is a Japanese

manga artist A is a comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. As of 2006, about 3,000 professional manga artists were working in Japan. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist be ...

and singer. She is included in the

Year 24 Group The is a grouping of female manga artists who heavily influenced ''shōjo'' manga (Japanese girls' comics) beginning in the 1970s. While ''shōjo'' manga of the 1950s and 1960s largely consisted of simple stories marketed towards elementary s ...

, by some, although her status as one of them has been debated due to a focus more on epic stories than the internal psychology of those mangaka. She was one of the most popular Japanese comic artists in the 1970s, being best known for ''

The Rose of Versailles , also known as ''Lady Oscar'' and ''La Rose de Versailles'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Riyoko Ikeda. It was originally serialized in the manga magazine ''Margaret'' from 1972 to 1973, while a revival of the ser ...

''.

Education

Ikeda was a philosophy major and a member of the

Democratic Youth League of Japan The , abbreviated DYLJ or , is a political youth organisation in Japan. It is the youth wing of the Japanese Communist Party, as well as an organisational body of Zengakuren. Minsei describes itself as a "voluntary youth organisation in respo ...

. She would later drop out.

Career

Ikeda began publishing manga in the magazine ''Kashihonya'' while studying philosophy. She debuted in 1967 with ''Bara Yashiki no Shōjo''. Ikeda has written and illustrated many

shōjo manga is an editorial category of Japanese comics targeting an audience of adolescent females and young adult women. It is, along with manga (targeting adolescent boys), manga (targeting young adult and adult men), and manga (targeting adult ...

, many of which are based on

historical History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...

events, such as the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...

or the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...

. Her use of foreign settings and androgynous themes made ''

'' and ''

Orpheus no Mado ''The Window of Orpheus'' (, ''Orufeusu no Mado''), also known as ''Orpheus no Mado'' or ''Das Fenster von Orpheus'', is a Japanese shōjo manga series written and illustrated by Riyoko Ikeda. It is a historical romance and was partially adapt ...

'' enormous successes. Her most famous manga is ''

'', also known as ''Lady Oscar'' in Europe. This manga, loosely based on the

, has been made into several Takarazuka

musical Musical is the adjective of music Music is generally defined as the The arts, art of arranging sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Exact def ...

s and into an

anime is hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japanese, (a term derived from a shortening of ...

series and a

live-action film Live action (or live-action) is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live-action with animation to create a live-action animated film. Live-action is used to define film, video g ...

. After ''Rose of Versailles'' concluded, Ikeda wrote articles for ''

Asahi Shimbun is one of the four largest newspapers in Japan. Founded in 1879, it is also one of the oldest newspapers in Japan and Asia, and is considered a newspaper of record for Japan. Its circulation, which was 4.57 million for its morning edition an ...

''. In the 2000s Ikeda studied at a music school and became a singer. Her voice is in the soprano range. She made a comeback to the comic industry as a script writer in 1999. Her recent manga includes ''

Der Ring des Nibelungen (''The Ring of the Nibelung''), WWV 86, is a cycle of four German-language epic music dramas composed by Richard Wagner. The works are based loosely on characters from Germanic heroic legend, namely Norse legendary sagas and the ''Nibelung ...

''. It is a manga version of the

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libre ...

written by

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

. In 2008, she received France's Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur for her contribution to Japan's cultural awareness of France, and she has been a guest of the 2011

Angoulême International Comics Festival The Angoulême International Comics Festival (french: Festival international de la bande dessinée d'Angoulême) is the second largest comics festival in Europe after the Lucca Comics & Games in Italy, and the third biggest in the world after L ...

Works

* ''Bara Yashiki no Shōjo'' (1967) — short story * ''Soyo Kaze no Mary'' — short story * ''Francesca no Shouzou'' (1969) * ''Sokoku ni Ai o'' (1969) * ''Freesia no Asa'' (1970) * ''Futari Pocchi'' (1971) * ''Ikite te Yokatta!'' (1971) * ''Jinchouge'' (1971) * ''Mariko'' (1971) * ''Sakura Kyou'' (1972) * ''

'' (1972) * ''Shiroi Egmont'' (1973) * ''Yureru Soushun'' (1973) * ''Shōko no Etude'' (1974) * ''

Dear Brother is a Japanese manga series by Riyoko Ikeda. It was adapted into an anime series that aired on the channel NHK-BS2 from July 14, 1991 to May 31, 1992. The series originally started out as a manga in the early to mid-1970s. The story is ab ...

'' (1974) * ''

'' (1975) * '' Claudine'' (1978) * ''Ayako'' (1980) * ''Epitaram: A Wedding Song'' (1981) * ''Aoi Zakuro'' (1982) * ''Jotei Ecatherina'' (1982) * ''

Versailles no Bara Gaiden , also known as ''Lady Oscar'' and ''La Rose de Versailles'', is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Riyoko Ikeda. It was originally serialized in the manga magazine ''Margaret'' from 1972 to 1973, while a revival of the ser ...

'' (1984) — extra chapters for ''The Rose of Versailles'' * ''

Eikou no Napoleon – Eroica is a manga by Riyoko Ikeda that is the official sequel to ''The Rose of Versailles''. It tells the story of Napoleon's empire, including the Thermidorian Reaction, the Italian Campaign, the Egyptian Campaign, the Battle of the Nile, the c ...

'' (1986) * ''Glass no Yami'' (1987) * ''Mijo Monogatari'' (1988) * ''Kasuganotsubon - Kefuzo Kataku o'' (1989) * ''Porando Hishi Ten no Hate Made'' (1990) — Poland's Secret Story: To the Borders of Heaven * ''Shoutoku Taishi'' (1991) * ''Fuyu no Shukusai'' (1997) * ''Elizabeth'' (1999) — text only; art by Erika Miyamoto * ''Niberunku no Yubiwa'' (2000) — ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'' * ''Ikeda Riyoko the Best: Ai to Tatakau Onnatachi'' (2001) * ''Falcon no Meikishu'' (2004) * ''Ai wa Waltz ni Nosete'' (2005) * ''BeruBara Kids'' (2006) — ''The Rose of Versailles Kids'' (parody) * ''Haru no Yuki'' (2006) — ''Spring Snow'' * '' The Legend'' (Taiōshijinki) (2007) * ''Taketori Monogatari'' (2014)

References

External links

Riyoko Ikeda's Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ikeda, Riyoko 1947 births Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur Japanese female comics artists Japanese sopranos Living people University of Tsukuba alumni Musicians from Osaka 21st-century Japanese singers Women manga artists Manga artists from Osaka Prefecture Musicians from Osaka Prefecture 21st-century Japanese writers 21st-century Japanese women writers 21st-century Japanese women singers Recipients of the Legion of Honour