Seiun Award Dragon Con Award Julie Award Inkpot Award, 2018[1] Artist Guest of Honor, Worldcon 65 (Nippon 2007)[2]
Yoshitaka Amano (天野 喜孝,Amano Yoshitaka; born March 26, 1952) is a Japanese visualartist, character designer,illustrator, ascenic designer for theatre and film, and acostume designer. He began his career in 1967 atTatsunoko Production working on anime such asSpeed Racer[3] and later became the creator of iconic and influential characters from anime such asGatchaman,Tekkaman,Honeybee Hutch, andCasshern. In 1982 he went independent and became afreelance artist, finding success as an illustrator for numerous authors, and worked on best-selling novel series, such asThe Guin Saga andVampire Hunter D. He is also known for his commissioned illustrations for the popular video game franchiseFinal Fantasy.[4]
Since the 1990s Amano has been creating and exhibiting paintings featuring his iconic retro pop icons in galleries around the world, primarily painting on aluminium box panels with acrylic and automotive paint. He is a five-time winner of theSeiun Award, and also won the 1999Bram Stoker Award for his collaboration withNeil Gaiman,Sandman: The Dream Hunters.[5]
Amano's influences include early Western comic books,Orientalism,art nouveau, andJapanese woodblock prints. In early 2010, he established Studio Devaloka, a film production company.[6]
Amano was born inShizuoka,Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, to Yoshio (1917–1962) and Kesano (née Fujimoto) Amano. He is the youngest child of four. Amano's father was alacquer artist, specializing in traditionalSurugalacquerware.[7]: 9–13 As a young adolescent, Yoshitaka Amano was fascinated with drawing. In 1967, he began working in the animation department ofTatsunoko Productions, where he was introduced to the early Japaneseanime movement.[8][9] His first paid project was for theSpeed Racer anime franchise. He was a character designer for anime shows such asTime Bokan,Gatchaman,Tekkaman, andHoneybee Hutch.[10]
In the 1960s, Amano was exposed to Western art styles throughcomic books, which he claims among his artistic roots. He has citedNeal Adams as his favorite comic book artist, noting that he would often purchase used comics based on Adams's cover artwork, only to be disappointed that the interior artist was different.[11] Amano was also fascinated by the art styles ofpsychedelic art andpop art of the West, particularly the work of American Pop artistPeter Max.[12] In the 1970s, Amano studied the artworks of the late 19th century and early 20th century European movement ofArt Nouveau, as well as the Russian orientalists (Leon Bakst, Ivan Bilibin) and the ancient Japanese hand woodblock printing work ofUkiyo-e.[12] Amano remained at Tatsunoko Productions until 1982.
During the 1980s, Amano concentrated on illustrations for science fiction and fantasy works. Combined with the influence of his prior experience in animation, this focus resulted in a personal style influenced by both modern surrealism and realism.[10]
He left Tatsunoko Production and started his activities as a freelancer in 1982. He did illustration and cover page design of Kimaira series, written byBaku Yumemakura, from this year. In 1983, he illustrated the novelDemon City Shinjuku and the first inHideyuki Kikuchi'sVampire Hunter D novel series.[10] He also worked as a character designer on the 1985 movie adaptation ofVampire Hunter D, which was one of the first anime movies to be released outside Japan. In interviews, however, Amano has stated that he was not pleased with the final product of the movie.[13]
His illustrations begin to be published in collections such asMaten in 1984.[14] That year he drew the mangaAmon Saga, written by Baku Yumemakura, which was later adapted into anOVA.
Amano's work on theFinal Fantasy series, as with his science fiction and fantasy illustrations, is known for its wispy lines and vibrant use of color.
In 1987, Amano joinedSquare (now known asSquare Enix) to work on arole-playing video game for theNintendo Entertainment System:Final Fantasy. Amano produced conceptual design pieces for the game in both traditional and computer designed artwork.[15] At this time, he also worked for another video game company,Kure Software Koubou, producing box cover illustrations as well as some character designs. This work included designs for Kure'sFirst Queen series.[16] FollowingFinal Fantasy VI in 1994, he stepped down as the conceptual, image, and graphic designer of the series. As of 2025, he continues to provide promotional and character artwork for the following games and to design their title logos.[17]
Amano became the world's highest-earning artist in 1996, earning$40,000,000 (equivalent to $80,000,000 in 2024) that year from sales ofsilk screens,lithographs andetchings based on hisbook illustrations. His work began receiving international recognition following the release ofFinal Fantasy VII in 1997.[18] In 2006,Hironobu Sakaguchi, the former designer and creator of theFinal Fantasy series, recruited Amano and composerNobuo Uematsu to work on video games atMistwalker.[4]
Amano's firstexhibition, called "Hiten", was held in 1989 at Yurakucho Mullion inTokyo, Japan.[20] In 1990, he began to work as an artist and set designer for stage theater. His first work for theater wasTamasaburo Bando'sNayotake.[12]
Beginning in 1995 with his work at the Biennale d'Orléans inFrance, he received increased recognition outside Japan. Further international exhibitions followed, including the 1999 "Hero" at theAngel Orensanz Foundation and the 1997 workshop and exhibition "Think Like Amano".[21][22]
In 1998, Amano appeared as Hiroshi in the movieNew Rose Hotel, loosely based on theWilliam Gibson short story of the same name.[23]
He illustrated three album covers for the Japanese power metal bandGalneryus:The Flag of Punishment (2003),Advance to the Fall (2005), andBeyond the End of Despair (2006).[26]
In 2004 Amano was asked by creative directorGK Reid to create illustrations in collaboration with authorNeil Gaiman and featuringDavid Bowie andIman as sci-fi characters, for "The Return of the Thin White Duke" a portion of which were published inV Magazine.[27]
In 2010, following a small solo art exhibition tour titled "Devaloka" it was announced that Amano had established a film production company, Studio Devaloka, and would be directing a3D anime titledZan, with additional projects to be announced in the future.[6] On December 15, 2010, the official website for the film, now titledDeva Zan, was unveiled, along with information concerning an upcoming press conference, to be held on December 21, 2010.[31] The roughly ten-minute-long conference revealed details about the project, including staff, as well as a short trailer for the film, which stylistically emulates the look of Amano's paintings.[32]
In April 2012, an illustrated novel adaptation of the work was announced byDark Horse Manga. To be released in January 2013, the novel will be Amano's debut as an author and will include over 240 original illustrations.[33] Despite a projected 2012 release date, Amano stated in an October 2012 interview that the animation project was still in its development and funding stages and may instead be realized as a TV series. The possibility of a video game adaptation was also mentioned.[34]
In 2013, Amano collaborated with Japanese rock starHyde (L'Arc-en-Ciel/VAMPS) on an art exhibition titledDestiny and Decay: Nippon Evolution.[35]
On July 2, 2023, Amano appeared atAnime Expo to reveal the cover art for the classical single "Requiem" by rock artistYoshiki.[36]
