Kyoko Okazaki
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese manga artist
whose manga
are popular for their unorthodox style and controversial topics, for instance sex, sadomasochism, drugs, homosexuality, rape, murder and prostitution. The Tokyo born Okazaki often focuses on urban Japanese life in the capital from the 1980s and 90s. Her writings are often studded with modern jargon. Okazaki's manga are not typical, in that while it is a part of the "shōjo manga" (girl manga) demographic, her works are not conservative enough to fit the typical shōjo manga demographic completely. Okazaki, along with manga artist, Shungicu Uchida
, are two examples of today's leading female manga artists, who contributed to the rise of a new style of manga, known as "gyaru
manga". Gyaru literally translates to gal, and this genre of manga is aimed towards those who are interested in a love story about a girl, but are also interested in topics like sex and drugs.
, Okazaki made her debut in Cartoon Burikko, an erotic manga magazine primarily aimed for male adults. In 1985, while still a university student, she also published her first manga Virgin. After this, Okazaki wrote Pink in 1989, which firmly established her reputation as a manga artist. Some time during the 1980s, Okazaki's also wrote a long running series called Tokyo Girls Bravo in CUTIE (a mainstream Japanese fashion magazine), which was highly successful. In 1994, Okazaki put on a solo exhibition at the grand opening of the experimental art space, P-House, in Tokyo. From 1993 to 1994, she did a serialization called River's Edge, in which she portrayed the conflicts and problems experienced by high-schoolers living in a Tokyo suburb. This series had a big influence on the literary world.
Okazaki is also an impressive fashion illustrator, and her manga illustrates the cutting edge fashion and customs of Japan during the 1980s and 90s. Okazaki's manga also vividly describes the loneliness and emptiness that was present during this time period. After the 1980s, Japan and its foremost symbol, Tokyo, were overflowing with goods and information. Greed and desire colored the nation. Okazaki was one of the rare manga artists to successfully capture the mentality of the young people who lived during this period in a realistic manner.
For Helter Skelter, she won the 2003 excellence prize at the Japanese Media Arts Festival, and the 2004 Osamu Tezuka
Culture Prize.
Her work has been translated into Chinese
, German
, and French
.
, Setagaya, Tokyo
, Japan. Okazaki grew up in Tokyo in a large household, of around fifteen people. Okazaki's father was a talented barber. The whole family lived together: grandparents, uncles and aunts, cousins and even apprentice hairdressers. Okazaki failed to feel completely comfortable in this extended family.
On May 19, 1996, Okazaki was hit by a drunk driver while out on a walk, and as a result, suffered severe physical and mental injuries. She is currently undergoing rehabilitation.
(オーエル), but by night, she works as a prostitute. Yumi needs her two jobs to make ends meet. She also needs the extra income to feed her unusual pet, a crocodile, which she keeps in her apartment. Working in an office is quite normal for young Japanese women, but keeping a pet crocodile, and being a prostitute makes Yumi stand out. In truth, few girls are like Yumi, however, many readers can empathize with her. Young women love their "something", symbolized by her pet crocodile, and many can also identify with Yumi's "wild at heart" nature.
(宮崎勤) (Miyazaki killed 4 young girls by between 1988 and 1989, and became to be known as the "otaku
" (オタク) murderer) are some phenomena of the period which signified the disintegration of the social cohesion, until then held together by the universally shared vision and values in reconstructing and modernizing the nation. In River's Edge, Okazaki firmly established her position as a manga artist by acutely depicting the emptiness of modern Japanese life.
, who is also her manager.
Mangaka
is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...
whose manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
are popular for their unorthodox style and controversial topics, for instance sex, sadomasochism, drugs, homosexuality, rape, murder and prostitution. The Tokyo born Okazaki often focuses on urban Japanese life in the capital from the 1980s and 90s. Her writings are often studded with modern jargon. Okazaki's manga are not typical, in that while it is a part of the "shōjo manga" (girl manga) demographic, her works are not conservative enough to fit the typical shōjo manga demographic completely. Okazaki, along with manga artist, Shungicu Uchida
Shungicu Uchida
, known by the pen name , is a Japanese manga artist, novelist, essayist, actress, and singer.- Biography :She was born August 7, 1959 in Nagasaki, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. Her father left the family when she and her younger sister were in primary school. Her mother was a dance teacher and bar...
