An artist's guide to the legendary mythical creatures
Let your imagination take wing with Designing Dragons, the must-have guide to bringing mythology's most iconic beast to life.
Let your imagination take wing with Designing Dragons, the must-have guide to bringing mythology's most iconic beast to life.

Discover step by step how professional concept artists take inspiration from the rich biology of real animals, using their scientific insights to design believable dragons, drakes, and serpents from myths and legends around the world. The brand-new artwork inside is created primarily with digital art software, such as Procreate, Photoshop, and Clip Studio Paint, with some traditional methods used for the early steps.

The in-depth introduction is written jointly by Stephen Oakley, Senior Concept Artist at Naughty Dog and designer of monsters for the award-winning God of War games, and Alexander Ostrowki, whose clients include game studios such as Wizards of the Coast. These two expert artists discuss the history and anatomy of the dragon, the techniques to create the colours and textures of these mighty creatures, and how to turn real-world inspiration into eye-catching fantasy. You will then find thirteen epic design projects to pore over, with professional artists taking a defined dragon from mythology, such as Hydra, Lindworm, Wyvern, and Jaculus, and sharing a step-by-step creative process as they transform it into a brand-new representation.

This is the ultimate dragon-design book for artists of any skill level and fantasy fans of all ages.