Hiromi Matsuo
Taisho roman refers to a trend and cultural phenomena that remind viewers of the atmosphere of Taisho Period (1912-26) influenced by Romanticism in Europe, and Showa modan (or Showa modernness) to that of the 1930s, which coincides with the early years of Showa Period (1926-89), marked with the combination of Western and Japanese styles. Artists who led these fashions are represented by Yumeji Takehisa (1884-1934), Kasho Takabatake (1888-1966) and Junichi Nakahara (1913-1983). Though it may be no secret for fans of such virtuosos as epitomize the style, artistic pieces suggestive of theirs have been created by an artist whom the writer is going to introduce to readers: Hiromi Matsuo.
Her book "Illustration Making & Visual Book" (2016).
Born in Shimane Prefecture, the portrayer of attractive women made her debut in 2006 with illustrations for the theme song CD of television drama series “Itsuwari no Hanazono” and event flyers. Having spent the two following years as a manga artist, she started her career as a freelance illustrator in 2010, contributing her works to collective card games, magazines, novels and doujinshi (self-published books). She has already had good fame in online artist community Pixiv, Twitter and doujinshi events before her first own book “Hyakkaten Waltz (Waltz of department store)” was released on this year’s January 28th via Jitsugyo no Nihon Sha, Ltd. Based on her self-published work of the same name and themed on a fictional department store Mitsubeni Hyakkaten, the collection of her comics and illustrations – nostalgic beauties depicted with brilliant coloring and delicate brushwork – has made so great a leap in her popularity among the public that we can already see at least its seventh issue. It has been introduced on Asahi Shimbun and Sankei News, while she is now one of the most spotlighted illustrators as spoken of in monthly literary magazine website Da Vinci News; her reputation is still on the rise, which you can tell from her new book “Illustration Making & Visual Book,” brought out on August 8 via Shoeisha Co., Ltd., has become the topic on media including Yomiuri Shimbun and event information webpage Walker Plus.
Her newest publication: Hyakkaten Waltz Calendar 2017 (2016).
The fresh book has her exquisite illustrations, sketches made between 2010 and 2016 and shows the process of making her artworks. What draws the attention of avid fans and aspiring artists in the publication is, though, her interview, which gives readers a glance at her creative source, and even illustrators whom she is taking heed of. Under no circumstances should art enthusiasts miss the artist with an ambition – spoiler alert! – to “paint pictures that will survive for many years as Seiichi Hayashi-san does and Yumeji Takehisa-san did.”
Motomachitencho
