Exhibition runs Saturday 9 January 2016 – Sunday 14 February 2016
The first major exhibition of Japanese Shojo (Girl’s) Manga in the UK is presented at The Atkinson, Southport in association with the Kyoto International Manga Museum.
The Shojo Manga: The World of Japanese Girls’ Comics exhibition launches on Saturday 9 January and introduces the world of Japanese Shojo (Girl’s) Manga through elaborate replica (Genga’ (Dash)) prints developed jointly by Kyoto Seika University’s International Manga Research Centre and the Manga artist Keiko Takemiya, Dean of the Kyoto Seika University.
The exhibition features the incredible work of three artists – Akiko Hatsu, Keiko Takemiya and Yukiko Kai but also includes the work of 17 other artists who have all helped shape the world of Shojo Manga.
Japanese Shojo Manga culture dates back to the post war years but only evolved into its broad-ranging and hugely popular form of today thanks to the innovative work of a small group of artists in the 1970s, when artists such as Takemiya emerged on the scene turning what had previously been seen as a “low” form of manga into a cultural genre to rival literature. She published many Shojo Manga exploring new themes such as young homosexual love (“The Poem of Wind and Trees”) and science fiction (“To Terra”).
Genga’ (Dash) prints are copies of original artworks faithfully reproduced with the aim of conserving the original Manga artwork, which is easily damaged or worn.
The elaborate reproductions of original Manga drawings through the use of computerised fine colour adjustment and printing, reproduces subtle differences in the shades and colour graduation with such precision that it is almost indistinguishable from the original, when placed next to each other.
This fabulous exhibition for all ages is only on display for five weeks at The Atkinson from Saturday 9 January – Sunday 14 February and then it travels The House of Illustration in London from 15 March 012 June 2016.
For more information please visit theatkinson.co.uk or by calling the Box Office on 01704 533333.