Creating manga and comic art, whether for fun or to turn a hobby into a career, can be hard but rewarding. We have plenty of art advice and Procreate tutorials that teach the how-to of drawing, but sometimes you just need to find an artist whose work inspires.
Katsuya Terada was born in Japan in the 1960s. His unique style, which combines expressive lines and shading from Western and Asian comic conventions, has earned him a worldwide fan base. His work has featured in exhibitions on both sides of the Pacific.
CB: Where did you grow up and how has this influenced your art?
Katsuya Terada: I was born and raised in Tamano, in western Japan’s Okayama Prefecture. Growing up outside a bustling city before the internet era made me acutely aware of the distance to the emerging cultures in faraway places. This sense of distance was what shaped my fundamental desire to go somewhere that isn’t here.
I can recall one particular piece that inspired me: an illustration by the French comic artist Moebius I saw in a magazine when I was 15 years old. My father was also a major influence on my art.
CB: What advice would you give to your younger self?
KT: I don’t have any real memory of paving my own way, so there isn’t much advice I could give. If anything, I’d just say be kind to others.
CB: Tell us about your first paid commission. Does it stand as a representation of your talent?
KT: When I was 20, I was asked to create a juice packaging illustration for a design meeting by an art school teacher. It wasn’t for production use, but as it was for a major company, the pay was still good.
CB: What’s the last piece you finished working on?
KT: They would be pieces I created for my solo exhibition in Los Angeles.
CB: Is making a living as an artist all you thought it would be?
KT: No. When I was younger, I had no vision of the future at all – all I wanted to do was get to a place where I could make a living by drawing. Even now, I don’t always see myself as an artist.
CB: How has the industry of art changed for the better since you’ve been working in it?
KT: I don’t have much knowledge about the art industry itself, so I’m not really in a position to comment. Although having said that, I do feel that the boundary between manga and art – which is where I seem to belong – has expanded over time.
CB: What character or scene that you’ve painted do you most identify with?
KT: As a manga artist, I’ve been working on a piece inspired by the 16thcentury Chinese novel Journey to the West, and I feel a strong connection to its protagonist. On top of that, new characters are born with each of my exhibitions. I so often find myself wondering about the stories of their pasts and futures.
CB: What’s your next step in art or life?
KT: The first challenge will be learning how to face myself as my hands and eyes lose their youthfulness – in other words, as I age. Beyond that, my next step will probably involve uncovering something within me that has been maturing, though I have no idea what that might be yet.
For now, I’m just hoping there’s someone to watch over me. I’d like to keep drawing until I’m 90 years old and, if that’s the case, I have about 30 more years, that’s enough time to debut something new and create more meaningful artwork.
This content originally appeared in ImagineFX magazine, the world's leading digital art and fantasy art magazine. ImagineFX is on sale in the UK, Europe, United States, Canada, Australia and more. Limited numbers of ImagineFX print editions are available for delivery from our online store (the shipping costs are included in all prices).
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