Kuniko Tsurita Explained

Name Jp:つりたくにこ
Birth Date:October 25, 1947
Death Date:June 14, 1985
Nationality:Japanese
Area:Manga artist
Manga:Yes

was a Japanese manga artist. She was the first woman to be published in the manga magazine Garo and its only regular female comic artist.[1]

History

Tsurita began drawing manga as a teenager and submitting her work to magazine contests, but it was not well received in part because women were expected to create shoujo romance stories, not action stories. One editor wrote "I would recommend you stick with subject matter that you’re familiar with and draw about girls instead.”.[2] She later found success publishing in the alternative manga magazine Garo.

Tsurita died of complications from lupus in 1985 at the age of 37.

Style and Themes

Many of Tsurita's manga were in gekiga style.

Tsurika's work explores and subverts themes of women's gender roles and patriarchal ideas of femininity, gender identity, and sexuality. Some of her work feature androgynous or gender nonconforming self-cameos.

Tsurika has a varied visual style, ranging from sparse simple drawings that make use of blank space to elaborate scenes inspired by Pop Art and Art Nouveau.[3]

Works

This list may not be comprehensive.

Collections in Japanese

Translated Collections

Notes and References

  1. Web site: A Forgotten Manga Artist: Kuniko Tsurita. Churchman, Fi. ArtReview. December 16, 2020.
  2. Web site: The Groundbreaking Female Artist Who Shaped Manga History. Bellot, Gabrielle. The Atlantic. August 5, 2020.
  3. Web site: How Kuniko Tsurita Broke the Mold for Women Comic Artists in Japan. Liberty, Megan N.. Hyperallergic. March 10, 2021.
  4. Web site: The Sky is Blue with a Single Cloud – Drawn & Quarterly.