book is highly recommended!
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
Loren –
Il libro è molto bello e per gli appassionati del settore grafica/illustrazione digitale è un buono spunto per testate nuove tecniche. E’ presente qualche step by step ma molto approssimativo e piccolo come immagini. Avrei preferito magari fosse strutturato maggiormente sulla tecnica con più esempi a colore e meno schizzi a pennarello. Comunque ne consiglio l’acquisto e come sempre Ottimo feedback per Amazon che spedisce senza il minimo ritardo.
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
salvador –
Excelente libro
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
Amazon Customer –
The pictures in this book are worth the thousand word that aren’t. I’m going to recommend this book to my art students as a great resource for developing composition in their work.
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
David Dibble –
This is a great window into Robh’s creative process. His comments on thumbnailing and composition scattered throughout the book are spot-on and help understand the importance of simplified value structure. I highly recommend this book to anyone in the Concept field or landscape painting.
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
Adrian R –
Even for just a collection of Robbs painting’s, the little text it has is enough to explain his thinking process when creating his paintings.
Geoff Shupe –
Ruppel is a master of his craft. This book is laid out simply and concisely, but explains things in way to give more insight into his blog posts. A must for artists and lovers of landscape art.
T. Austin –
This man is a genuine master. Beautiful work, amazing use of three point perspective, and clear about how to graphically break down shapes, perspective & tone. With laconic accuracy which includes a series of step-by-step illustrations of his process, you can witness an image go from a thumbnail sketch to a final painting. If values, shapes, and perspective is what you are looking for then this is the “ne plus ultra” on the subject.
But why four-stars? (I could not do 3.5 stars)
Color palette is never addressed, hue is completely absent from the discussion; not illustrated at all. Frustrating since the artist has obviously mastered that subject as well but is completely silent on the subject.
Hue also has value (tone) and the two subjects are nearly synonymous. This book could have been a “grand slam” and a “no-hitter” but rather it is just a home run.
Dani –
As a cocnept artist and a huge fan of Robh, I have to say this little book is a rare gem and full of helpful tips and absolutely worth every penny!
hrishikesh –
Really good quality book.
Raphael –
I bought this book thinking only for the plein digital paintings and a peek for the LA through Ruppel’s eyes. Turns out it was also filled with steps and learning advice that some artist much needed. Give this book a go!
Stefan de Groot –
This is a great book of the artist Robh Ruppel. The images and art are amazing in this book. I first learned about Ruppel’s work while watching Brother Bear. He painted a lot of backgrounds for that Disney movie. Then I discovered his other art on Instagram and his website. This book concentrates around his paintings of L.A. and progression images on how he painted them. The images are accompanied by his thought process on how he approaches art and his paintings. Most of them are painted digital, but there are also some samples from his sketchbook. This book is a must have for visual developers who want to learn about making better compositions, work on their values and improving as a artist.
J. Enete –
Amazing approach to digital rendering. Great illustrations. Great step-by-step explanation. On the downside, the graphic design did not do these beautiful pieces justice and the binding was camel crap. But the quality of the renderings supersedes poor font choice and Elmer’s glue.
hyeong –
As a fellow visual development artist, this book was one of the solid buy within my collection of inspiration and knowledge.
The Graphic L.A is a book that strongly portrays the storytelling based on simple, graphic, geometric shapes, which it is considered quite hard to some of the other artists where they tend to focus on details. This book on the other hand, teaches you to forcefully and critically think on how to come up with the most simplified, big, clear shapes and design language for the audience to understand.
This method of simplification and storytelling is simply amazing by the farthest. From the simple, geometric shapes, limited value patterns & clear lighting situation, and limited color palettes to tell the mood of the story. Honestly, this book is meant to be an artistic bible of shape language, which I highly recommended anyone to those who wish to tell a story with strong, shape-based language.
After reading the book written by the artist who worked on Spiderman: Into the Spider-verse, this is a great book to see his process and his critical thinking on how to tell a story with strong, shape-based language. As a concept artist and visual development artist who wish to create such pieces with design and story appeal, this book is highly recommended!
Loren –
Il libro è molto bello e per gli appassionati del settore grafica/illustrazione digitale è un buono spunto per testate nuove tecniche. E’ presente qualche step by step ma molto approssimativo e piccolo come immagini. Avrei preferito magari fosse strutturato maggiormente sulla tecnica con più esempi a colore e meno schizzi a pennarello. Comunque ne consiglio l’acquisto e come sempre Ottimo feedback per Amazon che spedisce senza il minimo ritardo.
salvador –
Excelente libro
Amazon Customer –
The pictures in this book are worth the thousand word that aren’t. I’m going to recommend this book to my art students as a great resource for developing composition in their work.
David Dibble –
This is a great window into Robh’s creative process. His comments on thumbnailing and composition scattered throughout the book are spot-on and help understand the importance of simplified value structure. I highly recommend this book to anyone in the Concept field or landscape painting.
Adrian R –
Even for just a collection of Robbs painting’s, the little text it has is enough to explain his thinking process when creating his paintings.