20 Unique Inspirational Anime Art Styles You Absolutely Need to Practice
As anime and manga have risen in popularity over the years, the traditional anime art style has almost worldwide recognition. Even though there is undoubtedly a wide range of “typical” anime styles (simply contrast One Piece and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, for instance), even that cannot fully explain the art styles used in some anime. Fans may not even recognize some of them as anime until they pay them more attention. Let’s check out some Unique Inspirational Anime Art Styles you can use to boost your creativity
20 Unique Inspirational Anime Art Styles
- JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Anime Art Styles
- Vinland Saga Style Anime Art Styles
- Mob Psycho 100 Anime Art Styles
- Space Dandy Style Anime Art Styles
- The Tale of Princess Kaguya Anime Art Styles
- Made in Abyss Anime Art Styles
- The Vision of Escaflowne Anime Style
- Clannad Style
- Jigoku Shoujo Anime art Style
- Redline Anime art Style
- Bakemonogatari Anime Art Styles
- Detective Conan Style
- Inuyasha Style
- Attack on Titan
- Lelouch of the Rebellion
- Galaxy Express 999
- Lady Georgie
- Kimi no Todoke
- Violet Evergarden
- Eureka Seven Style
1. JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Unique Anime Art Style
David Productions pulled off the unthinkable. They animated the artwork by Araki Hirohiko.
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is a dynamic masterwork of art, music, sound, character, and story all merged into a forward-thinking tale about bettering oneself and overcoming adversity.
Phantom Blood’s macho Mad-Max aesthetic to Golden Wind’s Greco-Roma-Italian designs—JoJo’s is continuously evolving, altering, and innovating.
Related: Real Life Location of Jojo’sBizarrre Adventures
2. Vinland Saga Style
Makoto Yukimura’s historical manga and animation series Vinland Saga has a striking visual aesthetic that enthralls viewers. Particularly in its character designs and historical backgrounds, the artwork exhibits painstaking attention to detail. The characters are shown with realistic facial expressions and body proportions that convey a variety of moods.
Beautifully rendered backgrounds with expansive landscapes and elaborate architectural details transport visitors to the Viking Age. The use of atmospheric effects, lighting, and shading gives the story more depth and heightens its emotional impact. The fierce action and intricate character development in Vinland Saga are complemented by the game’s graphic design, which also brings historical accuracy to life.
3. Mob Psycho 100 Unique Anime Style
It incorporates greater emotion into everything OPM does.
Each character is unique. Additionally, Mob Psycho 100’s environment is awash in distinct design elements, so no two characters are guaranteed to look alike.
This, together with the fantastic world development, elevate Mob Psycho 100 to a more in-depth franchise than its elder sibling.
Studio Bones took advantage of the chance to showcase their talents, serving out some of the best sakuga in the industry and stunning everyone with their audiovisual production, especially during some of the city-shattering fights.
Related: Mob Psycho 100 Real Life Locations
4. Space Dandy Style
Another one of the unique inspirational anime art styles is Shinichiro Watanabe’s anime series Space Dandy. It features a colorful and diverse visual aesthetic. The artwork in Space Dandy is distinguished for its vivid colors and striking motifs that combine retro and futuristic styles. From aliens to humanoids, the character designs are varied and innovative, with each figure radiating its own special charm.
Richly detailed backgrounds and surroundings frequently feature fantastical and visually fascinating locales. A fluid and dynamic animation style is used, along with inventive camera angles and exciting action scenes. The comical and exciting storyline of Space Dandy is wonderfully complemented by the game’s artistic style, which results in a whimsical and visually appealing space adventure.
5. The Tale of Princess Kaguya Unique Anime Style
Because of its sluggish pacing and distinctive art style, this is one of Studio Ghibli’s best yet most underrated works.
I think Kaguya excels in each of those areas, offering a gorgeously sparse watercolour landscape with pale, poorly drawn characters who are full of imagery and white space.
In this epic retelling of a Japanese folktale from the 10th century, we follow the life of the impossibly blessed Kaguya.
The melody is dark and beautiful, and the graphics are evocative of a Masaaki Yuasa piece, with each figure allowing anatomical latitude to make characters even more expressive.
Princess Kaguya is a spectacle, starting with the lush green bamboo entrance and ending with a mysterious scene.
Related: Top Ghibli Anime Soundtracks Movies
6. Made in Abyss
This was a popular anime in 2017, and its distinctive look is much to blame.
Not that it lacks in the story or world-building department—far from it—but Made in Abyss’ production value definitely helped it move from decent to exceptional.
Each background is given a watercolor aesthetic, creating a gorgeously portrayed universe reminiscent of a Ghibli film that meshes perfectly with the adorable yet distinctive character designs.
The outstanding sound design and musical direction that can make your breath catch in a montage or a single well-placed picture make everything even better.
Worth seeing based only on the quality of its audiovisuals.