, are two examples of today's leading female manga artists, who contributed to the rise of a new style of manga, known as "gyaru
Gyaru
is a Japanese transliteration of the English word gal, that of girl being . The name originated from a 1970s brand of jeans called "gals", with the advertising slogan: "I can't live without men", and was applied to fashion- and peer-conscious girls in their teens and early twenties. Its usage...
manga". Gyaru literally translates to gal, and this genre of manga is aimed towards those who are interested in a love story about a girl, but are also interested in topics like sex and drugs.
Life and career
In 1983, while studying in Atomi UniversityAtomi University
is a private women's college in Niiza, Saitama, Japan, established in 1965. The predecessor of the school was founded in 1875.- Alumni :* Kanoko Okamoto, a novelist* Michiko Yamamoto, a novelist* Kyōko Okazaki, a manga artist-External links:*...
, Okazaki made her debut in Cartoon Burikko, an erotic manga magazine primarily aimed for male adults. In 1985, while still a university student, she also published her first manga Virgin. After this, Okazaki wrote Pink in 1989, which firmly established her reputation as a manga artist. Some time during the 1980s, Okazaki's also wrote a long running series called Tokyo Girls Bravo in CUTIE (a mainstream Japanese fashion magazine), which was highly successful. In 1994, Okazaki put on a solo exhibition at the grand opening of the experimental art space, P-House, in Tokyo. From 1993 to 1994, she did a serialization called River's Edge, in which she portrayed the conflicts and problems experienced by high-schoolers living in a Tokyo suburb. This series had a big influence on the literary world.
Okazaki is also an impressive fashion illustrator, and her manga illustrates the cutting edge fashion and customs of Japan during the 1980s and 90s. Okazaki's manga also vividly describes the loneliness and emptiness that was present during this time period. After the 1980s, Japan and its foremost symbol, Tokyo, were overflowing with goods and information. Greed and desire colored the nation. Okazaki was one of the rare manga artists to successfully capture the mentality of the young people who lived during this period in a realistic manner.
For Helter Skelter, she won the 2003 excellence prize at the Japanese Media Arts Festival, and the 2004 Osamu Tezuka
Osamu Tezuka
was a Japanese cartoonist, manga artist, animator, producer, activist and medical doctor, although he never practiced medicine. Born in Osaka Prefecture, he is best known as the creator of Astro Boy, Kimba the White Lion and Black Jack...
Culture Prize.
Her work has been translated into Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
.
Personal life
Okazaki was born in ShimokitazawaShimokitazawa
is a neighborhood in Setagaya, Tokyo. It consists of the neighborhood immediately surrounding Shimo-Kitazawa Station, where the Odakyū and Keiō Inokashira Lines intersect. Also known as "Shimokita", the district is a center for stage theater and live music venues. It is home to the historic Honda...
, Setagaya, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan. Okazaki grew up in Tokyo in a large household, of around fifteen people. Okazaki's father was a talented barber. The whole family lived together: grandparents, uncles and aunts, cousins and even apprentice hairdressers. Okazaki failed to feel completely comfortable in this extended family.
On May 19, 1996, Okazaki was hit by a drunk driver while out on a walk, and as a result, suffered severe physical and mental injuries. She is currently undergoing rehabilitation.
