was a Japanese illustrator and writer of children's books, known best for

picture books A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The images ...

with few or no words. He received the international

Hans Christian Andersen Medal The Hans Christian Andersen Awards are two literary awards given by the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), recognising one living author and one living illustrator for their "lasting contribution to children's literature". Th ...

in 1984 for his "lasting contribution to children's literature."

Life

Anno was born in 1926 in

Tsuwano is a town located in Kanoashi District, Shimane Prefecture, Japan. As of March 2017, the town has an estimated population of 7,478 and a density of 25.0 persons per km². The total area is 307.09 km². Description Tsuwano is remotely locate ...

, a small town in Shimane Prefecture, Japan and grew up there. As a student at a regional high school, he studied art, drawing, and the writings of

Hermann Hesse Hermann Karl Hesse (; 2 July 1877 – 9 August 1962) was a German-Swiss poet, novelist, and painter. His best-known works include ''Demian'', '' Steppenwolf'', '' Siddhartha'', and ''The Glass Bead Game'', each of which explores an individual's ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Anno was drafted into the Japanese army. After the war, Anno earned a degree from the Yamaguchi Teacher Training College (a predecessor of

Yamaguchi University is a national university in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. It has campuses at the cities of Yamaguchi and Ube. History The root of the university was , a private school founded by Ueda Hōyō (, 1769–1853) in 1815. In 1863 the school became a ...

) in 1948. He taught mathematics for ten years in an elementary school in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

before beginning a career illustrating children's books. Anno lived in Japan with his wife, Midori. They had two children, Masaichiro and Seiko. He died on 24 December 2020 from

cirrhosis of the liver Cirrhosis, also known as liver cirrhosis or hepatic cirrhosis, and end-stage liver disease, is the impaired liver function caused by the formation of scar tissue known as fibrosis due to damage caused by liver disease. Damage causes tissue repai ...

Art

Anno was best known for wordless

featuring small, detailed figures. In the "Journey" books, a tiny character travels through a nation's landscape, densely populated with pictures referencing that country's art, literature, culture, and history. Anno's illustrations are often in

pen and ink A pen is a common writing tool, writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a Nib (pen), nib or in a sm ...

and

watercolor Watercolor (American English) or watercolour (British English; see spelling differences), also ''aquarelle'' (; from Italian diminutive of Latin ''aqua'' "water"), is a painting method”Watercolor may be as old as art itself, going back to t ...

, and occasionally incorporate collage and

woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas tha ...

s. They are intricately detailed, showing a sense of humor as well as an interest in

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

, and foreign cultures. They frequently incorporate subtle jokes and references. Anno's style has been compared to that of

M. C. Escher Maurits Cornelis Escher (; 17 June 1898 – 27 March 1972) was a Dutch graphic artist who made mathematically inspired woodcuts, lithographs, and mezzotints. Despite wide popular interest, Escher was for most of his life neglected in t ...

. Although he was best known for his children's books, his paintings have earned recognition in his native Japan. In Tsuwano the Mitsumasa Anno Museum houses a collection of his works.

Awards

The biennial

Hans Christian Andersen Award The Hans Christian Andersen Awards are two literary awards given by the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY), recognising one living author and one living illustrator for their "lasting contribution to children's literature". Th ...

conferred by the

International Board on Books for Young People The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) is an international non-profit organization committed to bringing books and children together. The headquarters of the IBBY are located in Basel, Switzerland. IBBY history In 1952, Jella Lepm ...

is the highest recognition available to a writer or illustrator of children's books. Anno received the illustration award in 1984. *

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television a ...

Honor Award (1970) *The Minister of Education's Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists (1974) * Kate Greenaway Medal, commended runner-up (1974), ''Anno's Alphabet'' * Brooklyn Museum of Art Award (1975) *

Boston Globe–Horn Book Award The Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards are a set of American literary awards conferred by ''The Boston Globe'' and ''The Horn Book Magazine'' annually from 1967. One book is recognized in each of four categories: Fiction and Poetry, Nonfiction, and P ...

, Picture Book (1975), ''Anno's Alphabet'' * BG–HB Honor, Picture Book (1977), ''Anno's Counting Book'' * Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, Picture Book (1978), ''Anno's Journey'' *BIB Golden Apple Award (1979) *Graphic Award,

Bologna Children's Book Fair The Bologna Children's Book Fair or La fiera del libro per ragazzi is the leading professional fair for children's books in the world. Since 1963, it is held yearly for four days in March or April in Bologna, Italy. It is the meeting place for al ...

