Tetsuo Chiba-sensei, Thank you for everything… You gave me so many things words cannot express. You supported the manga industry, but above all you stood with manga creators; and when we met your smile would comfort me and give me courage.
The other day after celebrating [Shigeru] Miyamoto being awarded the Order of Culture Award, I also posted about Chiba-sensei, and in that moment an envelope I previously received from Chiba-sensei caught my eye in my studio's archives.
When I pulled the contents of the envelope it was an autographed sketch of a famous scene from Ashita no Joe , and it was so wonderful I thought I'd post about it when…
Suddenly…I felt uneasy and thought “why am I preparing this now,, and didn't post it.
That post is as follows.
“This is an autographed sketch of a famous scene from Ashita no Joe I received two years ago from Tetsuya Chiba -sensei at an event in Utsunomiya, while he was still teaching at the Bunsei University of Art and when he received the Order of Culture Award. It's a treasure✨
I was always moved by how he treated every manga creator with care and sincerity.
Around 2010, he took an interest in our overseas manga activities and listened intently to what we said. This was when we had to deal with matters individually and he was a tremendous help when he offered sincere advice on matters of copyright.”
Looking back… He passed on the 22…
This happened the following day.
I have so many thoughts…I can't express them in a single phrase.
Thank you for everything.
Thank you for your hard work. Please rest in peace.
I will continue loving and drawing manga.
Please watch over the future of manga.