Koji Suzuki

Koji Suzuki was born in 1948 in Shizuoka, Japan. Ever since holding his first exhibition on a street in Kabuki-cho, Shinjuku, in 1968, he has been active in a variety of genres including art, comics, picture books, mural paintings, posters, stage and costume design and art workshops for children. He is one of the most influential picture book artists currently in Japan and has published more than one hundred titles. He has received numerous awards such as the Shogakukan Cultural Prize in Publishing in 1987 for his picture book “Ensokun Kishani Noru” (Enso’s First Trip Alone) published by Fukuinkan Shoten, the 35th Kodansha Prize for “Obake doraibu” (Driving in Ghosts) in 2004, and the Japan Picture Book Prize for “Blackinder” in 2009.