Ask John: Why Do Some Manga Artists Depict Themselves as Caricatures?

Question:
Why don’t many Japanese anime artists show themselves in photos? Some draw themselves as an anime-ish caricatures, but I never see the real life them. Could it be that they are overweight or feel that they do not look good enough to show their pictures to their fans? I’ve always wanted to see what my favorite artists look like, but I never can.

Answer:
The most common explanations I’ve heard for why some manga artists prefer to depict themselves with abstract images or caricatures is because they’re either camera shy or wish to protect their privacy, but I suspect the actual most common reason is a sense of modesty. Masamune Shirow depicts himself as an octopus. Akira Toriyama often draws himself as a small robot called “ToriRobo.” Kia Asamiya uses an illustrated “Now Printing” sign as a self-portrait. Many manga artists use photographs of their pets in place of photos of themselves. I don’t know for certain, but I suspect that these manga artists don’t want to draw attention to themselves because they don’t honestly feel as though they deserve celebrity status and visual recognition. While fans worldwide may love and respect the art that manga artists create, the artists themselves may think of their work as a professional hobby, or merely doodles not worthy of great acclaim. While they may love their work and respect the art of drawing and writing creative fiction, individual manga artists may wish to remain humble and modest about their fame.

It’s also possible that some manga artists may wish to focus attention on the art rather than on the artist, which would explain de-emphasizing the artist. But in cases such as Masamune Shirow and Akira Toriyama’s illustrated personas that actually turn up in their illustrations, manga, and sometimes the anime based on their manga, it’s probably a sense of shyness or modesty that motivates the icon because the icon itself attracts attention instead of shifting attention away. Since many manga artists commonly make public appearances before Japanese fans, I doubt that the use of caricatures or humorous self portraits is a personal conceit used to compensate for feelings of insecurity.

Article revised April 20, 2006.