#Yana Toboso Art book

[sujimdipity]

Artbook 3 Additional Scans

Artbook Scans 1-7 Artbook 2 Pt. 1   Artbook 2 Pt. 2 

Artbook 3 Artbook 4 Manga Back Panel Scans

[cielphantomhive321]

Online vs Book

[valindar89us]

Twisted Wonderland fan art Lost in the book with Stitch : W. I. P. by me

[astrearte]

Lizzie Midford - Book of the Atlantic

Title: I am the Queen's Watchdog's Wife

[seekers-who-are-lovers]

A. Ciel’s nails

I can’t with Ciel’s nails here though. That’s not a well-manicured set of nails. They are too short, too blunt, kinda chipped, as if he’s biting them. The fact that he doesn’t have any gloves on this particular pictorial is fascinating. He’s always worn stylish gloves. And if he didn’t have, they aren’t as lustreless as these. The blunt nails resemble a corpse that tries to dig its way out. I wonder if he has developed a habit of biting his nails in the course of his return. And Yana is showing them now to add to his characterisation. That says a lot about the stress he’s been keeping since then. They look painted but not in a way proper and well kept like he had on “Book of Circus” and other images.

Ciel’s fingernails and as a bonus, his toenails

B. ‘The world is my oyster’

Taken from William Shakespeare’s “Merry Wives of Windsor” that became part of the English idiom, it means that young people have so many options, everything is open to one, so many opportunities, a playground. On the play, the correct quote is “the world is mine oyster” and the meaning was not exactly what is meant in the present time. Anyway, not sure if Yana’s spelling of the “oisters” has been intentional. It is jarring nonetheless. Oysters 🦪 have many connotations, both spiritual and sexual. The most famous of all is that it is aphrodisiac. One Vice writer wrote her experience. A dietitian, however, contested if the oyster’s reputation is true.

In the West, “Oysters were a reminder of ancient times and symbolized Aphrodite, the goddess of love, fertility, pleasure, and sex throughout antiquity and all the way into Baroque art.”

In Asian cultures, especially in Japan, “Japanese folklore explicitly tells the origin of pearls. They believed that pearls were the very tears of merfolk and nymphs who were so mystical that they did not cry tears similar to mortal humans, but instead cried beautiful, milky white pearls.”

Thirtieth anniversary is also called pearl anniversary and might be the main reason Yana has chosen pearls as her motif.

But it is curious for her to portray Ciel as an oyster Sebastian is going to feast on. That’s not subtext at all.

[136646]

Traditional art by Yana Toboso

[thegoldenshi-shi]

Hello Shi-Shi, I hope you are doing very well. Good job on getting 1,000 followers! You deserve it :), you are a great artist and I love watching your art unfold and evolve. My ask for the Q&A is number 1, who are your biggest artist inspirations, I think it is? I apologize if not, but I am extremely curious.

Sorry for not talking for awhile, I have been a bit busy and will be more so with Softball starting and exams coming up, but I will be looking on your page sometimes and make sure to like and hopefully leave an ask when I have the time. I hope you have a good day/night, Shi-Shi, and congrats on 1,000 followers <3

-Meister

Thank you Meister!❤️ I am doing well, though admittedly a little over-energized by the milestone hehe.

I pulled from a lot of places when I was teaching myself how to draw. I was really inspired by Yana Toboso, Shiori Teshigori, and @zeldacw. I would look at their works and spend hours at a time trying to figure out what made their art so pretty. As I got better, I fell in love with other artists, like Ayami Kojima and Ibuki Satsuki, but I liked them in an aesthetic way, not in a "Wow I must learn to draw like that" kind of way. I also got into contact with zeldacw, and joined her discord server,(even though I accidentally ghost it like I do every other discord server) which really helped me improve further.

…And as corny as it sounds, I really love Leonardo DaVinci...

(Now that I'm looking at it, I wonder why I gravitated to female artists so much.)

I wish you luck with your exams and in softball! I appreciate your asks whenever they come in, so don't worry about me. I'll be here when you have time to worry about it hehe.

