InterviewFeatured Artist

"My mother was a piano teacher, so I learned to play the piano from a young age. He grew up in an environment where he had many opportunities to come into contact with music, but gradually became strongly interested in painting expression, and after graduating from high school, he went on to study at Tokyo Designer Academy. I majored in computer graphics and learned the art of drawing digitally. However, in digital production, I often make detailed adjustments, such as enlarging the drawn area to check and correct whether the lines overlap. On the other hand, analog has a large element of one-shot competition, so I have come to find it attractive when it can be expressed boldly and freely. I realized that analog methods were suitable for me."  
After graduating from vocational school, he worked for a general company instead of going into the design industry. Since then, Sugimaru says that he has continued to draw as a hobby. However, about 15 years ago, a major turning point came. After marrying her husband, who was devoted to art in general, she began to face creative activities again.  
In 2018, I exhibited at an exhibition in Australia, and the following year I participated in a group exhibition at The Loft at Liz's in the Beverly Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, USA. Since then, he has held solo and group exhibitions in Nagoya, Tokyo, Osaka, and other places every year. Currently, I continue to present my works mainly at Gallery IYN in Osaka."

"I usually use acrylic paint to draw "egg heroes". After becoming a housewife, I began to realize the affordability of prices and the value of ingredients in my daily life. In particular, the price of eggs has risen due to soaring prices, but in the past, you could buy 10 eggs for about 100 yen, and if you had one, you could expand the range of dishes. I was impressed by how amazing that was, and I decided to create a character with an egg motif. It also contains the message that 'you can become a hero of anything.'"  
Inspired by familiar things, Sugimaru created an original character called "Egg Hero". In addition to the "egg hero", the work is packed with various small and loose illustrations such as animals, plants, food, vehicles, and stars. As I stared at it, it seemed that each character would start to move. The vivid colors and comical expressions will energize the viewer. On the other hand, he is also working on contemporary art as a work that is the opposite of the cuteness of "Egg Hero".  
"Since 'Egg Hero' is an original character, I sometimes wanted to draw completely different works, so I started contemporary art. While "egg heroes" are fun to draw like American comics, contemporary art draws inspiration from their own experiences and social conditions, and works on their creations while capturing the essence. What I am currently working on is to create a work with the motif of the forest scenery I visited the other day. The light shines on and the beautiful scenes are being sublimated into paintings, so it seems to be one of my favorite works."

"The work I have the most affection for in the "Egg Hero" series is 'Egg Man'. It was a work I created in the early days with the idea of writing an egg hero, and it was also the first time I was able to embody the ideal shape, so I left an impression on me. Egg men are also the ones who make their dreams and ideals come true. For example, it is quite difficult for me to go to space myself. However, if you are an egg man, you can fly into space in your work. It's also a work that is full of such hopes and excitement."  
The production of "Egg Hero" is said to be the most fun time for sugimaru. This may be because the egg man is not just a character, but a symbol of dreams and possibilities. When creating, it seems that his routine is to calm his mind while drinking coffee, switching his mind and increasing his motivation to say, "I'm going to draw!" In addition, I emphasize input on a daily basis and face creation.  
"I am inspired by visiting various exhibitions regardless of genre, and I also like to go to aquariums and zoos, and I often observe the animals and get hints necessary for my creations."  
These stimuli will be reflected in the work and expand the range of expression. And as an extension of his creation, he says that new challenges are also waiting for him.  
"In the future, I would like to take on the challenge of creating manga of "egg heroes" in the form of doujinshi, and to that end, I would like to actively create new characters, such as drawing "egg heroes" in various poses and making ramen into characters. While a single illustration completes a work, manga requires multiple panels. It is also essential to assemble the story and structure for that amount. I would be happy if I could learn these elements on my own and try a new expression called manga."