Ed Emberley's Drawing Book: Make a World

Ed Emberley Drawing Books

by Ed Emberley

Step-by-step instructions for making line drawings of animals, vehicles, furniture, buildings, people, and other things.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Childrens, Drawing, Reference, Picture Books, Design

32 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1972

About the author

American artist and illustrator, best known for children's picture books.

Reviews

[Alexandra Cross · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was recommended in ‘Steal Like an Artist’ so I rented it from the library.

Great book to be gifted. It’s first page shows 20 very simple shapes (lines, triangle, circle) and then gives an index of how-to draw figures. No shading, just two dimensional, two color figures.

If you’re intrigued by vector art, this is a good place to start.

[Sandy Swain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learned about this book watching a SXSW workshop on "Visual Notetaking". This gives me a bit more confidence to do simple sketches to enhance my lecture notes even though I don't consider myself an artist. These are basically glorified stick figures which was exactly what I wanted. I'm having a good time putting my own style to the pictures and making small variations to convey a particular concept. I would have really dug this book as a young girl!

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ed Emberley starts where most elementary-aged kids are at (stick figures) and brings drawing to the next immediate level of complexity. No shading, still just two-dimensional, but able to capture more of the world. Children tend to be very methodical and formulaic in their drawing--what they haven't seen others draw before, they tend to lack the imagination and talent to figure out (on their own) the technique for rendering it in a recognizable form. What most need is an engaging mentor that will help them simplify the complexity down to something they can comprehend and replicate. Children naturally enjoy creating their own worlds and stories through art, and this author-illustrator increases their repertoire, bringing more joy to their fingertips. While a natural artist who wants to make things look realistic may feel stifled by the approach, it will teach him/her to use basic shapes to create forms, to have an eye for detail, and to use boldness in graphic art to create impact and communicate clearly one's ideas. I would strongly recommend each of his color-themed titles (orange, purple, green, etc., as well as his finger/thumbprint books and his "make a world" book. All will bring smiles and inspiration to young artists ages 5-12.

[Mycala · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recommended by Handmade Thinking

[Alainamac]

If you want to be able to draw or want to teach children how to draw, this book is invaluable. I have used it since I first came across it sometime in the early 1980's. Have used it at home with children and now grandchildren, in Cub Scout meetings, working in a grade school and even have used it when I needed to have some sort of graphics when leading adult meetings. It makes drawing fun and you will feel successful at creating art. You will be able to draw anything you want by using Ed Emberley's books.

[Nadine in NY Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

My parents bought this for me when I was little, and I remember being soooo unappreciative at the time (because all kids are little brats), but I kept this book forever. (I had the hardcover. Because back in the 70s hardcover books were actually affordable!) I'm not really sure what happened to it.

[Corvidianus · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a guide to drawing, it's not especially useful. You don't want to copy his style. He doesn't explain *how* he arrived at his style, he just shows - as do many such drawing books - how to copy his style, how to draw icons exactly the way he does, subject by subject.

As something of a portfolio of his answer to different art challenges, this is intriguing.
As a source of "prompts" for what to draw to create your own icon language, this is a good case study for reference. Perhaps seeing his book might make you want to create your own, and work out your own take on the different objects depicted.
This could similarly be useful if you happen to want to design a video game and have no idea where to begin with depicting the world because you haven't particularly *noticed* the world before - what's in a world?! - well, he has a handy list with icons as a reference point, and shows how one could easily draw a world pretty quickly using a simple, minimalistic symbolic language. That's pretty snazzy.

Overall, 4 stars for the amount of work that went into this. It's a nice, orderly presentation, every page is jam packed with imagery, that is consistently & methodically presented. No filler or fluff. I do like that.
However, it's not what I expected to be getting when picking it up from the library. Less theory & exercises and more a "Look what I can do! Copy it if you want."

It's also shorter than I expected, but that's not from a lack of effort on his part. It's just very efficiently laid out. That's good all around - takes up less room, wastes less paper, cheaper to produce/buy. Very efficient.

[Jaki]

Not going to rate this one because really I mostly just flipped through it rather than trying the exercises. I think it’s a great starting point for someone intimidated by drawing who wants to get more visual in their notes / journaling / whiteboarding / etc. because it breaks many things down into simple but effective shapes and lines that are easily understood (and often quite cute), but if you’ve been a doodler all your life, not much for you here.

[Sarah Ehinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ed Emberley gives any kid the tools to become an artist. I looked this one over before I send it to my sister's kids. The 12 year old me loved being able to see the step by step process from drawing all sorts of cool things from animals to ships. It builds on basic shapes and uses pictures of each step, so kids should have no trouble working through it.

