'SpongeBob SquarePants: The Art of an Undersea World' Coming February 2026
- The Artbook Collector
- 8 hours ago
- 2 min read
October 24th 2025
SpongeBob enters the artbook world with a big "I'm ready!", following a new announcement from IDW Publishing. With over 25 years of art to look back on, SpongeBob SquarePants: The Art of an Undersea World is sure to be on the radar of many fans and can be added to shelves of fans next year.
Arriving February 17th 2026 in partnership with Nickelodeon, the huge 352-page book will showcase the art for not just the show, but the movies and spinoffs too. The dive into the world of Bikini Bottom comes with early character concepts, backgrounds, final art, storyboards, and more, giving a full look at what it took to create the massively popular show.
There will be a look at the eclectic mix of characters of the show, including Gary the snail, Patrick Star, Squidward, and Mr. Krabs, alongside everyone's favourite sponge. Many of the locations will also be explored, from the Krusty Krab to Sandy's Dome, making this a must-have for people that grew up with the show, as well as younger fans.
The new artbook will also feature a look at the upcoming movie, The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants, making it a complete and up-to-date collection of SpongeBob's adventures and art.
This is exciting news for people wanting more SpongeBob in their life and long overdue for collector's. The show that started in 1999 quickly became a household name with its silly humour, eccentric characters, and superb voice performances. There are even many out there that will begin singing the theme tune from just reading "Ooooooohhhhh...". It's a wonderful show and so news of this artbook will be welcomed by many.
SpongeBob SquarePants: The Art of an Undersea World is already available to pre-order online following its reveal yesterday. It comes with an RRP of $49.99/ £41.99, a very reasonable price for a book with over 350 pages. Better yet, reductions are already available for the book too, bringing only more good news from the announcement.
Although the above previews are not final, if they are representative of what the team at IDW Publishing are going to release, it's looking like a great release with early sketches, full colour concepts and insights presented in clear layouts and full pages.
In case you've been living under a rock like Patrick, the show follows the always enthusiastic SpongeBob, a sponge that lives in a pineapple under the sea and works as a fry cook at the Krusty Krab. Appealing to both children and adults, it includes classic slapstick humour, surreal and strange situations, and positive lessons of friendship. With so many memorable characters like Sandy, Squidward, and Plankton, it has stood the test of time and remains as popular now as it ever was. As well as being a TV and movie franchise, there are also toys, games, clothes, and an endless selection of internet memes that continue to spread its popularity.
Future updates will be shared as they happen and for those interested in adding the book to your own collection, can pre-order SpongeBob SquarePants: The Art of an Undersea World here;
