Hitotsume-kozō ( 一つ目小僧 ) literally translates as “One-Eyed Little Monk”, and he is Obake, a Japanese Ghost. He is also an omen, a sign of bad luck to come. Even so, he is near the top of my list of youkai (also means ghosts) to meet, mostly because, unlike a lot of other ghosts, he will not bite, eat, pierce, shred, decapitate, freeze, burn, or drown me. Instead, he likes to tease. I can handle that.
I’ve been wanting to do some Obake art since I came to Japan, and hopefully this will be the first of many. A great source for Obake stories is the Obakemono Project. Special thanks go out to Shigeru Mizuki for keeping the world of the youkai alive… well, dead, but still fun.
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May 24, 2007 at 11:15 am
onesickindividual
another awesome piece. diggin that tongue!
May 24, 2007 at 4:45 pm
misterhow
I dig that ragged line.
May 25, 2007 at 2:16 am
Taro at news.3yen.com
Is Hitotsume-kozō a gaijin with evil, blue eyes that can tease Japanese girls to death?
I always referred to myself as an ‘umibozu’ (海坊主).
http://doiop.com/umibozu
May 25, 2007 at 5:32 am
patrick
That would be “blue eye”.
Umibozu was my first choice to draw, but he’s not really a sign of anything. Oh sure, he’s often seen before shipwrecks, but I don’t think you qualify as an omen if you actually wreck the ships yourself.
May 25, 2007 at 10:24 pm
sagworks
Your work is amazing. I love the detail you capture in this style and in the comic book works. I would love to ‘talk’ to you about what you use for supplies and such.
May 26, 2007 at 6:44 am
SalBa Combé
Jumping from link to link I have come to here. You are a great artist.
Your style makes me resemble my favorite video game, Zelda Windwaker. It is amazing what you can manage to do with paper cuts, I never would have imagined it.
You are linked in my blog if you are OK.
Excuseme my wrong english.
See you
May 28, 2007 at 12:51 am
patrick
Hey Salba, welcome to Papercuts, and thanks for dropping by! I’m glad you like my art. I’m flattered that you want to include me on your blog, so thanks!
July 13, 2007 at 2:28 am
ellis nadler
you have a remarkable style. I love this one