[Rich Farrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m reading a book on sketchnoting but as a poor artist, I wasn’t sure how it’d look for someone like me. That book mentioned Ed Emberley, which led me here. I love this book! The process is step-by-step but not complicated. The drawings are both simple and effective in communicating, not to mention it looks like a lot of fun!

[Jayne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very simple idea of starting with a basic shape and adding a few more basic shapes to draw something.You could very quickly draw a nice picture full of these things.

Not sure how old this is, because some of the drawings, like for vehicles seemed a little old fashioned.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

perfect for cartooning and doodling, even for adults who want to draw something but feel like they can't.

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Drawing the world using only sticky figures. Go figure.

[rumbledethumps · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great little book meant for children (or beginning artists) to start learning how to draw basic, everyday things using line, shape, and color. Great gift for a budding artist.

[Castor · Rating 5 out of 5]

<3

[Friend of Pixie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, we loved this book! Logan's daddy (who used to be a graphic designer) had been trying to describe these books he had when he was a kid, where it showed how to draw all kinds of things in a step-by-step way using basic shapes. I was picturing the intimidating ones I had that showed how to make, say, a horse with circles and lines and then, presto, an undocumented miracle occured to make the last illustration look like a real horse. Never worked for me. But then I was at a book store and I saw these Ed Emberley books and new immediately that they were the ones! These step-by-steps are actually possible for little kids; not intimidating realistic pictures, but more like improved stick drawings. Make A World is Logan's favorite because in addition to people, animals, buildings, and facial expressions, it shows just about every mode of transport there is: subs, blimps, trains, planes, motorcycles, steamships, etc. The title says it all--you can make a world with all the stuff in there. He even shows how to draw bridges, thunderclouds, islands, mountains. Even I have fun with it. And the best thing is that it has given L some confidence in his ability to draw something recognizeable. What looks complicated is broken down into simple enough steps that he can draw almost anything. I'm so glad these have been re-issued.

[R.Friend · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember fondly collecting every Ed Emberley drawing book I could find at the library as a kid--I'm so happy to see that they're still around!

Emberley, in my opinion, is a very underestimated artist and author. The ease in which he simplifies his drawings, making them easily accessible to even the most inexperienced artist, is amazing. This is literally a step-by-step guidebook to creating a veritable index of iconic images. Furthermore, his is a whimsical, simplistic style that is still very much applicable today. I'm sure a great many illustrators working today owe a debt of gratitude to Mr. Emberley.

That having been said, I'm ordering his collection on Amazon for my nephew and niece this very moment.

[Meg · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book came from my childhood, and I'm so glad we have it now. J is really interested in drawing, and this book has come in handy quite a few times. It has been very fun to see what J can draw and imagine with Emberley's help, and the way drawings are broken down I think I will start learning to draw too. I would recommend checking any or all of these out--I only gave 4 stars to the truck book because it was redundant to this book, but if that's what your kid is into, the truck book might be a great way to encourage kids to draw.

[Sherry (sethurner) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot believe how much fun I had reproducing all the little animals, various vehicles, and objects that Emberley demonstrates how to draw. I can easily see myself doodling wee kangaroos for hours on end after this. Parents, teachers, babysitters, just dodler will find lots of ways to make use of these step-by-step drawings.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

My four year old loves to doodle and draw (thanks to artforkidshub.com). When we spotted this book at the library, she begged to bring it home. I thought it may be a bit advanced for her age, but she has spent hours this past week working on drawing cute scenes. She has been so proud of herself for being able to follow along all by herself.

[jacky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not much to read in this book since it is a drawing instruction book. I love it though. It shows you how to easily draw many many things. The drawings are all very small, but you could easily enlarge and add more detail to them. it breaks animals and vehicles down into simple parts.

[Ulee ☄︎ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.4
Some of the icons/drawing were outdated. If this book is really for kids and not adults my age, most kids will be confused as to why certain drawing represent certain ideas or subjects. Other than that, nice book; would recommend.

[Elle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Emberley's simple drawing style encourages those who believe drawing is too hard for them. His step by step instructions will have children creating art in no time at all. My only wish is that the illustrations were larger making following the steps easier for those with imperfect eyesight.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best how to draw books EVER!

[Chuck · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have fond memories of borrowing this book again and again from the library when I was a kid. I would spend countless hours using it as a guide to build my own little worlds.

[George · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ed Emberley is the MAN!!!!!!

[Carmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could spend *hours* with this book, a big sheet of paper and a set of thin tipped markers.

[Mary Louise]

Austin Kleon recommendation.

[Huda Fel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Its simplicity is the key. You only need to know how to draw about ten shapes then you're ready to go.
Oooh yes, nothing will go right without any imagination.

[Tasneem Zafer · Rating 5 out of 5]

so very simple! i love that it shows you how to draw simple characters moving in different positions step by step!
thank you MUUUCH felomuffin :*