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Manga's future in female hands Date: 3/9/2005 |
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Mary Kennard Daily Yomiuri Staff Writer Unless you've been living under a rock, chances are that you have at least heard the word manga and are aware that Japan's comics are taking the world by storm. For those who already love manga, and those who are just interested, the Kawasaki City Museum in the city's Nakahara Ward is offering the chance to see works by one of the more popular practitioners of the art, CLAMP, in an exhibition titled Manga Aato wa Toki o Kaeru, or Manga Art That Defies Space and Time. CLAMP is actually four women--Satsuki Igarashi, Ageha Okawa, Tsubaki Nekoi and Mokona (who goes by one name)--who have worked as a team for most of their professional publishing life. CLAMP began life as a group, known here as a circle, comprising about 12 members who published amateur manga, or dojinshi, featuring original stories and parodies of already existing manga, such as Go Nagai's Devilman. Immensely popular with dojinshi readers, they became one of the first circles to be tapped by a professional manga magazine--the beginning of a long and fruitful career for the core members of the group. This exhibition, in fact, was scheduled to coincide with the 15th anniversary of CLAMP's professional debut in 1990 with RG VEDA, a story based on the ancient epic poem, the Rig Veda, and on Indian mythology. The four women work together as a unit--or "super unit," as the museum calls them--in varying combinations of job responsibility, but for the most part their individual roles are fairly well delineated, according to museum curator Atsushi Hosogaya. Okawa writes most of their incredibly intricate stories, Igarashi is responsible for art design, and Mokona and Nekoi draw the manga. Mokona's artwork is more realistic, while Nekoi draws characters that are cuter, Hosogaya said. Working as a unit, and occasionally switching responsibilities, Hosogaya said, allows for a much greater degree of creativity and variety. This is evident from their bibliography, which includes manga ranging from CardCaptor Sakura, a more lighthearted manga that ran in Nakayoshi magazine, aimed at primary school girls, to X, a dark and violent near-future fantasy that ran in Asuka magazine, which targets middle and high school girls and older. Some of their stories have also run in seinen magazines, aimed at teenage boys, including XXXHOLiC, which is currently running in Young Magazine. The genres they write in include horror, light and dark fantasy and action. This breadth of subject matter means they have a huge fan base that includes core fans, who read anything they do, and fans who follow certain genres, Hosogaya said. The exhibition is subtitled KiDoAiRaku, based on the kanji characters for happiness, anger, sorrow and entertainment, all elements found in CLAMP's works. Rather than laying out the exhibition along a timeline, the illustrations and other items are arranged roughly under these categories, which can be very effective as often early works can be seen next to very recent ones, allowing for a comparison of how their skills have evolved over the years, as well as how the styles of the different artists vary. It's also interesting to note the different design styles that are used, as well as the color palettes, which change with each story. X used a red and black palette, while CardCaptor Sakura had a lot of pink, to go along with the name Sakura (cherry blossom), Hosogaya said. Tokyo Babylon had the look almost of advertisements, with a monotone palette, while XXXHOLiC uses almost gray or sepia tones. Whether you like manga styles or not, the many illustrations on display are definitely worth seeing, and if you're a CLAMP fan, this exhibition is not to be missed. The sheer range of stories, the exquisite use of color and the differences in style all make for fascinating viewing. The displays also offer glimpses, albeit small ones, into the private lives of the four women who make up CLAMP (they are reportedly fanatical about their privacy), and into the way they work. One display lays out the path, from start to finish, that a typical manga takes before being sent to the publisher, detailing who does what at every stage. Others show some of their personal belongings, including the intricate and beautiful doll clothes they also make, and the front door to the home they once shared--a beautifully designed custom door that features a full moon and fantastical birds shadowed in its light. To be frank, one of the things I find most remarkable about CLAMP is the fact that these four women have remained friends after working, and for most of the 15 years, living together. Such a long-lasting and fruitful collaboration seems rare in the artistic world. Osamu Tezuka, who is known as Japan's god of manga, died the year CLAMP made their professional debut. To Hosogaya, it was almost as if he was passing the torch to a new generation of artists. With this exhibition, it's clear that torch is in good hands. === CLAMP: Manga Art that Defies Space and Time Until April 10, 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Closed Mondays (except March 21) and March 22. Kawasaki City Museum, a 10-minute bus ride from Musashi-Kosugi Station on the JR and Tokyu lines. For more information see home.catv.ne.jp/hh/kcm/ or call (044) 754-4500 |
| Source: Daily Yomiuri Online |
