Hirohiko Araki

Lore & Background

Araki grew up in Sendai, Japan, with his parents and younger identical twin sisters. He cites his sisters' annoyances as the reason he spent time alone reading manga, naming Ai to Makoto as the most important. He supposes his father's art books motivated him to draw manga, influenced by French artist Paul Gauguin and rock stars including David Bowie and Prince. After a school friend praised his manga, he began drawing secretly and submitted his first work in his first year of high school. All submissions were rejected, so he went to Tokyo publishers in person with Poker Under Arms; an editor criticized it but said it had potential for the Tezuka Awards.

Reader's Guide

Hirohiko Araki's significance lies in his creation of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, a series that has run for nearly 40 years and sold over 120 million copies, influencing manga, anime, and popular culture. His introduction of Stands in the third arc became a defining mechanic. Araki's collaborations extend beyond manga: he drew a cover for the journal Cell in 2007, created a piece for the Musée du Louvre in 2009 (Rohan at the Louvre), and partnered with Gucci for exhibitions and one-shots in 2011 and 2013. He also created an official poster for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics and a public art display for JR West in 2024. His book Manga in Theory and Practice (2015) explains his methodology. Araki's legacy includes his distinctive art style, blending flamboyant characters with graphic violence, and his ability to sustain a long-running franchise with multiple adaptations.

Did You Know?

• He submitted his first work to a magazine in his first year of high school, but all submissions were rejected.
• Araki drew the cover art for a collection featuring Yasunari Kawabata's short story 'The Dancing Girl of Izu' in 2008.
• He created an official poster for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics titled 'The Sky above The Great Wave off the Coast of Kanagawa'.