Yuko Shimazu Yuko Shimazu Yuko Shimizu

Award winning Japanese illustrator based in New York City and instructor at School of Visual Arts.

life after art school, now what? conversation on JUXTAPOZ


The latest issue of JUXTAPOZ Magazine(September 2013) has a big feature called Art School 101, where recent graduates from four different US art schools ask questions to their professors about life after art school.

I had an honor to represent School of Visual Arts where I have been teaching illustration classes since 2003. One of my former students and very talented young artist Jensine Eckwall and I had a conversation which is featured in this article.

The whole conversation took place in my studio earlier this summer.  We probably talked and talked for more than an hour. JUXTAPOZ editors did a great job condensing the essence of conversation into just three pages. Since there are a lot of you out there, some outside of the US where you can get this magazine, who have the same questions Jensine has, I wanted to post the whole conversation here. 
*correction: my friend is an ‘art director’ at Victoria’s Secret, not a ‘director’ as in the article.

Thank you Thomas Woodruff, chair of BFA Illustration and Cartooning Department of SVA for recommending me for this interview, Lisa Batchelder, Publicist at SVA for organizing and overseeing the process, Bryan Derballa for great photos (+ recording our conversations), and good luck to very talented Jensine Eckwall, and hope you visit her site before you leave this page.

The latest issue of JUXTAPOZ can be found at bookstores near you.

80 foot long murals are being painted in DUMBO, Brooklyn (and you can see them in progress too)

I just came back from DUMBO, Brooklyn, where two identical, yet completely different 80 foot long murals (about 24 meters) are being painted.
This is a project I have been collaborating with Sagmeister & Walsh for last couple of months as a part of Dumbo Walls project organized by DUMBO Improvement District and Two Trees Management Co.

One wall is going to be a simple graphic typography on a black wall, and another side is the same type made out of illustrated and detailed octopus tentacles. The walls are painted by very talented Coby Kennedy based on the designs we had created.
If you are in DUMBO area, you can see the work in progress, for the next week to maybe up to two weeks (depends on the progress). The underdrawing stage is done, and the painting has just started. I am planning on checking in as much as I can.
The walls are on Jay street under-path,  right outside of F train York Street exit in DUMBO. (see the map below)


current view, underdrawing is done

how it will look like at the end

the opposite wall. This will be simple graphic white type on a black wall. 

This is where the walls are. Right outside of F train York Street stop, on Jay Street under-path

video inverview on WACOM’s new site

If you are a creative, your Wacom tablet is most probably something that you cannot live without. I am the same. I am on my third Intuos pen tablet, and about to upgrade it to Cintiq.
Well, if you are not in the creative industry, you may say “what the hell are you talking about?” But you may change your mind and get a Wacom product once you log on to their new website that just launched. Because “creativity is for everyone”. YES.

Wacom’s brand-new website just launched today. And I am excited to be a small part of it. You can watch a mini interview video on me. The site design, video direction and shooting were all done by Fantasy Interactive lead by Irene Pereyra and Anton Repponen (Anton also shot the portrait used on my website’s bio page). Music is by Juan Miguel Marin.

Irene, Anton, Juan and I all met as speakers at design conference OFFF in Barcelona in May 2012. We hit it off, and since became good friends.  When Wacom website redesign came to Fi, Irene and Anton got us onboard. Thank you for this great opportunity, and thank you for the friendship, guys. It was a lot of fun!
please set your browser to permalink view to watch the video:

Visit Wacom new site here
Read behind the scenes of making of Wacom site on Fantasy Interactive blog here

PS: The back story was that this was supposed to be just a test video to show as a sample to the client as a concept, and supposed to have been reshot after approval. The client ended up liking the original raw and casual video, and asked us not to reshoot.  So, I am here with hair grown tad bit too long, and make up not done exactly well for camera. But hey, life is funny like that!

virtual studio visit, and other recent press

Asian pop culture and news blog Rocket News 24 came to visit my studio earlier this summer, and recently posted bunch of photos and a short article. It is a virtual studio visit experience. You can choose to read in English or in Japanese. 

and, here is Mr. Bruiser video (my famous personal assistant)

Also a new interview for DART (Design Arts Daily) run by people who puts out American Illustration and American Photography.  Thank you Peggy.

Last but not least.., a new press on Juxtapoz also recently posted.

