Macoto Takahashi

Makoto Takahashi (Osaka, 1934 – 2024) was a Japanese painter, illustrator and manga artist whose shōjo manga had a decisive influence on the visual style of that genre. His approach, which blended manga with the lyrical painting known as jojōga, became the standard visual convention of shōjo.

Born in Osaka, he hesitated in high school between traditional Japanese painting (nihonga) and Western-style painting (yōga) until he discovered the work of jojōga artist Jun'ichi Nakahara in the magazine Himawari and chose lyrical painting. He started in 1953 illustrating books for the kashi-hon lending market and in 1956 began the shōjo series Paris-Tokyo. In 1958 he settled his signature style with Arashi o koete in the magazine Shojo, featuring slender figures with large, sparkling eyes, overlapping panels and emotionally charged backgrounds.

In the early 1960s he stopped drawing shōjo manga, feeling unable to adopt a girl's point of view, and turned to illustration, producing album covers, stationery and magazine covers. He became especially popular with the Gothic Lolita subculture, and from 1992 he held an annual exhibition at his home in Sakura. His paintings of the 2020s, based on different countries, show his lasting interest in local flowers and architecture.