I hope you have a good day/night as well Meister. Thank you again for the ask~

[shinigamihakenkyoukai]

Text translation:

"To everyone at A-1 pictures:

Thank you for your hard work! Congratulations (?) on the start of Book of Circus' TV broadcast. I'm sure it's difficult for everyone, so please do your best!

I look forward to watching every week!

Yana Toboso"

Toboso Yana’s drawing for the anime production team at A-1 Pictures (x)

Just how obsessed with that fucking suit are you, William…

AND what the fuck are “PC glasses” is that even a thing  apparently they are a thing

[cielphantomhive321]

Smile.

Original artist: https://twitter.com/DYi9k

[yuurei20]

hi hi

I hope it’s not trouble to ask but, the anthology mangas are not canon right?

Hello hello! Thank you for this question! 📕

The anthology manga were created by a total of 42 different illustrators (including bonus illustrations), none of whom were the game's creator Toboso Yana, though she did draw the covers!

We do not know how much oversight was involved in the content and there are parts in the stories that conflict with the content of the game, so it might be best to consider Twst's alternative media (the anthology manga / serialized manga / novels) as canon to themselves individually but probably not to the game, or to each other ^^

They are maybe similar to Square-Enix-branded fanart, like the art gallery books!

And here is a list of all artists, for the curious ^^

Volume 1:

萩原 ダイスケ (Hagiwara Daisuke)  赤井 ヒガサ (Akai Higasa)  NAOE 一色 箱 (Ichiiro Hako)  雨壱 絵穹 (Amaichi Esora)  鈴木 次郎 (Suzuki Jirou)  悌太 (Teita)  カズアキ (Kazuaki)  まくらくらま (Makura Kuruma) マジコ！(magico)  夏目 あやの (Natsume Ayano)  汐田 晴人 (Shiota Haruto)  竹田 羽角 (Takeda Hasumi)  藤本 桜 (Fujimoto Sakura)  優月 祥 (Yuzuki Shou)  かなめ もにか (Kaname Monika)  北国 良人 (Kitaguni Rato)  十束 椿 (Totsuka Tsubaki)  野原 もさえ (Nohara Mosae)  寝子 暇子 (Neko Himako)  鴉月 ルイ (Karasuzuki Rui)  銀野 佑 (Ginno Yuu) 宮間 諒 (Miyama Ryo)  渡 ざらめ (Watari Zarame)  いちるの望 (Ichiruno Nozomi)

Volume 2:

椿いづみ (Tsubaki Izumi) キナコ (Kinako) 清原 紘 (Kiyohara Hiro) 花ヶ田 (Hanagata) 双葉 はづき (Futaba Hazuki) さらちよみ (Sarachi Yomi) 尾崎ドミノ (Ozaki Domino) もち (mochi) 平井 るな (Hirai Runa) 雨壱 絵穹 (Amaichi Esora) 藤本 桜 (Fujimoto Sakura) 寝子 暇子 (Neko Himako) かなめ もにか (Kaname Monika) 山田 リューセイ (Yamada Ryuusei) 霄之 ツキ (Sorano Tsuki) 和佳宮 テトラ (Tetora) 古町 ゆき (Furumachi Yuki) 栗栖 ゆん (Kurisu Yun)

[seekers-who-are-lovers]

Amusing. Then on the Book of Murder we have this.

GUYS PLS TELL ME I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE GOING NUTS OVER THIS PICTUREEE

THERE'S JUST SOMETHING SO MAGICAL ABOUT IT 😭😭

[lacryem]

— A surprisingly long and in depth look about symbolism in the recent G-Fantasy cover by Yana Toboso ✦

Including references, flower language, how to decode the meaning of flowers, and a little too much brainrot. As well my personal interpretation drawn from all the sources I looked at. And of course what all of means (and maybe hints at?) for Sebastian and Ciel… and maybe even Sebaciel? 

Originally posted as a twitter thread, but threads suck and I forgot a couple things. so here now.