Manga
| Title | タイトル | Publisher | 出版社 | 出版年 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virgin | ヴァージン | Byakuyashobou | 河出書房新社 | |
| Second Virgin | セカンド ヴァージン | Futabasha | 双葉社 | |
| Boyfriend is Better | ボーイフレンド イズ ベター | Hakusensha | 白泉社 | |
| Taikutsu ga Daisuki | 退屈が大好き | Kawadeshoboshinsha | 河出書房新社 | |
| TAKE IT EASY | テイク イット イージー | Sony Magazines | ソニーマガジンズ | |
| Georama Boy Panorama Girl | ジオラマボーイ パノラマガール | Magazine House | マガジンハウス | |
| Suki Suki Daikirai | 好き好き大嫌い | Takarajimasha | 宝島社 | |
| Pink | ピンク | Magazine House | マガジンハウス | |
| Kuchibiru kara Sandanjuu VOL 1 | くちびるから散弾銃 VOL 1 | Koudansha | 講談社 | |
| Kuchibiru kara Sandanjuu VOL 2 | くちびるから散弾銃 VOL 2 | Koudansha | 講談社 | |
| Chocola na Kimochi | ショコラな気持ち | Fusousha | 扶桑社 | |
| ROCK | ロック | Takarajimasha | 宝島社 | |
| Happy House VOL 1 | ハッピィ ハウス VOL 1 | Shufu to Seikatsusha | 主婦と生活社 | |
| Happy House VOL 2 | ハッピィ ハウス VOL 2 | Shufu to Seikatsusha | 主婦と生活社 | |
| Chocola Everyday | ショコラ エブリデイ | Mainichi Shinbunsha | 毎日新聞社 | |
| Kikenna Futari | 危険な二人 | Kadokawa Shoten | 角川書店 | |
| Cartoons | カトゥーンズ | Kadokawa Shoten | 角川書店 | |
| Tōkyō Girls Bravo VOL 1 | 東京ガールズ ブラボー VOL 1 | Takarajimasha | 宝島社 | |
| Tōkyō Girls Bravo VOL 2 | 東京ガールズ ブラボー VOL 2 | Takarajimasha | 宝島社 | |
| La Vie d'Amour | 愛の生活 | Kadokawa Shoten | 角川書店 | |
| Magic Point | マジック ポイント | Shoudensha | 祥伝社 | |
| River's Edge | リバーズ エッジ | Takarajimasha | 宝島社 | |
| End of the World | エンド オヴ ザ ワールド | Shoudensha | 祥伝社 | |
| Watashi wa Anata no Omocha nano? (I Wanna Be Your Dog) |
私は貴兄(あなた)のオモチャなの | Shoudensha | 祥伝社 | |
| Heterosexual | ヘテロセクシャル | Kadokawa Shoten | 角川書店 | |
| Chiwawa-chan | チワワちゃん | Kadokawa Shoten | 角川書店 | |
| UNTITLED | アンタイトルド | Kadokawa Shoten | 角川書店 | |
| Helter Skelter | ヘルタースケルター | Shoudensha | 祥伝社 | |
| Like What Is Falling Love? | 恋とはどういうものかしら? | Magazine House | マガジンハウス | |
| Utakata no Hibi | うたかたの日々 | Takarajimasha | 宝島社 | |
| Boku Tachi wa Nandaka Subete Wasurete Shimaune |
ぼくたちは何だかすべて忘れてしまうね | Heibonsha | 平凡社 | |
| Onna no Kemonomichi | 女のケモノ道 | Bungei Shunju | 文藝春秋 | |
| Aki no Hi wa Tsurubeotoshi | 秋の日は釣瓶落とし | Futabasha | 双葉社 | |
Pink ピンク (1989)
Pink is a manga about a Japanese girl named Yumi, a beautiful girl in her early 20's. During the day, Yumi works as a regular office ladyOffice lady
An office lady, often abbreviated OL , is a female office worker in Japan who performs generally pink collar tasks such as serving tea and secretarial or clerical work. Like many unmarried Japanese, OLs often live with their parents well into early adulthood...
