dddDATABASE

dddDATABASE

© DNP Foundation for Cultural Promotion

HIRANO Koga

1938–2021

Profile

  • Name

    平野 甲賀 ひらの こうが HIRANO Koga

  • Job Title

    Book cover artist, graphic designer.

  • Birth

    1938

  • Death

    March 22, 2021

  • Area

    Tokyo → Shoudoshima → Takamatsu

  • Profile

    Born in Keijo, Korea(now Seoul),where his father was posted on business. 1957: Entered Musashino Art School, forerunner to today's Musashino Art University. While still a student in 1960, Hirano was awarded a special prize for his work on Kenzaburo Oe's Leap Before You Look by the Japan advertising Artists Club, then considered a gateway to success for graphic designers. After graduation, he joined Takashimaya Department Store's advertising department, and later went freelance as a graphic designer. For nearly 30 years between 1964 and 1992, Hirano served as the solo cover designer for Shobunsha. Indeed, it is a rare feat for a single designer to handle all of a publisher's output. Shobunsha was the standard-bearer of the counterculture in those day's, and Hirano's unique style blew a breath of fresh air through the publishing establishment. this led to work from other clients, and Hirano's distinctive "decorative text" and dynamic designs graced the covers of some 7,000 books. In the mid-1960s, Hirano began participating in theater along with Kaitaro Tsuno, his esteemed friend and also an editor at Shobunsha. Give his talents, he was drafted to make posters, flyers, and even stage decorations for troupes such as Rokugatsu Gekijo and the Black Tent Theatre. 1973: Hirano was appointed art director of "Wonderland" magazine, edited by Jinichi Uekusa, and his vibrant page designs become the stuff of legend. 1978: Hirano joins Suigyu Gakudan, a band formed by Yuji Takahashi et al, and joined the staff of "Suigyu Tsushin," a newsletter reporting on Asian popular culture, finding new outlets for his creativity. The influence of there activities can still be seen in Hirano's works today. 2005-2013: Hirano opened Theatre Iwato, a small theater in Iwato-cho in Tokyo's Kagurazaka district. 2014: Hirano relocated to Shodo Island in Kagawa Prefecture.

    Source: ddd HP Exhibition Archive "Kouga Hirano and Shobunsha"

Activities at ddd

Notes