Disclaimer :

I don’t know FOR SURE that all these things were directly referenced by Yana when creating this art. But being a fan of her work for over a decade I've become familiar with her use of symbolism and reference, and believe myself to have a good eye for it at this point!   I'm also pretty familiar with the use of flower language, including different languages, due to having been involved in a project about it and having to read wayyy too much about this. 

Some of it also includes my own personal interpretation, but the meanings and info I based myself off of ARE factual. I think I made it pretty clear when referencing my personal interpretation. You're welcome to reach your own interpretation based off of the stuff provided!

And lastly, I'm not a sebaciel shipper. I'm not an anti (the complete opposite, actually) and have nothing against the ship, I like the narrative around them and how they're written but I don’t actively ship them romantically or sexually. So I'd say this is actually a pretty unbiased interpretation. Personal taste is one thing, but I don’t deny the author's intention and whats written in front of me! That is what this post is about.

Kuroshitsuji takes place in the Victorian period (1837~1901) in 1889.

The following are both important Victorian books on the language of flowers that I will be basing myself off of.

Language of Flowers by Greenaway Kate (1884), and The Language of flowers: An Alphabet of Floral Emblems (1857).

(Also, I’m treating Ciel’s rose as a deep red rose. Which is a bit different than red roses. But I am adding some relevant information about roses in general, anyway.

Now, on what they say about these flowers.

Deep rose, meaning "bashful shame". White lily, meaning "Purity and sweetness."

— The White Lily

Most people assume that the lily refers to Ciel's purity, and that’s a fair assumption. But I disagree. 

Firstly, the one holding the lily is Sebastian. Holding it on his right hand, tilted towards the right. However what's relevant here is the VIEWER. From the viewer's POV he's holding it to the left. Note he also holds the scissors on his left hand, where he bears HIS contract seal.

How you hold a flower, what position you give it to someone in, changes the meaning of the flower. These context clues are very important. It tells us that 'purity and sweetness' doesn’t refer to Ciel, but actually refers to Sebastian (…sorta).

This may be a little confusing. Purity and sweetness, Sebastian?! I know, I know. bear with me.

These books provide poems to help us understand how you may interpret the intended meaning. The lily poem is about enduring trials out of love because of the purity and sweetness he sees in his lover's eyes and soul. I believe Yana directly references the poems I will include in this post in her new artwork.

— My Interpretation

the meaning of Sebastian's lily is:

"I do all out of love for the sweetness and purity within you."

Him holding it to the contact seal and cutting the flower could stand for him destroying this sentiment (affection within himself) that has arisen in him as a result of their contract by destroying the sweetness and purity—the source of it—within Ciel (consuming his soul).

Note: This is debatable, as 'reversed' almost always means upside down. But if you consider the lily facing away from the viewer as reversed then it could mean "impurity and bitterness" which fits pretty well with Ciel, and it being held against the contract seal which is a physical representation of his impurity, brought on by his bitterness.

— The Deep Red Rose

There something I find very interesting. The rose is in a teacup, standing in for tea (I think there's even tea alongside it in the cup.) From Yana herself we know that Sebastian's eyes are a reference to the reddish brown colour of tea.

Like I said, I believe this rose to be a deep red rose, which is a bit more specific than the meaning given to red roses. However I think the poem included for roses in general very much applies here.

I was going to add my thoughts but I found this interpretation that sums it up pretty well if you replace the carpe diem theme with a more "running out of time" or "impending death" theme, which seems to be a more accurate reading for this artwork.

Looking at the rose itself, it has no thorns or leaves.

It is not a youthful rose as its already fully open and losing petals. "No hope, and no fear" fits with the poem, the rose is basically an hourglass referring to Ciel. His fate is unavoidable, but this isn't a deterrent. He's dancing on the ledge.

The deep red rose means 'bashful shame'.

When you compare it to the lily, which is a direct proclamation, the deep red rose is a quiet confession one cannot verbalize.

