The beginning of comics as an art form in France can be traced back to the 19th century but it wasn’t until the mid 20th century that they really started to take hold in the culture with titles like ‘The Adventures of Tintin’ (1929). By the 1960’s the medium was referred to as ‘bande dessinée’ (drawn strips). Soon artists began creating art and stories for a more mature audience and critics began to refer to graphic novels and comics as ‘The Ninth Art’. Since then a vibrant manga culture has taken hold and has influenced many new artists to incorporate Japanese styles into their pieces. To illustrate how strong this has taken hold in French culture the Louvre Museum has been featuring manga as modern art. They have also invited manga artists from inside and outside of France to contribute to the ‘Louvre Museum BD Project’ which has the artists create pieces using the Louvre as inspiration. That same project is now coming to the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum. The exhibition will include over 300 original works by 16 artists including the famous Japanese mangaka Araki Hirohiko, Taniguchi Jiro, and many others.
Photo: 松本大洋・『ルーヴルの猫』
• 4/15 (Sat.) ~ 5/28 (Sun.) (closed on Wednesday except 5/3)
• 10:00~20:00 (L.I.: 19:30) (5/28: ~18:00)
• Adult: ¥1,300, adv. ¥1,100, HS and Uni.: ¥1,000, adv. ¥800, ES and JHS: ¥600, adv. ¥400
• Fukuoka Asian Art Museum
• 7~8F Riverain Center Building, 3-1 Shimokawabata-machi, Hakata-ku
• 092-263-1100
• http://www.no9fukuoka.com/
• https://www.facebook.com/manga9art/
