Mangaka
Professor of Kyoto Seika
University
Female
mangaka and professor of Seika Univ.,
Ms.
Keiko Takemiya
Born
2/13/1950 in Tokushima city.
In
1967, when she was in a high school, she won monthly shinjin prize in a monthly
magazine, Com.
In
1968, when she was a college student at the department of education, Tokushima
national university, she quit the university and started as a professional
manga in a new year’s special issue of weekly girls’ manga,
Margaret by “Ringo no tsumi (literally means “Sin of Apple”)
In
1976, published a homo-sexual story of “Kaze to Ki no Uta” based on
French Gymnajium in 19th century in Weekly syojo comic.
In
1977, published a science fiction of “Tera e” from Monthly manga
syonen.
In
1980, won the 25th Shogakukan manga prize by “Kaze to Ki no
Uta (means “Song/Poem of Wind and Tree”)” and “Tera e
(means “To Earth”).”
In
2000, she started to teach the theory of story in manga at Kyoto Seika
University.
*Look
at the page of 103 in Schodt’s book!
4. She has no
limitations of the subject matters of manga, such as SF, love, comedy, fantasy,
historical story, and so on. (But, she said that she might not be good at
expressing girls’ feelings since she has never had emotional feelings
including jealousy, envy, and so on, which girls typically have in the process
of becoming women.) In addition, she was not afraid to use new themes, as in
the homosexual story based on the life of boys who were living in a French
domitory during the19th century, since she felt the necessity of
depicting the story in reflection of Japanese society (At the end of the 60s.
young Japanese people started to enjoy more freedom due to the influence of the
US. For example, she enjoyed taking naked pictures of herself with her
friends.) However, she did not have confidence that readers were ready to
understand the message of the story and she was a little worried about the
readers’ reaction to the particular story.
5.
Due to the diverse subjects she expresses through manga, she was asked to publish
a 160 year history of a French fashion company, Elemes. (It is well known as a scarf with the
design of harness. The reason the company asked Ms. Takemiya was that the
company originally started as a harness company and Ms. Takemiya was the only
one who could depict horses well in manga. Also, if the company history was
depicted in print only, no one
would have read it Manga was more familiar to the French than
Americans.)
1.
She
started to teach how to create and develop the story of manga in the program of
manga at Kyoto Seika University, April, 2000. She commutes from Tokyo to Kyoto
to teach the class one a week. There are about 40 undergraduate students in her
class under two courses of manga: kyakuhongairon (literally means, an
introduction of story of manga) and kyakuhonnennsyuu (literally means a
practical seminar of story of
manga). When she started to teach these courses, no one knows that Ms.
Takemiya was the professor. So, next year, more students will apply for taking
courses.
7.
She has both negative and positive opinions of the comic market. However, she
encouraged her students to go to a comic market which provides only original
dojinshi since she does not find any originality from the dojinshi of parody
based on famous manga.
8.
Launching a curriculum related to manga in secondary schools is welcome.
Through the curriculum, children will be given an opportunity to learn the
potential for manga and they will learn the infinite possibilities of showing
their expression though the characteristics of manga.