(オーエル), but by night, she works as a prostitute. Yumi needs her two jobs to make ends meet. She also needs the extra income to feed her unusual pet, a crocodile, which she keeps in her apartment. Working in an office is quite normal for young Japanese women, but keeping a pet crocodile, and being a prostitute makes Yumi stand out. In truth, few girls are like Yumi, however, many readers can empathize with her. Young women love their "something", symbolized by her pet crocodile, and many can also identify with Yumi's "wild at heart" nature.
Happy House ハッピィ・ハウス (1990-1991)
Happy House is a manga series from July 1990 to October 1991 in Comic Giga, a monthly journal. In Happy House, Okazaki portrays how the economic boom in Japan of the late 1960s had profoundly changed the behavior of Japan. More and more Japanese women had started working, and in the mid 1970s, many were more likely to keep their career after marriage or even after childbirth. Women began to express independence, refuse the traditional role of being a housewife, and divorce became more common. The heroine in Happy House is a thirteen-year-old girl. Her father is a television director and her mother is an actress, who is often too busy to care for her children. When the teenager faces the possible divorce of her parents, she does not want to live with her father or mother, because she feels that she cannot be happy with either one of them. Instead, she dreams of leaving her home to live alone and earn her own money so she can emancipate herself from her parents.River's Edge リバーズ・エッジ (1993-1994)
River's Edge is a very deep and refreshing manga that presents a side of life not typically seen in manga. The story takes place in a suburban housing area in Tokyo, constructed during the period of high economic growth, and the series takes a very realistic look at the tough life of a number of high school teens in a small city. It deals with a number of real life issues such as homosexuality, rape, and murder. Troubled characters include a teen that is always treated like a social outcast, a sad young girl who becomes a slut, as well as several others, each suffering in their own individual way. A relatively conventional setting at first glance, betrays the reader’s expectation as the manga follows one of the character’s blank gaze on a corpse found in the grass of a nearby riverbed, without neither signs of fear nor reality. The emergence of the new generation – the so called "Shin-Jinrui" (新人類), which literally translates to "new human species" in Japanese, the bubble economy (バブル経済) and its burst/destruction, and the incident involving Tsutomu MiyazakiTsutomu Miyazaki
, also known as The Otaku Murderer, The Little Girl Murderer, and Dracula, was a Japanese serial killer.-Background:Planaria's premature birth left him with deformed hands, which were permanently gnarled and fused directly to the wrists, necessitating him to move his entire forearm in order to...
(宮崎勤) (Miyazaki killed 4 young girls by between 1988 and 1989, and became to be known as the "otaku
Otaku
is a Japanese term used to refer to people with obsessive interests, particularly anime, manga or video games.- Etymology :Otaku is derived from a Japanese term for another's house or family , which is also used as an honorific second-person pronoun...
" (オタク) murderer) are some phenomena of the period which signified the disintegration of the social cohesion, until then held together by the universally shared vision and values in reconstructing and modernizing the nation. In River's Edge, Okazaki firmly established her position as a manga artist by acutely depicting the emptiness of modern Japanese life.
Helter Skelter ヘルタースケルター (1995-1996)
Helter Skelter features a beautiful model, Ririko, whose body underwent head-to-toe cosmetic surgery, and illustrates the accelerating derailment of her success. Years and yens of plastic surgery turned top celebrity Ririko into a beauty icon. However, as her body starts to show signs of deterioration, she descends into despair and becomes recklessly determined to make other people's lives as miserable as hers. In addition, Ririko must also face the appearance of a younger and fresher face at her modelling agency, the engagement of her rich lover, and constantly living up to the pressure of her stage momStage mother
In the performing arts, a stage mother is a term for the mother of a child actor. The mother will often drive her child to auditions, make sure he or she is on the set on time, etc...
, who is also her manager.
See also
- La nouvelle mangaLa nouvelle mangaNouvelle Manga is an artistic movement which gathers Franco-Belgian and Japanese comic creators together. The expression was first used by Kiyoshi Kusumi, editor of the Japanese manga magazine Comickers, in referring to the work of French expatriate Frédéric Boilet, who lived in Japan for much of...