“Unique, strange and weird”, Takaya Katsuragawa’s illustrations are full of unexpected moments

Despite their pleasant, calming style, Takaya Katsurgawa’s illustrations are littered with untoward happenings. Showing axe wielding figures, erupting fires and monster-like claws emerging through windows, his works have an unquestionably dark edge to them. But all of these acts and apparitions, which appear in seemingly everyday living spaces, are also given a uniquely peculiar feel. Creating this uneasy atmosphere is seemingly the foremost goal of the Tokyo-based illustrator. “I’m attracted to things that are unique, strange and weird, rather than direct, perfect and easy to understand stories,” he says, “I value this sense of strangeness in my work.”

Another means by which Takaya archives this feeling is by purposefully hiding facial expressions. Composing his characters so they are only viewed from behind, Takaya intends to “dilute” emotions. It's a technique that allows for the figures to be unified with the whole picture, all the while drawing the viewer’s eyes to the scene. This type of composition is informed by his love of photography, and the specific way photographers place both people and objects in their pieces.

Despite having loved creative expression as a child, Takaya went on to study engineering at university. At the beginning of his academic journey, Takaya began drawing in analogue alongside his studies before slowly making the move to digital and getting hooked. It was then after winning a prize in a small competition that really pushed him to take things more seriously and “the experience made me think that I could make a living from drawing”. Now, Takaya is working as an illustrator and finishing his postgraduate studies.

While Takya is fairly dedicated to his digital approach, he consciously attempts to craft a hand-drawn feel in his work. “I deliberately create a messy part within my pieces to express the lack of control of hand-drawn illustrations, creating a sense of strangeness within the digital expression,” he explains. Recently, Takata took his digital exploration of analogue techniques even further. During an exhibition, he was told that his work reminded a number of people of early 20th Century Japanese Nihonga painting, a typically monochrome or polychrome style that uses natural raw materials. In response to this feedback, he created the piece Payback. Showing its central character in a traditional Japanese Kimono and maintaining a limited colour palette – while still including his trademark themes and settings – the piece is a perfect example of sticking true to your style while allowing for well-informed development.