Lee J. Ames

Lee Judah Ames (January 8, 1921 – June 3, 2011) was an American artist noted for his Draw 50... learn-to-draw books.

He was born in Manhattan, New York. At age 18, he began his career working on Walt Disney's Fantasia and Pinocchio. After that, he led a career as an advertising artist, fine artist, cartoonist, designer, animation in-betweener, illustrator, and as an artist-in residence at Doubleday. He has taught at the School for Visual Arts in New York City, and, more recently, at Dowling College on Long Island, New York.

He enlisted in the military and served as a second lieutenant during World War II.

He is the illustrator of 150 books, from preschool picture books to postgraduate texts. He is best known for the Draw 50 series, twenty-six titles which take a friendly and minimalist approach to teaching drawing while often containing no instructional text . These have sold more than a million and a half copies.

He and his wife Jocelyn resided in Mission Viejo, CA, but on June 3rd, 2011, he passed away at age 90 in a Huntington, NY nursing home.