The Art of Baron Yoshimoto
978-4-7562-5171-8, PIE International pie.co.jp/english
Some of your earlier work included in the book depicts scenes from the American Wild West, including gunslinging cowboys and a dynamic interpretation of Custer’s Last Stand. What sparked this fascination with that period of history?
I was into the American Wild West since I was a child. Western comics and manga had wilderness, horses, small towns, gunfights, poker, good-looking girls, with a simple story line. What intrigued me was the mix of those factors and the cowboys’ way of life. The frontier spirit symbolized by items such as the Colt Single Action Army revolver was interesting.
In an interview featured at the end of the book, you say that you “can’t draw manga carelessly or play carelessly.” That struck us as sound life advice, but also got us wondering: what are some of your favorite “play” activities when you’re not working on manga or painting?
In a society full of discomfort and irrationality the only freedom we can obtain is through play activity. Creating art gives me the most pleasure but I can’t stress enough the importance of play activity which makes the body and mind flexible. For me, that meant indulging myself in dancing at discos and nightclubs. Play activity gives me power to move on.
In the eighties, you left Japan and moved to Los Angeles to both enhance your visibility in America and reconnect with your passion for painting. What prompted the sudden move?
I have always been a big fan of the American culture, in general, such as movies and music, not to mention comics. After starting my career as a manga artist, I went to the US to do research on the Watts Riots, which happened in 1965, and hippie culture. The biggest reason is that I thought I could find the greatest freedom if I was able to work there. Other manga artists and editors tried to stop me by saying, “Many fans are waiting for your manga,” but I didn’t change my mind. It was a tough time presenting my work to publishers in the US and not through Japanese publishers. Probably I’m the first Japanese manga artist who worked at Marvel. I was fortunate to meet Stan Lee, Rocky Aoki, and Larry Hama, who inspired me and taught me how to have fun in the US.