Kazuo Oga, Animator

Back in June 2007 I was working on a piece about an exhibition of artwork by the Studio Ghibli animator Kazuo Oga. Sure, I could have gone in and chatted with this giant of the anime world, but with my crazy schedule, the easiest way to get things done was to email some questions. Here is the result of the interview with everything translated into English.

Liddell: How did you become a background artist?

Oga: After I graduated from design school, by chance I saw an ad that said, "a person who likes painting". I saw that ad and that was for animation.

Liddell: What do you think about the Ghibli animation firm?

Oga: Each director has his or her own background, which makes it very rewarding. The finished movie is just a hard work to draw, so it's a blessing for people who do background paintings.

Liddell: What is the most memorable scene in your work for Ghibli?

Oga: In "My Neighbor Totoro," the picture of the bus stop in the rain with lights on in the dark, and a picture of rain falling in the bright hours, bending sideways to the right of the camphor and cedar trees. Two paintings with roads. As for an animated film, I would say "Heisei-era Raccoon Dog War Ponpoko."

Liddell: Why do you like "Ponpoko" the most?

Oga: Because I took a walk around the Tama Hills Park, which is my living area, and drew it with a sense of gratitude to my cherished place. Not only was I able to draw the four seasons, but I was also able to draw the transitional process of each season, which is not normally depicted in other animation works."

Liddell: What do you value or struggle with when drawing background images?

Oga: Since it is necessary to draw a large number of background images, it is necessary to draw them in as little time as possible. To that end, it is necessary to make the points and characteristics stand out simply by omitting and emphasizing in a good way. It's good when you know what you're drawing, but if you don't know what you're drawing and you don't have a clear image of what you're going to draw, you'll end up with too much detail, and you'll have a hard time, drawing too densely. In such a case, try walking on your own feet to see the actual scenery.

Liddell: Finally, where did your passion for background art come from?

Oga: I have always liked walking and looking at scenery, so I couldn’t be happier than drawing pictures like this became my job. I am grateful that animation has its own terrain, if you don't recognize that and do your best, you'll end up getting hurt, so I draw with that kind of feeling.

Angela Gossow [Arch Enemy]

In March 2012, I interviewed Angela Gossow the singer of the Anarchist Death Metal band Arch Enemy. After a planned phoner fell through, I was asked to send some questions by email. Interviewing by phone and by email require quite diffent approaches. With the phone you get instant feedback, but with email it's more important to create the kind of questions that can 'live on their own.' This means that they should not be the sort of questions that can be easily answered with a simple yes or no. They should also be mildly provocative so as to get more than the basic press release kind of answer. This might also require a spot of humour. This particular interview is a masterclass in the art of the email interview, as Angela delivered plenty of good copy.

Kazuhiro Uno, painter

Sometimes interviewing can be very precise and specific, but other times you just throw out questions and hope for a good response. In February 2012 I interviewed three Realist artists for an article I was writing about the Hoki Museum. As they were all good painters of nudes, I sent them three identical sets of questions. This is the response from Kazuhiro Uno.

Liddell: Tell our readers why you have become a Realist painter?

Uno: Because realist painting is the most natural way for me. Once I tried to express myself through abstract representation as a study, but it was not for me. I went back to realist painting.

Liddell: How is the situation of Realist painting in Japanese art? Is it still marginalized? 

Uno: I don’t think realist painting is the mainstream in Japanese art.  In my university days, only a few students studied realist painting. In the art market, I think realist painters are not so many. I don’t think that realist painting will go mainstream, probably. Because the way of expression is not very original, it won’t represent a cutting edge of the culture while pursuing new things. But realist painting is always there, from ancient times to the present, like a big tree in the forest. I think realist painting is going to be forever there in the future. I think that the originality of realist painting is the origin of people that they always want to come back to. I think most people have an interest in realist painting. It is in demand and it is supplied.

Liddell: Last week I went to three exhibitions at major public museums of Japanese contemporary artists. Of course, none of them were Realists. What do you think about the dominance of non-Realist art in public museums? Do you sometimes get angry about the apparent bias?

Uno: I think, unless social consciousness changes, public museums will not exhibit realist paintings 

Liddell: Who are the artists who have influenced and inspired you the most?

Uno: I was affected very much by the American artist Andrew Wyeth.

Liddell: You are best known for your paintings of the female form and nudes. What is the attraction of the female form to you, apart from the attraction it has for any healthy heterosexual male?

Uno: Because of the flexibility which only women have. This suits my painting when I express the nature and soul. I am a man, so, I think, it is natural to paint pictures of women.

