Kenji Tsuruta
Kenji Tsuruta (
Profile
[edit]During his formative years in university as a student of optical science, Tsuruta, who had initially wanted to be a photographer, had been inspired by the works of numerous science fiction authors, such as Robert A. Heinlein, and manga artists, such as Yukinobu Hoshino and his manga Sabertooth Tiger, which had inspired him to create manga.[1] He has also cited Tetsuya Chiba and his manga among his inspirations.[1]
Soon after graduating, he wrote numerous dōjinshi and was an assistant to numerous manga artists, prior to making his debut as a professional manga artist.[1] In 1986, Tsuruta made his professional debut, authoring his first manga series, the short work, Hiroku te suteki na uchū ja nai ka (
Soon after, Tsuruta authored Spirit of Wonder, among his most famous works, in which he applied many of his inspirations, which was serialized in Kodansha's seinen magazines Weekly Morning and Afternoon between 1987 and 1996, and was later adapted into an anime series.
After Spirit of Wonder, Tsuruta wrote short manga works, and also illustrated numerous art books, which were quite successful. In 2002, he provided the character designs for the anime series Abenobashi Mahō Shōtengai and also illustrated its manga adaptation.
In 2000 and 2001, Tsuruta received the 31st and 32nd Seiun Awards for outstanding artist of the year.[2] He has also received the Hayakawa Award for best illustrator, in 2000.
Works
[edit]Tankōbon
[edit]- Spirit of Wonder (serialized in Morning and Afternoon, 1986–1995)
- SF Meibutsū – Shoki Sakuhinshū (SF
名物 -初期 作品 集 ) - Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi (character designs, illustrator of manga)
- Forget-me-not
- Nippon Furusato Chinbotsu (
日本 ふるさと沈没 ; anthology) - Emanon: Memories of Emanon (おもいでエマノン, Omoide Emanon); original story: Shinji Kajio
- Wandering Island; licensed by Dark Horse Comics[3] (
冒険 エレキテ島 , Bōken Erekitetou) - La Pomme Prisonnière (ポム・プリゾニエール, 2014)
- Captain Momo's Secret Base; licensed by Dark Horse Comics [4] (モモ
艦長 の秘密 基地 , Momo Kanchо̄ no Himitsu Kichi), 2017
Artbooks
[edit]- suiso – hydrogen (
水素 -hydrogen) - Eternal
- Hitahita (ひたひた)
- Comet (コメット, Kometto)
- Tsuruta Kenji Kyōyō Gashū: Made in China (
鶴田 謙二 教養 画集 MADE IN CHINA; CD-ROM artbook)
Other works
[edit]- The Sky Crawlers (illustrations)
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d "Interview with Kenji Tsuruta". February 1996. Archived from the original on 2007-06-12. Retrieved 2007-06-21.
- ^ "Seiun Award Winners:
星雲 賞 受賞 作 リスト" (in Japanese). Retrieved 2007-06-21. - ^ "Dark Horse Comics Licenses Kenji Tsuruta's Wandering Island Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
- ^ "Exclusive: Dark Horse Licenses Captain Momo's Secret Base Manga". Anime News Network. Retrieved 19 July 2024.