 

 

LOLITA The Story of a Cover Girl

The new book dedicated to the controversial novel by Vladimir Nabokov LOLITA The Story of a Cover Girl (by John Bertram and Yuri Leving, Print Books) has just come out.
It is already getting a review and a very insightful interview to John Bertram in The New Yorker.
One of the fantastic main features of this book is to have graphic designers and illustrators re-imagine Lolita covers. (Below is the one I created, which is included in the book.) As Mr. Bertram speaks in the New Yorker interview, the original book is not what most of the people, who have only known Lolita from the famous movie and popular culture references, think.
To create the cover, I have revisited the novel for the first time in many decades since I initially read it in high school. I do also clearly recall thinking “oh, this was not what I thought this book was” back then.
Some fantastic new interpretations of the covers are included in this book. I posting some of my personal favorite here.

September is quickly approaching, and I am thinking that this would make a GREAT assignment for Marcos and my senior students at SVA. So, if you have signed up for our class, maybe you should start reading!


my interpretation of LOLITA cover


one of my favorites by Sam Weber

Jessica Hische


Rachel Berger


Jamie Keenan


Jennifer Heuer


get your copy of LOLITA The Story of a Cover Girl here 

happy summer! studio is currently closed

I took off to an island far away to attend a good friend’s wedding (July 18), as well as to celebrate my birthday (July 15).
Studio is currently closed. It will reopen on July 23.
Happy summer, happy July.
Thank you.

SKETCHTRAVEL’s final exhibition in Tokyo

SKETCHTRAVEL‘s final exhibit opened last week in Tokyo (渋谷ヒカリエ 8/CUBE). This two week exhibit is the final destination for the traveling exhibit which started in San Francisco and traveled through Kyoto. (I contributed to the Kyoto exhibit by providing the poster design.)

All the exhibiting works, framed direct reproduction from the pages of  SKETCHTRAVEL sketchbook, went for sale to fund a new library through Room To Read.  I was told that every piece got sold within the first week, and the new library in Africa is now becoming a reality.
The show is open till this Sunday, and admission is free. Sketchtravel reproduction book is published through Chronicles Books in the USA.

There is a beautifully documented interview to the organizer and originator Dice Tsutsumi by Shigesato Itoi. It makes you cry, worth reading. (Sorry, in Japanese only)

サンフランシスコから始まり京都を経て、最後のスケッチトラベル展がこの日曜まで渋谷ヒカリエ 8/CUBEで開催されています（入場無料）。スケッチブック自体に参加した以外に、京都展ではポスターの原画を描かせていただきました。
今回が最終の展示という事で、展示に使われた複製画は、チャリティーRoom To Readを通してアフリカに新たな図書館を寄付するために販売されました。開催６日で完売とのことです。ご購入くださった皆様に感謝致します。
なお、日本版のスケッチトラベル複製本は飛鳥新社から出版されています。

ほぼ日刊イトイ新聞 に主催者堤大介さんと糸井重里さんの対談が掲載されています。涙でます。是非読んでください。


The Unwritten celebrate the 50th issue! (and Fables crossover, and Eisner nomination)

Sample copies of The Unwritten issue #50 arrived to my mailbox yesterday (in stores June 26). It’s the 50th issue! So excited. I have been illustrating covers for this popular DC Comics Vertigo series every month since  the first issue in early of 2009. Time sure flies fast, and I feel very fortunate that the series came this far.

A few other exciting news.
The Unwritten covers got yet another nomination for Eisner Awards in best cover category. This is the third nomination. Thank you  creators Mike Carey and Peter Gross, as well as editors Shelly Bond, Greg Lockard, and of course Karen Berger (who is no longer with Vertigo), for years of encouragements and support. And Thank YOU readers for continuously making The Unwritten one of the most popular series at Vertigo.

And, from the issue #50 to #54 is a five issue series in series to crossover with another Vertigo favorite Fables. I am posting first four covers here. In each cover, I got to draw my take on Fables characters, Snow and Bigby (as the wolf) for 50, Bigby (as human) for 51, Mister Dark for 52, and Frau Totenkinder for 53. Special thank you to friend Danny Pelavin for contributing his fabulous Anna Font for #52 cover.

There will be a stand-alone Unwritten original graphic novel Tommy Taylor & the Ship that Sank Twice scheduled to be published in September as well. I am currently in the midst of working on its cover ideas with the team. Stay tuned!

autographed copies now available from Books of Wonder

Thank you for those who came to the signing last Saturday.
But for those who missed the event, or live too far away to attend the event, Books of Wonder is now selling the autographed copies online and  at their NY store. While supplies last.
They also have great selections of autographed copies by many kids book authors and artists. So, check them out.
Buy autographed copies here. 
See inside of Barbed Wire Baseball book here. 

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