7. The Vision of Escaflowne Anime Style
The artwork in the anime series The Vision of Escaflowne by Shoji Kawamori and Hajime Yatate features a captivating blend of fantasy and mecha elements; the character designs combine elegance and intricacy; attention is paid to facial expressions and costume details that give the characters life; and the backgrounds are richly detailed, portraying vast and breathtaking landscapes that add depth and atmosphere.
8. Clannad Style
This anime has one of the unique Inspirational Anime Art Styles and is a well-known visual novel and anime series Clannad has a distinctive aesthetic that perfectly captures its dramatic story. The original visual novel’s drawings by Itaru Hinoue served as an inspiration for the graphic direction, which exhibits a delicate fusion of realism and fantasy.
Characters are rendered with expressive and minutely detailed characteristics that perfectly capture their personalities and feelings. The story’s sentimental and introspective themes are enhanced by the use of soft pastel hues, which produce a serene and dreamlike mood.
The visual symbolism used in Clannad’s art goes beyond simple aesthetics to communicate deeper significance. The sharp difference between joy and grief is shown by the juxtaposition of brilliant and subdued colors, emphasizing the bittersweet nature of the characters’ experiences.
The use of magical features, such as ethereal spheres and mystical settings, also serves as a metaphor for the characters’ spiritual connections and emotional development.
9. Jigoku Shoujo Style
The graphics of the anime series Jigoku Shoujo, sometimes known as “Hell Girl” in English, brilliantly depicts its sinister and paranormal themes. Jigoku Shoujo’s artwork has a melancholy, atmospheric design that is characterized by a predominance of subdued, deeper tones.
With a concentration on expressing emotions and expressions that reflect the characters’ inner conflict, the character designs are incredibly intricate and detailed. The backgrounds and surroundings frequently include ominous and unsettling landscapes, which heightens the dreadful atmosphere.
The dramatic and suspenseful elements of the series are enhanced by the employment of shade and lighting techniques. The retribution and supernatural justice themes of Jigoku Shoujo are brilliantly complemented by the immersive and eerie atmosphere that Jigoku Shoujo’s art style successfully generates.
Related: Best Female Anime Chracters
10. Redline
Seven years went into creating the animation wonder that is Redline.
At the time of completion, the movie contained more than 100,000 drawn frames. As a result, Redline is among the most visually and aurally appealing anime ever created.
It moves easily, is always in motion, and is expressive.
Redline accomplishes in under two hours what many anime can only manage in four times the amount of screen time, all while using a broad design palette and amazing world construction.
It has an excellent sound design as well. Giving each motion, halt, and pause weight, a genuine experience that further immerses you. I can’t recommend this movie highly enough.
11. Bakemonogatari
There are numerous TV shows and movies in the Bakemonogatari series. Additionally, it isn’t narrated chronologically, thus the story is immediately stylish.
But the style doesn’t stop there. Studio Shaft created a stunning adaptation of Nisioisin’s magnum opus series, which centers on the paranormal and interpersonal dynamics of a group of friends in an unremarkable village.
With brilliant use of cinematography and direction unmatched by other long-running anime, they brought with them a distinct cinematic mood.
Due to its potential for comic dialogue and lengthy soliloquies, it consistently holds the audience’s attention, making even the most uninteresting episode intriguing.
Related: Six Unique Character Designs
12. Detective Conan Style
The popular manga and anime series Detective Conan, created by Gosho Aoyama, features a distinctive graphic style that accentuates its gripping narrative. Particularly in crime scenes and backgrounds, the artwork demonstrates painstaking attention to detail, which results in a believable and immersive world.
It has one of the unique anime-style character designs that successfully combines simple and detailed linework, and they have emotive facial expressions that effectively transmit feelings and cues. The series’ tone, tempo, and feeling of mystery are improved through the use of lighting, shading, and panel composition.
Audiences are enthralled by investigator Conan’s artistic approach, which entices them to journey with the brilliant young investigator Conan Edogawa into a world of intricate investigative work and thrilling investigations.
Related: Detective Conan Movies
13. Inuyasha Style
Rumiko Takahashi’s acclaimed anime and manga series Inuyasha features an eye-catching and distinctive visual aesthetic. The art in Inuyasha combines mythical and supernatural themes with characteristics of feudal Japan. With exaggerated features and distinctive personalities, the character designs are distinctive and unforgettable.
Beautiful landscapes and magical worlds are depicted in finely drawn backgrounds and settings. The use of vivid colors and exciting action scenes increases the artwork’s thrill and intensity.
A world of adventure, romance, and epic conflicts between humans, demons, and spirits is presented to viewers in Inuyasha through an aesthetic style that effectively conveys the essence of its historical and fantasy narrative.
14. Attack on Titan
Attack on Titan has one of the most unique anime styles ever made. The internationally well-known Attack on Titan manga series, which ended in 2021, is best recognized as the work of Hajime Isayama. Isayama’s painting distinguishes itself from other works in the genre in addition to his masterful writing, original setting, and nuanced characters.
Expressive, bold, and intricate lines are used to create Isayama’s raw and passionate artwork. To give them greater dimension, he also uses a cross-hatching method and some greyscale shading.
Although some people may consider his painting sloppy, his approach gives the characters life and establishes the mood for the scene and the entire series.
