Hirata, Hiroshi

Date of death: December 11, 2021

Hiroshi Hirata was a Japanese manga artist. Sanpei Shirato recommended him to Garo magazine. Best known in the United States for the samurai manga series Satsuma Gishiden, which is published in the United States by Dark Horse Comics. Hirata's works belong to the subset of manga known as "gekiga" ("dramatic pictures"), and his artwork has a realistic style comparable to Kojima Goseki's work on Lone Wolf and Cub. He's also known for his use of elaborate calligraphy for dialogue (he did the kanji for Akira), which has been preserved (though still translated) in the American editions of his work. According to Frederik L. Schodt's Dreamland Japan: Writings on Modern Manga, famed Japanese author and militarist Yukio Mishima admired Hirata's work. Also, Usagi Yojinbo creator Stan Sakai has praised Hirata's artwork. Hirata is one of the very few manga authors whose work has been translated into Hindi. A translation by Yoshiyo Takakura of his 1978 manga Chi Daruma Kenpo was published by Yamamatsu Yuukichi’s Delhi-based Ganga Yamato Company in 2005. He died on December 11th, 2021 due to a heart failure.

Tomi Shinzou is his younger brother. Oki Keiichirou was one of his assistants.

(Source: Baka-Updates)