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Helen McCarthy Lecture on Naoki Urasawa at Japan House London

Japan House London, which is running a free exhibition entitled This is Manga – the Art of Urasawa Naoki, has announced a lecture on Urasawa by Helen McCarthy on Wednesday June 19.

Urasawa's manga include 20th Century Boys, Monster, Pluto, Master Keaton and Yawara. Helen McCarthy's lecture is from 6.30 p.m. to 7.30 p.m. and is free, but must be booked at the above link. The talk is described as follows:

"Naoki Urasawa has been called one of the artists that have changed the history of manga, and his work has been recognised with multiple awards domestically and internationally. In this talk, Helen McCarthy views his work as artist and writer from another angle: like Osamu Tezuka, Urasawa is an explorer, a pathfinder building bridges from the comfortable world we know and accept into other, wider landscapes. From his debut as artist on 'BETA!!' to his current work 'Renzoku Manga Shōsetsu Asadora!', Urasawa's filmic panel layouts and subtly detailed frames lead us through complex and often challenging worlds with characters who are real and relatable but never ordinary."

According to the press release on the free Naoki Urasawa exhibition, which is running until July 28:

"This retrospective exhibition will introduce Urasawa's ideas from inception through development, with more than 400 original drawings and storyboards on display. Selected stories from seven of his major works will be presented, highlighting the breadth of the artist's narrative styles. There'll even be a reading corner with full English translations of his bestselling stories.

"And, through changing displays, four consecutive stories from 'Yawara!' (pictured above left) will be presented over the course of the exhibition, one story every two weeks, encouraging you to return again and again to experience the work in the weekly serial style of many Japanese comic anthologies."