Debatable, to be fair but given the tie in to Sebastian's eye colour and the fact that he is always the one pouring tea for Ciel, I believe the Sebastian to be the speaker here too, but this time speaking on Ciel's feelings (Hence why he's the one holding it) rather than Sebastian's own. 

— My Interpretation

The meaning of the deep red rose Ciel holds, speaking about Ciel's feelings of guardedness, and in response saying:

"Abandon your bashful shame, and let yourself be admired without expectations (hope) or fear"

Sebastian speaks about Ciel's feelings, the deep red rose acknowledges his feelings but they remain unspoken.

The Waller poem is a plead for his beloved to seize the day, for time is short, and allow herself to be loved completely. 

Her beauty is one to be appreciated, she is not meant to be a rose unacknowledged (unloved) in the desert.

Regarding 'expectations', I think this is more about rigid ideas of how 'appreciation' or 'admiration, might be shown or received. Sebastian and Ciel's relationship defies normality or 'expectations'. So this, too, would defy expectations a young boy like Ciel, or a traumatised boy like Ciel, may have.

From Yana herself, we know Sebastian's dedication and how highly he holds 'beauty', specifically Ciel's beauty.

The author of the poem proclaims that beauty not appreciated is not beautiful indeeed, and so he calls his beloved to come to him and be appreciated wholly during the invaluable, limited time they have.

We see the deep red rose's petals fall away, in my opinion not only symbolising the withering away of time, but also the crumbling away of this "bashful shame" that Sebastian ascribes to Ciel.

How Sebastian wishes to "appreciate" this beauty is debatable. How he wants to "admire" and "desire" (per the poem) Ciel is rather open ended. Wether it be in a romantic way, a sexual way or by consuming his soul.

However, I don’t think these are mutually exclusive. And consuming Ciel can easily be a metaphor for the former two. 

— The Lily and The Rose

The Greeneaway book has this poem which im sure was directly referenced. This poem speaks about the lily and the rose in a direct power struggle and fight for dominance, until they eventually unite and reign as one.

Now when speaking about this "union", you could say it refers to their contract, but I don’t think so.

The contract ties them to each other, but it doesn’t necessarily unite them. So I believe 'unity' to be about the appreciation Sebastian speaks of Ciel opening up to. 

"The Lily" and "The Rose" might be interpreted as directly representing Sebastian and Ciel, and the unity that would come from them joining and becoming a truly complimentary pair. I think a power struggle and fight for being the one in control is very accurate way to describe their current dynamic in canon.

It may also be interpreted as "The Lily" and "The Rose" as being representations of their feelings and ideals previously. And then it would represent these two conflicting expressions—a loud  unrelenting and destructive devotion, and a guarded, bashful, unspoken reluctance— coming together and turning from conflicting to complimentary. 

Or as it tends to be with these things, both!

Either way all of this is expressed under the sense of impending doom created by their circumstances and the contract. So there's a sense of urgency permeating all of it.

Also clear to me is a sense of internal conflictedness coming from Sebastian's message that is usually only hinted at like this, and some people end up overlooking.

Sebastian desires Ciel deeply, but having him would also mean not being able to have him anymore.

Sebastian is torn and that’s why he attempts to cut the root of his wavering feelings represented by the lily. 

All of this makes me wonder about what's next, and if we will see these things said more blatantly. Foreshadowing with flower language and references like this, isn't exactly rare for Yana. I wonder if we will see this 'unity' come to be, and what necessary development Sebastian and Ciel will need to undergo to make it possible. As well as what shape it will take.

I also wonder very much about Ciel's perspective in all of this, as this was almost entirely from Sebastian's POV, but I think that's intentional. Ciel has his own goals and a lot on his mind. Sebastian's goal IS Ciel. So I assume he spends a lot more time thinking about Ciel and this kind of thing.

Thank you if you read the whole way through. Like I said before, even though the sources defending it are, my interpretation is not law and you're welcome to reach your own with the things presented.

Links for sources, including free public domain PDFs of the books mentioned are found at the end of my twitter thread.

