is a Japanese

manga artist A is a comic artist who writes and/or illustrates manga. As of 2006, about 3,000 professional manga artists were working in Japan. Most manga artists study at an art college or manga school or take on an apprenticeship with another artist be ...

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 complicat ...

, and

musician A musician is a person who composes, conducts, or performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general term used to designate one who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters who w ...

. He is noted for his early career in gay manga, as the

lead singer The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of th ...

of the '' kayōkyoku'' group Tomari, and for his 2013 award-winning manga series .

Biography

Yamada was born in 1972 in Toyonaka, Osaka Prefecture. He began drawing manga in the fourth grade, and developed an interest the history of post-occupation Japan before studying at the

Osaka University of Arts is a private arts university located in Kanan, Minamikawachi District, Osaka Prefecture, Japan. The university was founded in 1945 as , changing its name to in 1957, and then to in 1964. The university adopted the current name in 1966. Nota ...

. Yamada cites among his early influences the films of Shoichi Ozawa; left-wing literary works by ,

Miyoko Matsutani Miyoko Matsutani was a Japanese picture book author and folktale researcher. She is best known for writing the book ''Taro the Dragon Boy.'' Early life and education Matsutani was born in Tokyo, Japan on February 14, 1926. She was the youngest c ...

Akiyuki Nosaka was a Japanese novelist, singer, lyricist, and member of the House of Councillors. As a broadcasting writer he used the name and his alias as a chanson singer was . Early life Nosaka was born in Kamakura, Kanagawa, the son of Sukeyuki Nosak ...

, and Komimasa Tanaka; historic news photography published by ''

Mainichi Shimbun The is one of the major newspapers in Japan, published by In addition to the ''Mainichi Shimbun'', which is printed twice a day in several local editions, Mainichi also operates an English language news website called ''The Mainichi'' (prev ...

'';

Fujio Akatsuka was a pioneer Japanese artist of comical manga known as the Gag Manga King. His name at birth is 赤塚藤雄, whose Japanese pronunciation is the same as 赤塚不二夫. He was born in Rehe, Manchuria, the son of a Japanese military poli ...

's ''Introduction to Manga''; and the television series '' Ōedo Sōsamō''. In 1991, Yamada made his debut as a

, writing and illustrating a ''

dōjinshi , also romanized as ', is the Japanese term for self-published print works, such as magazines, manga, and novels. Part of a wider category of ''doujin'' (self-published) works, ''doujinshi'' are often derivative of existing works and created by ...

'' about

comfort women Comfort women or comfort girls were women and girls forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army in occupied countries and territories before and during World War II. The term "comfort women" is a translation of the Japanese '' ia ...

. In 1994, he began to publish professionally as a gay manga artist, appearing in the gay interest magazines and ''

Samson Samson (; , '' he, Šīmšōn, label= none'', "man of the sun") was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges (chapters 13 to 16) and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution ...

''. Yamada would become a regular contributor to both magazines, and was the exclusive cover illustrator for ''Samson'' in 2005. In 2010, Yamada contributed artwork to "FACE TO REAL", an art series organized to raise awareness of

HIV/AIDS in Japan HIV/AIDS in Japan has been recognized as a serious health issue in recent years. However, overall awareness amongst the general population of Japan regarding sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS, remains low. Human Immunodeficiency V ...

. '' Areyo Hoshikuzu'', Yamada's first long-form manga series created for a general audience, was serialized in ''

Comic Beam is a Japanese seinen manga magazine published by Enterbrain on a monthly basis since November 1995. In 2006, it had a circulation of 25,000. Popular manga serialized in ''Comic Beam'' include Kaoru Mori's ''Emma'' about the love story between a ...

'' from 2013 to 2018. The series, which follows two veterans of the

Imperial Japanese Army The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor ...

in the aftermath of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, received widespread critical acclaim, winning a

Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize Named after Osamu Tezuka, the is a yearly manga prize awarded to manga artists or their works that follow the Osamu Tezuka manga approach founded and sponsored by Asahi Shimbun. The prize has been awarded since 1997, in Tokyo, Japan. Curren ...

and the Grand Prize at the Japan Cartoonists Association Awards. In 2015, his manga series ''Nippon Night Pillow'' () began serialization in ''Comic Beam''. In addition to his manga work, Yamada is a '' kayōkyoku'' musician. He is the lead singer of the musical duo Tomari, with Atsuhiko Takemura. The group has released two albums through

P-Vine Records P-Vine Records is an independent record label based in Tokyo, Japan. History It was started in 1976 by Blues Interactions, a firm founded in 1975 by Yasufumi Higurashi and Akira Kochi, as a record label focused on black music. The label name c ...

: in 2010, and in 2014.

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yamada, Sansuke 1972 births Living people Gay artists Manga artists from Osaka Prefecture Japanese male musicians Musicians from Osaka LGBT comics creators Japanese LGBT writers Japanese LGBT artists Japanese LGBT musicians Winner of Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize (New Artist Prize)