Entering a Fantasy World Where Clay Animals Roam

Clay Doll Creator, MINAGAWA Ryoichi

In Japan, images of cute animal characters including Mickey Mouse, Snoopy and Hello Kitty are used on everything from stationery to T-shirts and contribute greatly to the sales of these products. Many characters are usually born from cartoons and animation, but now many new and totally unique characters are being created from clay dolls in the image of animals.

The creative power behind these characters/dolls is doll creator MINAGAWA Ryoichi. More than 100 personified animal characters appear in his clay fantasy. Some of Minagawa's works that parody famous children's books have names such as "Peter Nyan? (from Peter Pan), "Hanyaka no OOsama" (from "Hadaka no OOsama," the Japanese title for "The Emperor's New Clothes"), "Gullinya Travels" (from Gulliver's Travels), etc. "Nya" is regarded as the sound of a cat in Japan. These characters are loved by children as well as adults. Each of them is somewhat mischievous and looks as if it is claiming something.

Ryoichi's works have been so highly regarded worldwide that 11 of his works, including "Peter Nyan" and "Gullinya Travels" have been awarded the bronze prize at the USA 3D Illustrators Awards in the four consecutive years between 1997 to 2000. In his hometown of Niigata, he is preoccupied with television projects and instructing at classes, and has many fans. Currently, he is extremely busy receiving large orders from the well-known mail order catalogues and art galleries in Ginza and Niigata.

Last month the British funk group, Jamiroquai, came to Japan to promote their new album “Dynamite” (released June 15 on the Sony Music label). Ryoichi is such a big fan of Jamiroquai that he has all their albums from the beginning and received an order from an acquaintance to create a doll of Jay Kay, the vocalist. The cover photo of this month's magazine is one he created with some excitement. Jay Kay was delighted to receive it, Ryoichi says.

Working together with his wife and creative partner
What made Ryoichi become a clay doll creator? "I think I was very influenced by my father, a Japanese cake craftsman," he recalls. "My father has created some Japanese cakes which were exhibited at cake contests. When as a kindergarten pupil, I showed my interest, and my father showed me how to make flowers, etc. with oil clay."

"When I was a student at a vocational school, I was displaying and selling my clay works at a booth at the school festival. My teacher, who was also running an art gallery, gave me a chance to hold my own private exhibition. This is the beginning of my career." Ryoichi's talent has been recognized since he was young. "The teachers of the school supported me greatly and I've had job orders since that time."

What is the appeal to Ryoichi in creating clay dolls? "I can feel the handmade warmness in the finished dolls," he says. "I can put them on my palms and look at them from different angles. By combining clay work characters and backgrounds made from different materials and shooting them, they become more than just clay works. I place emphasis on making them more attractive by adding flavors to the characters expressing their view of the world. In order to express this graphically, photography takes on an important function. Fortunately, I have a cameraman friend, WATABE Yoshinori, a free lancer who works in Niigata."

Today Ryoichi lives in Niigata with his family and is busily involved in doll creation. While he teaches clay creation to students ata vocational school a few days a week, he is busy preparing for his private exhibitions held twice a year, creating works for publishing and advertisement, and creating new ideas almost daily. "Niigata is abundant with nature including the sea, rivers and mountains. When I go out, I take my bicycle and come up with new ideas while riding it. In the evenings, I often go for a walk with my loving dog."

Ryoichi's wife Shizuko, who is also his work partner, has provided a lot of support to him in his creative activities. They have worked together by separating their roles since their student days. "I make clay characters, while my wife makes the backgrounds using various materials to show up the characters. We sometimes argue with each other about our different opinions," Ryoichi says with an embarrassed smile.

To make his characters loved by people the world over
Where does Ryoichi's creative energy come from? "It is difficult to continue creating works for a long time while maintaining joy and passion," he says. "I try to place the most importance on enjoying myself while I create." Ryoichi explains his career highlights this way: "There have been many happy moments, including when my first private exhibition was held, when I received my first commission, when my first book was published and when I received the bronze medal at a competition in the USA. Among these moments, my proudest moment occurred when my work was used in an advertisement and printed."

The characters that appear in Minagawa's world and seem to express human emotions, can be loved by people all over the world. Ryoichi plans to offer licenses to corporations to allow them to use his clay doll characters in stationery, toys, miscellaneous goods, clothing and other products. It may not be long before his characters become known and loved by people worldwide as Japan's newest characters.

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