This is Manga – The Art of Naoki Urasawa

The comics universe invades Japan House São Paulo with the “This is Manga – The Art of Naoki Urasawa” exhibition, which has been scheduled for October 29, 2019 to January 5, 2020, on the second floor of the institution. The show features the award-winning Japanese artist’s illustrations and mangas and is part of Japan House’s global traveling project initiative, already held in Los Angeles and London.

With a wide range of genres in the Japanese publishing industry, manga is generally published in chapters that continue in subsequent editions. If successful, they are reprinted as special copies and get editions in other languages around the world, making their mangaka (manga artist) world-renowned, such as is the case of Urasawa.

One of the most striking features of this show is the immersion experience one has in the art of Naoki Urasawa, who addresses topics as distinct as mystery, science fiction, and sports. At Japan House São Paulo, visitors will be able to check out seven collections in Portuguese, including work that has yet to be published in Brazil, and around 600 illustrations, sketches, and storyboards. Instead of only bringing clippings of the original work, the exhibition features entire chapters, enabling the full experience of this art, which brings together graphics and the story. Among the artist’s works to be showcased are Pluto, 20th Century Boys, and MONSTER (which have already been translated and published on the Brazilian market), as well as BILLY BAT, MASTER KEATON ReMASTER, MUJIRUSHI, and YAWARA!. New chapters of the latter, one of the artist’s most important works, will be presented weekly, on 10/29, 11/18, 12/02 and 12/16.

About this exhibit, Japan House São Paulo’s Cultural Director Natasha Barzaghi Geenen says: “Manga is a language that is immediately associated with Japan’s pop culture, and has a captive audience that delves into the story of this art, follows their favorite mangakas, and is eager for releases. This exhibition confirms our mission to bring the Brazilian audience closer to different areas of Japanese culture.”

Reading the stories enables one to understand how the creators of this kind of comics develop their work and to get to know more about the concept of this art. Born in 1960, in Tokyo, Urasawa has a legion of fans, adults and children both, around the world. Internationally acclaimed, he has sold over 128 million copies in Japan alone and published his works in over 20 countries. A master in the drawing technique and acknowledged for deep, complex characters, his uniqueness is the strength of his narrative, and he also stands out for the richness of detail with which he creates the universes of his mangas.

His first work was BETA!, in 1983; he then created YAWARA!, MONSTER, 20th Century Boys and BILLY BAT, among others. He now illustrates the story of Mujirushi, The Sign of Dreams, in collaboration with Fujio Productions – founded by renowned mangaka Fujio Akamastsu – in a project for the Louvre Museum, in Paris, as well as being in the initial release of the Asadora! series, published by Shogakukan.

On the sidelines of the exhibition, Japan House São Paulo holds a cycle of lectures, in a new partnership with Editora JBC, themed “Manga in Brazil,” on November 7, 9, 12, and 27. Participating in the panels are manga and comics publishing and digital market professionals, in addition to illustrators and comic artists. Topics covered include the manga universe in Brazil, the influence of the Japanese technique in Brazilian production, and the performance of manga in the digital age. Also as a parallel program, practical manga workshops will be held in partnership with Copic in January 2020.