Saudi manga artist receives award from Japan
Samah Kamel’s work inspired by the challenges faced by parents of disabled children
A Saudi manga artist has been given a special award by Japan for work inspired by the challenges faced by parents of disabled children.
Samah Kamel, from Jeddah, is the first Saudi to win a Japan International Manga Award since it was launched 17 years ago. Japanese Ambassador Fumio Iwai presented her with the scheme’s Special Encouragement Award in a ceremony at the Japanese Embassy in Riyadh. Kamel’s award-winning work, “Taif,” is about the challenges facing parents of children on the autism spectrum, and the various ways autistic people can be accommodated and integrated into society. “I was surprised to win because I had entered a few times before without success,” she told Arab
News. “This taught me that persistence pays off, and my daughter, who is here with me today, inspired the manga. I would like to encourage any mother raising a child with a disability to know that she is a powerful and inspirational person.” Issam Bukhari, editor-in-chief of Manga Arabia, to which Kamel is a regular contributor, said her achievement was a historic milestone in exporting Saudi and Arab creativity to the world.
Iwai told Arab News: “Manga is one of the most popular cultural fields in Japan. So I’m very happy to see the spread of manga culture, not only in Saudi Arabia but also in the Arab world.”
The International Manga Award was established by Japan’s Foreign Ministry to honor manga artists who have contributed to international cultural exchange by spreading the genre overseas. This year there were 587 entries from 82 countries and regions. For the first time, entries were received from four African countries — Ethiopia, Comoros, Senegal, and Rwanda.