Jimmy Liao (; pen name: , ; born 15 November 1958) is a Taiwanese

illustrator An illustrator is an artist who specializes in enhancing writing or elucidating concepts by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text or idea. The illustration may be intended to clarify complicate ...

as well as a

picture book A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The ima ...

writer. His Chinese

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen name may be used to make the author's na ...

, 幾米, is phonetically derived from his English given name Jimmy.

Biography

After graduating from

Chinese Culture University The Chinese Culture University (CCU; ) is a private Taiwanese university located in Yangmingshan in Shilin District, Taipei, Taiwan. Established in 1962, CCU is one of the largest universities in Taiwan with an enrollment of about 32,000 student ...

in which he majored in art, Jimmy worked in an advertising company for twelve years, and then he worked as an illustrator for newspapers and magazines. Jimmy was a middle-aged man who had survived a battle with

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

in 1995 and was determined to devote himself heart and soul to his art. In 1998 his picture books ''Secrets In The Forest'' (森林裡的秘密) and ''A Fish With A Smile'' (微笑的魚) were published in Taiwan. These two books earned him several book awards and were regarded as “The Best Children’s Books” in several Taiwanese newspapers, such as '' The China Times'', ''

Min Sheng Bao ''Min Sheng Bao'' ( zh, c=民生報, p=Mínshēng Bào, poj=Bîn-seng-pò, l=The People's Welfare Daily) was a tabloid newspaper based in Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography ...

'', and ''

United Daily News ''United Daily News'' (UDN; ) is a newspaper published in Taiwan. It is considered to support the pan-Blue Coalition in its editorials. History UDN was founded in 1951 by Wang Tiwu as a merger of three newspapers, ''Popular Daily'' (全民日� ...

''. His picture book ''A Chance of Sunshine'' or ''

Turn Left, Turn Right ''Turn Left, Turn Right'' () is a 2003 romantic drama film produced and directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-Fai. Filmed in Taipei, the film stars Takeshi Kaneshiro and Gigi Leung. The story is based on the illustrated book ''A Chance of Sunsh ...

'' (向左走, 向右走), which was published in 1999, was voted “One of the Ten Most Influential Books” by the Taiwanese bookstore chain, Kingstones. Jimmy's books have been translated into dozens of languages and sold around the world. His books have also been adapted for

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communi ...

movie A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

, and

animation Animation is a filmmaking technique whereby still images are manipulated to create moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Animati ...

. Many of his characters from his picture books have been applied to the making of

doll A doll is a physical model, model typically of a human or humanoid character, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have also been used in traditional religious rituals throughout the world. Traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and ...

s and pictures on other authorized products, notably leather purses. His pictures are characterized by their use of striking, bold colours and depict central figures that often appear small in the foreground, suggesting the viewpoint of a child in the wide, sometimes sinister, world, or to hint at loneliness. In June 2019, Jimmy Liao was the Guest of Honor of the ''Comicfestival'' in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Publications

*'' Beautiful Solitude'' *'' Sound of Colors'', translated by Sarah L. Thomson (

Little, Brown and Company Little, Brown and Company is an American publishing company founded in 1837 by Charles Coffin Little and James Brown in Boston. For close to two centuries, it has published fiction and nonfiction by American authors. Early lists featured Emil ...

, 2006). *'' Starry Starry Night'' *''

The Floating Landscape ''The Floating Landscape'' is a 2003 romance film written and directed by Carol Lai and starring Ekin Cheng, Karena Lam and Liu Ye. A Hong Kong-French co-production, the film was shown in competition for the Golden Lion at the 60th Venice Inter ...

'' *''The Rainbow of Time'', translated by Wang Xinlin and Andrea Lingenfelter
Balestier Press
2015) *''

'' *'' When the Moon Forgot'', translated to English in 2009 and published by Little, Brown and Company.

References

External links

*
Jimmy Liao
at

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

* 1958 births Living people Taiwanese illustrators Taiwanese writers People from Yilan County, Taiwan {{Taiwan-writer-stub