Creator Interview: Illustrator Konno Kengo

Twilight Flowers

"I always make sure to complete one part before moving on to the next.” Konno says about their illustration style. Konno gives the impression of someone with great focus, who directly confronts the task at hand. Even in this interview, this creator answered all of our questions thoroughly. We spoke with Konno about their roots as an illustrator and their art style.

Creator Introduction
Name: Konno Kengo
TOM Portfolio Page

Profile: Japanese illustrator and cat-lover. In 2010 Konno did the cover art and print advertisements for the light novel Oyasumi Majyu Shoujyo, from Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko Publishing. Konno has continued working steadily since then, even delving into manga production.

TOM: Tell us about how you started drawing.

Kono Kengo: As a child, I would make picture books with my mom of stories like Sleeping Beauty. That gave me a love of painting.

In terms of anime, I only really watched Anpanman 1, and I could count on one hand the number of manga I had read. From the beginning, I was more interested in drawing things myself than reading or watching.

TOM: The “moe-kyara” illustrations you draw now are quite different from storybook drawings you used to do. What led you to draw the types of illustrations that you do now?

KK: When I was in middle school, my friends and I used to make manga stories and share them with each other. I think that’s what got me into trying more anime/manga style illustrations.
My art style now is more or less the same as it was back then. However, the character of my work has changed. Until my second year of high school I didn’t really think about directing my work towards a male audience or a female audience, I was just experimenting with different styles of drawing. In my third year of high school, though, I started drawing “moe” type girls. I think this was influenced by the fact that I had made more male friends. I had friends that I would draw with, but we never really exchanged advice. As I continued drawing, I thought, “I bet I could do ‘moe’ style art too,” so I began drawing that way.

TOM: You do manga work as well. Which is easier for you: manga or illustrations?

KK: Hmmm…. I really wish I could do more manga work. When I draw manga, I usually want to get it all done at once, so i have to set aside quite a bit of time to do that. With illustrations, it’s no so much a continuous and drawn-out process, so I can easily switch between tying for pleasure and for work. In that sense, I suppose illustration work is a bit easier.

TOM: Your use of blue in your work is quite remarkable. Are you partial to blue? Do you have any other favorite colors?

KK: I don’t have a favorite color in particular. If I had to say, though, I suppose it would be blue. I’m not so good with orange and green. I know that much. In “Horn Girl” I use orange. In that case I chose a certain shade of orange that works well with green.

TOM: When you use certain colors, how do you determine the color scheme?

KK: For commissioned work, I stick to the request of whoever I’m working for, and that determines the color scheme. When I draw for myself, I finish the outline, pick the color for a certain spot, color it in, pick a matching color for the adjacent spot, check the balance between the two and continue like that filling in each portion one by one.

I always make sure to complete one part before moving on to the next. There are many people that say it’s difficult to draw in this way, that it’s hard to maintain balance between the colors. But for me, it’s harder to get things to balance out if I’m doing everything at once. I can never get the finished product to look the way I imagined it if I work that way.

TOM: Is there a reason why you often feature plants in your illustrations?

KK: I’ve always loved plants. When I was in my first year of elementary school, I wanted to become a botanist. My prized possession at that time was an illustrated book about weeds and the other plants you would find on the street.

TOM: Your clothing and accessories are intricately detailed. How do you go about designing the outfits for the people you draw?

KK: I once heard about a creative method that involves picking a topic, taking various opinions on the topic, and using elements from each different approach to drive the process forward. I apply that method to my designs. I take the creative ideas that I come up with in my mind, write out in words on the canvas the images that appear in my head, and then incorporate all of them in my design. I’ve been using this method for about six or seven years now. I usually base each of my works off of five to seven words. For example, for “Horn Girl” I used “black and white,” “layered ribbons,” and “tights” as keywords for the drawing. I remember that I wanted to try and draw the layers of a skirt.

TOM: You have many works that depict an enticing parallel world, and many of them have a lot of dream-like, fantasy elements. How do you go about creating these pieces?

KK: Before I begin things are usually rather vague, but as I progress things slowly come together. I typically start with just a color in mind. From there I think “I want the background to be this color. And I want this color over here…” and gradually it becomes more concrete as I go. Also there’s the light. I have to decide where I want the light to be coming from, where the shadows end. That’s like the final touch-up on the piece.

TOM: When do your ideas come to you?

KK: For manga, I think 60 percent of my ideas come when I’m lying in my futon. I don’t like to waste time when I can’t get to sleep, so I often will think about color. Often right as I am about to fall asleep, an idea will come to me and I’ll have to get up, switch on my computer, and start drawing. I also get ideas when I’m on the toilet, in the bath, or spacing out on the train. And that’s not just manga ideas, I mean illustration ideas too.

TOM: In your TOM portfolio you say that illustration is a tool for communication. Could you explain what you mean by that?

KK: My pictures are a tool for communication because they connect me with other people. If the people who see my works get some impression from them, then my goal has been accomplished. They don’t have to praise what I do. Some people might think they are beautiful, others might just get the impression that I like the color blue. I appreciate both of those reactions.

TOM: What are your ambitions for the future?

KK: I want to try doing character design for video games. Ever since elementary school I’ve loved video games, and I used to play games like Arc the Lad, Klonoa, and Kirby. That’s why I’d really like to try my hand at doing video game art. “Horn Girl” was actually modelled after an RPG character design. I would really like the opportunity to draw as many outfits as I like for a bunch of fantasy-world characters. I really admire the work done in games like Valkyrie Profile and ICO.

TOM: Lastly, do you have anything to say to your fans abroad?

KK: It was interesting to find out that people from outside Japan had seen and liked my illustrations. I’m really glad that I’ve had the chance to share my work with people abroad. I have many followers on Twitter from places like Korea, Taiwan, and China. Now, through TOM I will be able to connect with people from North America and Europe as well, which is great. You can’t even imagine how happy it makes me to be able to share my work with so many people around the world on TOM. Just having people see my work is enough for me. Thank you for all of the continuing support!

^1^ A children’s book series featuring the hero Anpanman, a defender of justice whose head is a bread bun filled with bean paste, called anpan in Japanese. The series has been adapted into an anime, manga, and video games, and remains very popular among young children.

TOM Portfolio
Konno Kengo HP
Twitter
Pixiv

This is a Tokyo Otaku Mode original article.

Horn Girl
Horn Girl
Blue Sky
Blue Sky
Twilight Flowers
Twilight Flowers
Hanasakishi
Hanasakishi
Blue Flower
Blue Flower
Horn Girl with Crystal
Horn Girl with Crystal
Jardin de Fleurs
Jardin de Fleurs
XE
XE
Teto
Teto
Blue No. 1
Blue No. 1
Blue No. 2
Blue No. 2
Blue No. 3
Blue No. 3
Creator Interview: Illustrator Konno Kengo 13

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