(1980) * Person of Cultural Merit (2012)

Selected works

* ''

Mysterious Pictures Mysterious may refer to: * ''Mysterious'' (album), a 1988 album by Shizuka Kudō * "Mysterious" (song), a 2005 song by Jentina * "Mysterious", a song by Scorpions from the 1999 album ''Eye II Eye'' * Mysterious Walker (1884-1958), American baseb ...

'' (1968) * ''

Jeux de construction ''Jeux'' (''Games'') is a ballet written by Claude Debussy. Described as a "poème dansé" (literally a "danced poem"), it was written for Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes with choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky. Debussy initially objected to the ...

'' (1970) * ''

Topsy Turvies Topsy may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Topsy, a character in the novel ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' * Topsy, a character in the 2018 film ''Mary Poppins Returns'' * ''Topsy and Eva'', a 1928 film based on ''Uncle Tom's Cabin'' * '' Topsy and Tim'' ...

'' (1970) * ''

Upside Downers Upside can refer to: * ''The Upside'', a 2017 American film * ''Upside'' (magazine) was a San Francisco-based business and technology magazine * Upside Records, a record label * ''Upside'' (film), a 2010 American film * "Upside", a 2008 song b ...

'' (1971) * '' Zwergenspuk'' (1972) * '' Dr. Anno's Magical Midnight Circus'' (1972) * '' Anno's Alphabet'' (1974) * '' Anno's Counting Book'' (1975) * '' Anno's Journey'' (1977) * '' Anno's Animals'' (1979) * '' Anno's Italy'' (1979) * '' The Unique World of Mitsumasa Anno: Selected Works, 1968-1977'' (

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Bodley Head The Bodley Head is an English publishing house, founded in 1887 and existing as an independent entity until the 1970s. The name was used as an imprint of Random House Children's Books from 1987 to 2008. In April 2008, it was revived as an adul ...

, New York:

Philomel Philomel is another name for Philomela, a character from Greek mythology. It may refer to: Nature * A nightingale Arts and Letters * An abbreviated form of the name Philomela, a figure in Greek mythology often invoked as a symbol in literature. * ...

, 1980) * '' Anno's Magical ABC'' (1981) * '' Anno's Counting House'' (1982) * '' Anno's Britain'' (1982) * '' Anno's USA'' (1983) * '' Anno's Flea Market'' (1984) * '' Anno's Three Little Pigs'' (1985) * '' The King's Flower'' (1986) * '' All in a Day'' (1986) * '' Anno's Sundial'' (1987) * '' Anno's Upside Downers'' (1988) * '' In Shadowland'' (1988) * '' Anno's Peekaboo'' (1988) * '' Anno's Faces'' (1989) * '' Anno's Aesop: A Book of Fables'' (1989) * '' Chyi Miaw Gwo'' (1990) * '' Anno's Medieval World'' (1990) * '' Anno's Masks'' (1990) * ''The Animals'' (1992) * '' Anno's Hat Tricks'' (1993) * '' Anno's Twice Told Tale'' (1993) * '' Anno's Magic Seeds'' (1995) * '' Anno's Journey'' (1997) * '' Anno's Math Games'' (1997) * '' Anno's Math Games 2'' (1997) * '' Anno's Math Games 3'' (1997) * '' Anno's Mysterious Multiplying Jar'' (1999) * '' The Art Of Mitsumasa Anno: Bridging Cultures'' (with Ann Beneduce) (2003) * '' Bungotai for Youths'' (2003) * '' Anno's Spain'' (2004)

As illustrator only

* '' Socrates and the Three Little Pigs'', by Tsuyoshi Mori (1986) * '' The Magic Pocket: Selected Poems'', poems by

Michio Mado was a Japanese poet. He received the international Hans Christian Andersen Medal in 1994 for his "lasting contribution to children's literature". Biography Mado was born as Michio Ishida in Tokuyama, Yamaguchi prefecture. He spent his childhood ...

(1998)

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Anno, Mitsumasa 1926 births 2020 deaths Hans Christian Andersen Award for Illustration winners Japanese children's book illustrators Japanese children's writers Artists from Shimane Prefecture