Blue Period (ブルーピリオド)
by Tsubasa Yamaguchi
Late in high school, Yatora Yaguchi finds a passion for painting that puts him on a new, and sometimes arduous, path as he strives to develop his art skills and pursues admission for the prestigious (and affordable) Tokyo University of the Arts.
From the first volume, Blue Period tackles the myth of talent head on. When Yatora initially strikes up a conversation at art club with a senior he admires, she pushes back on her “being talented” and lays out all the ways in which she has worked and spent her free time for years to be able to create her vision. This moment is a catalyst for Yatora to get to the hard work of being an artist.
And work he does! Having little interest in art before, Yatora finds himself learning basic technique while simultaneously producing huge volumes of work just to keep pace with peers who have been at it for much longer. But being a novice isn’t necessarily a detriment, and those around him prove to be valuable resources, reasonably-harsh critics, and sometimes great inspiration.
Yatora at first struggles with getting his mother on board for art school, and throughout the series many characters deal with varying degrees of support. As Yatora goes to extra classes and his friend circle expands, he grows as an artist and learns to talk about his determination to pursue art seriously.
There’s also a fascinating (and if I was in high school in Japan, practical) look into how each of the major art colleges of Japan admit students, their costs, and what they prioritize. Plus, the series also starkly shows that it isn’t cheap to be an art student, even if your tuition is paid for: Art supplies are a killer. All of this arms Yatora with tools to know where he wants to go and how he is going to achieve it.
One of my favorite parts of each volume are the breakdowns of different art techniques. The lessons on composition really stand out to me as spot on. They’re so good that the reader could learn either to use the techniques in your work as an artist or to better discuss and “read” art as a viewer. These portions also serve to further distance the story from the myth of talent, as teachers in particular pull back the curtain to show how works of art are calculated, and not just created.
We are still early in Yatora’s journey as an artist and hopeful student, but Blue Period lovingly and accurately captures the creative energy and self-doubt that comes with being an artist, along with the realities of pursuing art as a path in life.
-Kate
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