Okamoto Ippei (岡本一平) (June 11, 1886 – October 11, 1948) was a Japanese illustrator, cartoonist, and writer.
Okamoto Ippei | |
|---|---|
岡本一平 | |
 | |
| Born | June 11, 1886 |
| Died | November 11, 1948 |
| Nationality | Japanese |
| Occupation(s) | Mangaka, writer |
| Spouse | Okamoto Kanoko |
Biography
editOkamoto Ippei was the second son of the Confucian scholar Katei Okamoto. He studied Western-style painting at Tokyo School of the Arts under the instruction of Japanese painter Fujishima Takeji.[1] He started working as a scenery painter for Teikoku Theater in 1910. After getting married, he set up in Kyobashi with his family.[2]
Okamoto traveled to Europe and the United States and brought to Japan several comics. In 1912, he started to draw manga for the newspaper Asahi Shinbun.[1]
During the World War II, he moved to Hamamatsu and Gifu. He opened a school called Ippei Juku, where he was teacher of cartoonists Hidezo Kondo and Yukio Matsuura.[2]
Style
editOkamoto became popular as a manga artist in the Taisho era due to his style that combined manga with refined writing.[2] He included features of film in his comics.[3] Manga artist Osamu Tezuka mentioned Okamoto as one of his main influences.[3]
Personal life
editOkamoto Ippei met Kanoko Okamoto when she sent him a poem that fed his interest. They met in the fall of 1909.[4] In 1910, he married Kanoko Okamoto. He used to train younger drawers and after retiring, he helped his wife in her work as a novelist.[2]
References
edit- ^ a b "Collections Online | British Museum". www.britishmuseum.org. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ a b c d "Prominent People of Minato City (Ippei Okamoto)". www.lib.city.minato.tokyo.jp. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
- ^ a b Novielli, Maria Roberta (2018). Floating worlds: a short history of Japanese animation. ISBN 978-1-351-33482-2. OCLC 1020690005.
- ^ Mori, Maryellen T. (1995). "The Splendor of Self-Exaltation. The Life and Fiction of Okamoto Kanoko". Monumenta Nipponica. 50 (1): 67–102. doi:10.2307/2385280. ISSN 0027-0741. JSTOR 2385280.