Liddell: Realist oil painting is considered a very European style of art. The tonal qualities in particular are very different from anything in indigenous Japanese art. This has led some scholars to speculate that there may even be some differences between the way in which the European and East Asian eye perceives light. Light in Western Europe is more diffuse because of the clouds, mist, and the angle of the sun (it is much further North), while Japanese light is characteristically bright and intense, so that bright colours are more important than tones. What do you as a Japanese painter working in a tonally-rich Western Realist style think about these points?

Uno: As European art has been influenced by Japanese art, such as Ukiyoe, and developed, Japanese art has been also influenced by the Western culture and developed. In these days we can take any information across the sea, it is slightly difficult to talk about only the influence of environment of the region. But I am influenced by the environment of my childhood days, especially for the sense of beauty. I think beauty is to adjust. While I paint Western realist painting, the experience of light in my childhood days influences me. I think Japanese realist paintings have the essence of Asia.

Liddell: How important is it for Realist art to have someone like Mr. Hoki who collects realist art and creates a museum like the Hoki Museum?

Uno: Yes, thanks to Mr. Hoki, realist painters can go to another stage and achieve public fame.

Liddell: How do you feel about showing your art, which is very traditional, in such a futuristic building as the Hoki? What do you like about the building? What are its good points?

Uno: The building of the Hoki Museum gets a lot of attention in the area. I think it is OK for people coming to see the beauty of the building. The building of Hoki museum is futuristic, but it was especially built for the traditional realist paintings. I don't feel this is unusual. I like the Hoki Museum. The light is good for viewing paintings. The interior design is simple, so that we can concentrate on paintings.

Liddell: At the exhibition you are showing a painting called “Forest Seen in a Dream.” Could you tell our readers a little bit about the story of that painting, such as its origins and meaning?

Uno: “Forest Seen in a Dream.” is inspired by the artworks of Andrew Wyeth. I think that it seems slightly surrealist. I always draw a picture by my sense, not always as it is. Sometimes a woman floats in the air, sometimes she is caught in sunlight, even at night. I may imagine 'as if I am walking on the clouds' when I am excited and feel high, and when I want to cry, I may feel 'as if cold rain is falling.' I always draw a picture as such a free image. I always take a walk at night. When I take a walk on a wooded path, I feel something mysterious. Once I dreamed of a black forest at night. I went through the forest as if I were swimming and walking. I felt that I was living and spending time, just like the air, trees, leaves, moon, and stars are doing. I kept painting “Forest Seen in a Dream”  to feel the silent breath of the air in the forest.

Liddell: How do you work with your models? Do they pose for long periods, or do you use photography? How about when you paint nudes? Does that create any special difficulties? I am thinking the models must feel very self-conscious. How do you deal with that?

Uno: Sometimes, I do the drawing while the model is posing for a long time. Drawing is the process to clarify the image, but I use photos to paint.  For me, I do not reproduce the reality, I reproduce the image, so I try to reject the relation of reality between the model and myself. When I paint nudes, I take photos. It is a problem that only a few models undertake this job. It is difficult to find a good model. I always make an effort to find a good model. Her self-consciousness can have a negative impact on the painting. I try to achieve her understanding of my intent in my painting and get her to cooperate. Sometimes I try to make good mood, for example we have a cup of coffee and talk and make her relax. 

Liddell: Have you used foreign models?

Uno: I have not asked foreign models. I do not have a friend among them, so I can’t form an image of a foreign model.  If I have a foreign friend, I ‘d like to paint a picture of her. If I have a chance to do so, I would like to try.

Jean-Claude Wouters, Artist

Belgian artist Jean-Claude Wouters explains his mysterious and often difficult-to-see art. Interview from around 2010.

Masaru Igarashi, Curator

In 2004 I was working on an article about two Picasso exhibitions happening in Tokyo at the same time. I decided to email a few questions to Masaru Igarashi, the chief curator of one of the museums involved, Sompo Japan. Mr Igarashi kindly responded, although possibly a little late, as I did not use any quotes from him in my article. Publishing his comments here, 18 years after the event, thus presents me with a chance to right this historic wrong. 

Katsuo Suzuki, Curator

Suzuki received his MA in art history from the University of Tokyo and has worked at MOMAT since 1998, specialising in modern and contemporary art of Japan and the West. I interviewed him by email in 2002 for an article about a Kandinsky exhibition that I was writing for the Asahi Shimbun International Herald Tribune. The sourcing of all the paintings from Russia could be seen as part of Putin's early attempt at cultural power projection. 

 

Ian Astbury, singer

On the 26th of March, 2010, I did a telephone interview with Ian Astbury, the singer of the legendary rock band The Cult. He was in the USA (New York). I was in Tokyo, probably late in the evening, He was very happy to talk, and the interview could easily have been extended well beyond the one hour that it lasted. Also check out the actual recording now up on YouTube.