About The Artist
Fumio Obata
Is a comic book author whose work and inspiration come from cultural differences and social issues in his surroundings. He is also a visual artist in his own right.
Fumio was born in Tokyo and grew up with the manga and anime cultures of the 1970s and ‘80s. Always fond of drawing, at school his exercise books were always full of cartoon sketches. In 1991 he moved to the UK and has been living on British soil since.
He studied BA Illustration at Glasgow School of Art and obtained a Master’s degree in Communication Design from Royal College of Art in London. He pursues his career in sequential imagery/design and is eager to extend its potentials into a wider perspective.
Latest Work
His latest graphic novel ‘The Garden’, written by a Japan-based Scottish author Sean Michael Wilson, explores wellbeing and meditation through gardening - a subject matter that aims towards new readership and was supported by the Arts Council of England.
One of his graphic novels ‘Just So Happens’ published by Jonathan Cape, Random House, has won many high acclaims and now been translated and published in 8 different countries.
Other Interests
As well as pursuing his career, he lectures BA Illustration at the University of Gloucestershire in the UK. In 2008, he undertook an artist residency at La Cité Internationale de la Bande Dessinée et de l’image in Angoulême, France. Since then he has had a close relation with the French comic book scene and chose graphic novels and comic books as his main creative outlet.
Fumio also has a career as an animator
Between 2003 and 2008, he worked with Duran Duran, Channel4, and joined Redkite Animations in Edinburgh in 2006.
In Edinburgh, he worked on numbers of joint projects with DC Thompson. During these 5 years he learned the importance of teamwork, structure and planning - the practical side of creative industry.