, known by the pen name , was 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
essayist
An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as formal a ...
known for his
social criticism
Social criticism is a form of academic or journalistic criticism focusing on social issues in contemporary society, in particular with respect to perceived injustices and power relations in general.
Social criticism of the Enlightenment
The orig ...
as well as the realism of his drawing style and the characters in his scenarios. He was considered a pioneer of the controversial ''
gekiga
, literally "dramatic pictures", is a style of Japanese comics aimed at adult audiences and marked by a more cinematic art style and more mature themes. ''Gekiga'' was the predominant style of adult comics in Japan in the 1960s and 1970s. It is ...
'' genre of adult-oriented manga.
The son of the Japanese proletarian painter Toki Okamoto, his dream to become an artist equal with his father started when he became a
kamishibai
is a form of Japanese street theater and storytelling that was popular during the Great Depression of the 1930s and the post-war period in Japan until the advent of television during the mid-20th century. were performed by a (" narrator") w ...
artist. He is also known for his work published in the early issues of the manga anthology magazine
''Garo'' in 1964, which he began publishing so as to serialize his comic ''Kamui''.
Early life
Shirato was born 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 ...
, Japan. In Shirato's childhood his father was active in the
proletarian culture
Working-class culture is a range of cultures created by or popular among working-class people. The cultures can be contrasted with high culture and folk culture, and are often equated with popular culture and low culture (the counterpart of high ...
movement, being one of the few people to be photographed with the tortured corpse of proletarian leader
Takiji Kobayashi
was a Japanese writer of proletarian literature.
He is best known for his short novel '' Kanikōsen'', or ''Crab Cannery Ship'', published in 1929. It tells the story of the hard life of cannery workers, fishermen and seamen on board a cannery ...
. As he grew up he experienced the rancor of the war years, and it is said that these grim emotions come out in the
nihilistic
Nihilism (; ) is a philosophy, or family of views within philosophy, that rejects generally accepted or fundamental aspects of human existence, such as objective truth, knowledge, morality, values, or meaning of life, meaning. The term was pop ...
society portrayed in his works.
Shirato developed his artistic style through painting picture-card shows (
kamishibai
is a form of Japanese street theater and storytelling that was popular during the Great Depression of the 1930s and the post-war period in Japan until the advent of television during the mid-20th century. were performed by a (" narrator") w ...
) after finishing middle school at 18. He was influenced by the
ukiyo-e
Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surfac ...
of the pre-Meiji period, but differed in his portrayal of action in a multi-panel "slow motion" style unique to his manga. His style of action portrayal came from the tension building techniques inherent in the performance aspect of Kami-shibai.
Manga career
Shirato started his career as a professional manga artist in 1957 with ''Ninja Bugeichō'' (''Ninja Martial Arts Handbook'', published 1959–62), a historically-based ninja-themed manga that captured the attention of students and intellectuals of the time.
This violent epic tale set in Japan's "Warring States" (''
Sengoku
The was a period in Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615.
The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the feudal system of Japan under the Ashikaga shogunate. Various s ...
'') period was seen by many readers and critics as a thinly-veiled allegory for the ongoing
Anpo protests against the
US-Japan Security Treaty (although Shirato himself later denied this was his intention).
Regardless of Shirato's true intentions, the manga seemed to correspond to the feelings and experiences student protesters were going through at the time, and ''Ninja Bugeichō'' developed an avid following among left-leaning student activists.
Because its adult themes and graphic violence, ''Ninja Bugeichō'' has been cited as one of the first examples of ''
gekiga
, literally "dramatic pictures", is a style of Japanese comics aimed at adult audiences and marked by a more cinematic art style and more mature themes. ''Gekiga'' was the predominant style of adult comics in Japan in the 1960s and 1970s. It is ...
,'' or serious manga aimed specifically at adult audiences rather than children.
''
The Legend of Kamui
is a manga series written and drawn by Sanpei Shirato. Set in feudal Japan, it tells the story of a low-born ninja who has fled his clan. The series combines historical adventure with social commentary and themes of oppression and rebel ...
'', the first series published in ''Garo'', can be considered his most important manga work. It is the story of Kamui, a ninja who leaves an organization that pursues him and clearly sees the true nature of the
Edo period
The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...
and the discrimination that existed in the feudal system. Shirato's works are primarily historical dramas that focus on
ninja
A or was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. The functions of a ninja included reconnaissance
In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enem ...
, present a historical record of Japan, and criticize oppression, discrimination, and exploitation.
Many of Shirato's works have been adapted as anime series and films, including ''Ninja Bugeichō'', adapted by
Nagisa Oshima
NaGISA (Natural Geography in Shore Areas or Natural Geography of In-Shore Areas) is an international collaborative effort aimed at inventorying, cataloguing, and monitoring biodiversity of the in-shore area. So named for the Japanese word "nagisa ...
as ''
Band of Ninja'' in 1967, an unusual film consisting only of images from the manga and voiceovers with no animation. Some works have received attention in the United States, such as ''
The Legend of Kamui
is a manga series written and drawn by Sanpei Shirato. Set in feudal Japan, it tells the story of a low-born ninja who has fled his clan. The series combines historical adventure with social commentary and themes of oppression and rebel ...
'', which was released in 1987 by
Viz Media
VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ M ...
, but others remain relatively unknown.
Death
He died on October 8, 2021 at the age of 89 due to
aspiration pneumonia
Aspiration pneumonia is a type of lung infection that is due to a relatively large amount of material from the stomach or mouth entering the lungs. Signs and symptoms often include fever and cough of relatively rapid onset. Complications may inclu ...
. The news of his death was announced by the editorial department of ''
Big Comic
is a semimonthly ''seinen'' manga magazine published since 18 February 1968 by Shogakukan in Japan. It was originally launched as a monthly magazine, but switched to twice monthly on the 10th and 25th beginning in April 1968. It is paired wit ...
'' on October 26, 2021. It was also reported that his brother Tetsuji Okamoto (岡本 鉄二氏, ''Okamoto Tetsuji'') died four days later of
interstitial pneumonia
Interstitial lung disease (ILD), or diffuse parenchymal lung disease (DPLD), is a group of respiratory diseases affecting the interstitium (the tissue and space around the alveoli (air sacs)) of the lungs. It concerns alveolar epithelium, pulmona ...
.
Works
* ''Kogarashi Kenshi'' (1957)
* ''Shiryō'' (1958)
* ''
Kieyuku Shōjo'' (1959)
* ''
Ninja Bugeichō'' (1959–1962)
* ''
Kaze no Ishimaru'' (1960)
* ''
Seton's Wild Animals
is a manga series by Sanpei Shirato published in two parts: three volumes published by Shogakukan from 1961 to 1962, and two volumes published by Seirindō in 1964 under the title . All five volumes were based on works by noted author and w ...
'' (1961–1964)
* ''
Sasuke'' (1961–1966)
* ''
Kamui
A ''kamuy'' ( ain, カムィ; ja, カムイ, kamui) is a spiritual or divine being in Ainu mythology, a term denoting a supernatural entity composed of or possessing spiritual energy.
The Ainu people have many myths about the ''kamuy'', passed ...
'' series (1964–1986)
* ''
Watari'' (1965–1966)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shirato, Sanpei
1932 births
2021 deaths
Japanese communists
Japanese Marxists
Manga artists from Tokyo
People from Tokyo
Gekiga creators