— Thanks for reading! —

[eve-to-adam]

Hello

I love your art. It’s so beautiful.

I have a question

What is a manga or something that really influenced your art

Hello! :)

Thank you very much for the message and for the kind words! <33

Hmm, there are quite a few things that have influenced my art over the years - illustrations for anime to manga and sequential illustrations by popular artists in Art History. One of the most important aspects for me in the process of developing my own art would be the need to do better. More elaborate. More complex. Until I defined my own style (it all starts with the horribly disproportionate and childish fanarts that any young potential artist creates at the beginning of his exploration), I longed for the idea of ​​reaching the most complex level possible. Of course this could not happen on the first try and it is certainly not necessarily a pattern for me at the moment - it took some time for me to understand that there are more ways to achieve complexity when we talk about visual art.

But let's move on to some examples.

✦ I think my first impulse towards visual complexity was given to me by the works of Shibamoto Thores, the artist who created the artistbook for Trinity Blood. Her illustrations fascinated me because every time I looked, I always found a new detail that had escaped my previous inspection. Her characters are intriguing by their posture, color shades and design and the very detailed backgrounds give a certain solemnity to the artworks. Her art also made me interested in the Gothic style.

✦ Another example in this approach is Ayami Kojima, who created illustrations and character designs for the video game Castlevania (Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, 1997). Her characters were drawn with an extraordinary elegance, which at the time I could only dream of; that's why I particularly liked her designs, which at the same time increased my fascination with the world of fashion design.

✦ The first mangaka I will mention is none other than Shin-ichi Sakamoto, who exploited his talent to the maximum in this project - and many others - "Innocent" (2013-2015), closely followed by "Innocent: Rogue" (2015 - 2020). The manga is a historical one, based on Masakatsu Adachi's book "The Executioner Sanson". The action takes place in France, before the French Revolution. I want to mention that the story is mature, being loaded with metaphors and various graphic scenes of torture, executions and sex. Sakamoto's art made me want to push my limits even more in terms of visual complexity. I mean, seriously, the man is a true master of details:

✦ Boichi is another top mangaka whose comic book projects have influenced my decisions throughout my artistic exploration. He started his career illustrating mature subjects (porn), which sometimes explains the fanservices in his projects, lol. Like Sakamoto, Boichi has a unique artistic style and an affinity for detail and semi-realism. Sun-Ken Rock is among my favorite stories he created. Besides this, I also liked "Origin" (2016-2019), "Wallman" (2013-2015) "Dr. Stone" (2017-2022, art only), "Raqyia" (2008-2010, art only).

✦ Yana Toboso is one of my favorite comic artists. I still remember the moments when I discovered Black Butler, haha. How nostalgic! The fact that the story is fantasy, which still incorporates a lot of Victorian elements - clothes, customs, food, clothing - fascinated me so much that at one point I tried to create my own version that would include Victorian elements. Of course, it all ended in disaster, lol.

Among other manga works that have inspired me, especially in terms of details and fashion design, are:

✦ "Arte" (2013 -) by Ookubo Kei.

✦ "Death Note" (2003-2006, art by Obata Takeshi).

✦ "Zetman" (2002-2014) by Masakazu Katsura.

✦ "Berserk" (1989 - ) by the late Kentarou Miura.

Among the artists of sequential art who represented and continue to represent a source of inspiration during my artistic exploration are:

✦ Gustave Doré.

✦ Walter Crane.

[cozymochi]

I’ve always wondered, how did you somehow MASTER the twst style? I see like 50 artists somehow turn into Yana toboso herself AND ITS INCREDIBLE??

