Marvel Studios: The Infinity Saga – The Art of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is the 14th release in the 22-book Marvel Studios: The Infinity Saga series, which is republishing previously released art books as a resized matching set. In his Foreword, director James Gunn states the approach to Vol. 2 was “I wanted it to be more explosively colorful, more outlandishly science fiction, and more rooted in the pulp art and the space-opera films of the fifties and sixties.” From the artwork contained within, mission accomplished.
Buy The Art of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2Chapter 1 opens with a re-introduction of the Guardians. Visual Development Supervisor Andy Park reveals Gunn “was quite happy with the way the main characters from the first film looked and wasn’t looking to revamp them in any major way,” so the new costumes show subtle evolution in the practical outfits they wore. Groot may have had the biggest change as Visual Development Illustrator Anthony Francisco was tasked with taking “Baby Groot out of his pot.”
The chapter continues with a look at the “bold design elements” of planet Sovereign where the Guardians are trying to protect the Anulax Batteries from the Abilisk, an interdimensional creature that wants to eat them. Francisco explains James “wanted a creature with tentacles but with the texture of a hairless mole rat.” The book offers quite a few designs for High Priestess Ayesha, various sets and nameless characters of Sovereign, and Nebula’s mechanical arm.
Chapter 2 takes readers to Berhert, a forest planet the Guardians crash-land after being chased by Yondu. The artists created different fauna and different version of Ego’s egg-shaped ship. Ego went through “lots and lots of designs,” according to Senior Illustrator Jackson Sze because “character notes updated frequently, so our designs had to reflect this dynamic.”
In creating Mantis, “early concepts took [her] in various directions – some far more bug-like, others more abstract and alien” until they reached the design filmgoers will recognize. The chapter concludes with storyboards of Rocket’s attack on the Ravagers, but in rather a puzzling decision, the two-page spread is comprised of 288 images that are so small they require a magnifying glass to fully them.
Chapter 3 lands on Contraxia, which Production Designer Scott Chambliss described as “the red-light district of their galaxy” so naturally, there are Love Bots, all of a humanoid design. The Ravagers get a spotlight including Taserface, Stakar, crystal-based Martinex, and Youndu, shown “with a similar look, but a new fin” and his massive ship the Eclector, which has various areas explored. Also, making his way to the planet is Howard the Duck. The chapter concludes with artwork for the portals comprised of bold colors that jump off the page.
Chapter 4 runs over 100 pages covering the remainder of the film with a focus on Ego, the living planet, moving through exterior locales and into Ego’s castle, which are all comprised of the same components. Visual Effects Supervisor Christopher Townsend says, the designs are “based our digital creation on Mandelbulb and Mandelbrot formulae, using algorithms to procedurally create recursive patterns.” The “fully CG environments were then combined with digital matte paintings on a shot-by-shot basis,” creating mind-blowing visuals readers will slowly pore over and revisit. The chapter concludes with the climatic battle as they attack Ego’s Soul Chamber where his brain is housed.
The Art of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is a psychedelic trip through the shared imaginations of the production’s artists as they strove to bring Gunn’s vision to fruition. They demonstrate great talent in bringing their ideas to the page. Fans of the film and fans of bold, colorful artwork will appreciate this book.