Related: Attack on Titan Real Life Locations
15. Lelouch of the Rebellion
Even though the series premiered in 2008, it still has better animation than a lot of the more recent programs. There are almost any discrepancies in the fight scenes, which are incredibly expertly planned. The show continues to uphold its animation standards in the second season as well.
The show’s visual aesthetic is very pleasing. The smallest details have received a lot of attention. The designs of Knightmare frames are likewise superb, and occasionally they have a Transformers-like vibe. The character designs come from CLAMP, a company known for creating tall, lanky characters. It initially seems strange, but over time it grows on you.
Although character designs are attractive, costumes are what really grab people’s attention. This show boasts some of the best characters, charisma, and setting-appropriate clothes. Additionally, the outfits are changed frequently so you never grow tired of seeing them in the same outfit. The character personalities and designs are enhanced by the excellent clothing designs.
Related: Code Geass Real Life Locations
16. Galaxy Express 999 Inspirational Unique Anime Styles
Image source: AnimeNewsNetwork
A Japanese manga series called Galaxy Express 999 (Ginga Tetsud Sur Nain) is published. Leiji Matsumoto is the author and illustrator of this work, which has since been turned into a multitude of anime movies and TV shows. It takes place in a high-tech, spacefaring future when people have perfected the art of transferring their thoughts and emotions into mechanical bodies, thereby making them eternal.
In 1978, the manga took home the Shogakukan Manga Award for Shonen. In 1981, the animation series took home the Animage Animation Grand Prix award.
The concept of a steam train traveling across the stars in Kenji Miyazawa’s novel Night on the Galactic Railroad served as the basis for Matsumoto’s creation of Galaxy Express 999.
Its unique anime art style is one of the unique inspirational anime art styles that resemble Albator. Both the female and male characters have unique designs with express eyes.
17. Lady Georgie
Mann Izawa and Yumiko Igarashi are the creators of the manga series Georgie!. In the manga magazine Shjo Comic, it was serialized from 1982 to 1984.
The series was transformed into the anime television series Lady Georgie in 1983 by Tokyo Movie Shinsha. It debuted on TV Asahi and had 45 episodes.
Southeast Asia has seen a separate English dub of the series. It was broadcast on ABS-CBN and through the cable anime channel Animax in 1998 and 2011–2012. In the Philippines, the ABS-CBN Digital TV subchannel Yey! aired a digitally remastered version in 2017.
The anime art style is quite stunning and most of the character designs resemble those of Alpen Rose, Rose of Versaille or Gwendoline which are both old anime.
18. Kimi no Todoke Unique Anime Style
The characters in Kimi ni Todoke are very well represented, their motivations are explored in great detail, and the sluggish pacing also greatly aids in highlighting Sawako’s subtle shifts. The humour in this episode is also fantastic; Sawako’s awkward replies and general lack of social skills are hilarious.
Its Unique Inspirational Anime Art Style is also quite well done; I particularly enjoyed the character designs because of their rather realistic-looking thin eyes and body proportions. The show occasionally incorporates adorable and humorous chibi moments.
Sawako is actually utterly adorable in chibi form. The backgrounds are breathtaking, and extremely vibrant, and the interaction of light and shadow looks fantastic, giving them a canvas-like appearance and a dreamlike atmosphere. Kimi ni Todoke also features some really good, harmonizing music.
The opening song was fantastic. The background musical themes are also excellent and contribute to the show’s atmosphere.
Related: Top 50 Anime About Love
19. Violet Evergardien
Violet is characterized as a really lovely young girl, but due to her young age, she also has some infantile facial traits that give her a doll-like appearance and an almost emotionless temperament. She is of medium height, with a thin physique, fair skin, and thick dark lashes.
Her face is slightly elongated and narrow. While her blonde hair falls to her hips, the fringe in front of her face is divided into three strands, one of which falls on her face and the other two blend into two longer strands that end on her shoulders.
Amy styled her hair and said it was like “velvet”. Violet frequently weaves her hair in two French braids, which she then wraps around herself and knots with two red ribbons, or in a low ponytail secured with a black ribbon while she is acting as an Auto Memory Doll. She was fitted with adamantine silver prosthetics that she herself described as “clumsy, but sturdy” after losing her arms in the final fight of the war.
The art is stunning and consistent with its pseudo-European world. Hard work has gone into animating even the most mundane moments, adding brief glimpses of humanity to otherwise lifeless characters.
20. Eureka Seven Style
Popular anime series Eureka Seven features a distinct and unique Inspirational Anime Art style visually appealing that goes well with its sci-fi and coming-of-age story. Smooth, flowing animation with vivid and energetic movements is a feature of the art direction. Character designs are distinctive and memorable, combining realistic and futuristic features.
A visually spectacular environment is created by the use of vibrant, saturated colors, sophisticated mecha designs, and breath-taking flying sequences. Eureka Seven’s visual aesthetic effectively conveys the core of its action-packed and intense narrative, enveloping viewers in a vividly imagined world of mecha fights, romance, and self-discovery.
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