Fish painter Susumu Uchida
Izu Lifestyle
"The fish painted by fish artist Uchida Susumu must be alive."
It has been 22 years since he moved from Tokyo to Ito in East Izu. With the sea, mountains, rivers and lakes close by, his home is an ideal place for drawing fish, surrounded by an abundance of nature, and he continues to write while feeling the changing of the seasons.
How can I express the vitality, dynamism, and moment of each fish's life? If I were to draw fish exactly as they appear in a photograph, it would be nothing more than a "copy," which is something even an art school student could draw. That is why I am deeply aware of the importance of on-site practice, which is to "catch, see, and touch."
When talking about humans, we use the terms character and personality, but when we apply these terms to fish, we call them fish quality and character. By anthropomorphizing the fish I was trying to draw, I began to notice the existence of something I had not seen before.
For example, even if they are all the same yamame, whether they are young or old, male or female, I feel that I would like to be able to express in my paintings the time and moment of their "life."
Susumu Uchida
Born in Shizuoka Prefecture. Spent his childhood in the fishing town of Arai, Ito City. After graduating from the Department of Fine Arts and Design at Nihon University College of Art, he worked at the advertising agency ADK before going freelance.
He pioneered the field of fish illustration in Japan, and has produced fish illustrations for many fishing-related companies and publishers. He is the only Japanese artist whose work is held at the Fly Fishing Museum in Montana, USA.
In addition to creating fish illustrations as his life's work, he has also produced numerous advertising and editorial illustrations, including for department stores and movie posters.
He also creates illustrations for urban development plans, such as illustrations of the anticipated completed urban development in Odaiba, Tokyo, and Yebisu Garden Place.