I’m not a master at all, but I’m not even kidding when I say I spent some 2 years offline JUST dedicating myself to figuring that out. Or at least try having a basic foundation because I have a toxic habit about studying the art of a thing I like to draw on model (or mostly do so) just. because. Anyone following me for years would know this isn’t news 😭💃

I was into twst for a good while before I even started posting about it 😩 though, there’s still work out there that’s jank. (and if anyone even looks at someone like Tia, you can visibly see a shift anyway where i finally learned to do something- that- given what i am is kinda pathetically late- art twitter tutorial shills/police would kill me)

And even then, I lack something all mad scientists have: ASSISTANTS. 👹 god knows twst looks the way it does thanks to multiple hands touching every image instead of one person (me) handling every stage.

And even then based on tags, people just love pointing out, “oh y’know it’s not QUITE there u can TELL up close it’s fake” like… thanks i guess? I get the sentiment in theory, but I mostly take that as confirmation as still not being good enough. Not to “deceive” really, but for personal reasons. I see it enough to the point that it’s just really really emphasizing how much I’m definitely not accomplishing, even if it’s supposed to be a positive comparison. Something about the phrasing. Though, mind, this is just how my brain is interpreting it. It’s legit 100% just how my brain interprets those comments, I doubt the people are being as cynical as I think.

Now that I think about it, you know how people implicitly think fanfic is inherently lesser than “REAL writing” in published books? That’s how those responses are reading. Fanart is inherently lesser than what’s actually backed or officially shilled out; “so let’s point out what makes this NOT legit.” Probably not the intended route these people are going for, but, there’s something almost smug about it. Like folk relishing in that some code has been cracked even though……. there was no puzzle to begin with.

Actually pointing out what sets it apart in that alleged “positive” light is something I’ve yet to see. While I have seen a few teases that I have a “style” that’s enough of a ring, I don’t know what it is the others are seeing. I’m the one that has to stare at it through all stages. Not like I can tell what I’m doing different beyond [opens my fun list]

still can’t draw hands, colors bleeding constantly, overshooting lighting, undershooting value, incorrect line pen, inconsistent line weight, disengaging posing, FLAT FLAT FLAT, details nonexistent, myriad of subtle things I’m still not doing—

but that’s just me, watch me draw in a stream with a mic and you’d never hear the end of it

TL;DR: I disciplined myself for 2ish years behind closed doors because of a toxic habit for a skill that won’t be utilized.

i just woke up 20 minutes ago

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Have you heard?

Black Butler is getting a season 4!!

Crunchyroll announced that a new season of Black Butler is now in the works for a release in 2024!!! 🎉🎉

Finally! it's been 84 years....💀💀

The Art style is also quite unique for sure ✨️

(I'm assuming since you like Twst that you might like yana toboso's other works too, I'm not sure if you talked about black butler here before since this is a twst blog 😅, feel free to delete it if it bothers you)

Yes, I saw the trailer ^^ It seems like the new season will be the Public School arc (or, as I lovingly dub it, the “Prototype TWST arc”), since the arc right before it on the boat (the Luxury Liner/Campania arc) was already animated as a movie.

We often talk about how we can see the DNA of Toboso’s art style and design sense from the similarities in the BB characters and the TWST characters (the main one people point out being Sebastian and Jade), but now there are BOAT LOADS of similar characters in a SCHOOL setting with PREFECTS (basically dorm leaders/housewardens) and a SHADY HEADMASTER as well 😂 The predects even return later as idols which is basically book 5 or VDC/j

I mean, just look at the P4 by themselves; I automatically get Vil, Idia, and Sebek vibes. The only one that’s kind of “eh” in terms of a direct TWST counterpart is the glasses guy, but I’ll argue Azul here (though there’s also a shimigami, Ronald Knox, with a much stronger resemblance.)

There’s tons of other characters that feature in the Public School Arc that sort of remind me of TWST characters! Maurice Cole is like Epel, Soma showing up on an elephant screams “Kalim!”, etc.

I actually stopped reading the Black Butler manga years ago midway around the Blue Cult arc (never followed the anime, personally). However, I’m actually now really excited to see how the Public School arc is depicted in animation 👀 It’s probably my interest in TWST that’s gotten me so jazzed, haha…

[cielphantomhive321]

Trick or Treat 👻.

Original artist: https://twitter.com/haneko912583