Art for Animation: Shūichi Kusamori
October 16, 2025 to March 14, 2026
Thursday, Friday, Saturday, 12:00 PM – 6:00 PM, free admission
Riekeles Gallery, Am Bassin 10, 14467 Potsdam, Germany
From October 16, 2025 to March 14, 2026, Riekeles Gallery will present the first solo exhibition of Shūichi Kusamori.
Born in Kanagawa in 1961, Kusamori is a leading Art Director of Japanese animated films. For more than forty years, his images have shaped what we know today as “anime.” He is particularly renowned for his extremely detailed depictions.
Exclusively for this exhibition, the artist has created a new series of four original paintings inspired by China Miéville’s novel Perdido Street Station. At the heart of the exhibition are Kusamori’s original pencil drawings for his graphic novel Fuyū no Ō (The Winter King, Graphic-Sha, 2018). To mark the occasion, Riekeles Gallery will also publish three new solegraphs of the artist’s work for Innocence (2004), presented alongside the recently released solegraphs of his backgrounds for Ghost in the Shell (1995) and Metropolis (2001).
Opening: Wednesday, October 15, 6:00 pm,
in the presence of the artist, free admission
Exhibition dates: October 16, 2025 – March 14, 2026
Thu., Fri., Sat., 12–6 pm, free admission
Venue: Riekeles Gallery, Am Bassin 10, 14467 Potsdam
Shūichi Kusamori’s original pencil drawings for his graphic novel Fuyū no Ō (jp.: 冬の王, engl.: The Winter King, published by Graphic-Sha, 2018) reveal his unmistakable artistic signature – an extraordinary devotion to detail..
Partner Exhibition at the
Mori Ōgai Memorial Center, Berlin
In parallel with the exhibition at Riekeles Gallery, the Mori Ōgai Memorial Center of Humboldt University Berlin will also present an exhibition dedicated to Shūichi Kusamori. This partner exhibition focuses primarily on the series of pencil drawings that Kusamori created for his artbook "Winter King" (Fuyu no Ō, Tokyo: Graphic-Sha, 2018). The work is based on the story "Erling" by German writer Hans Land (Berlin: S. Fischer, 1911), which was translated into Japanese in 1912 by Mori Ōgai under the title Fuyu no Ō (“Winter King”) and is still well-known in Japan.
The Mori Ōgai Memorial Center of Humboldt University Berlin is located in the building where Mori Ōgai, a founding figure of modern Japanese literature, first lived during his stay in Berlin (1887–88). It documents the life and work of the writer and sheds light on the history of German-Japanese cultural relations.
The exhibition at the Mori Ōgai Memorial Center will be on view from October 17, 2025.
Opening: Thursday, October 16, 6:00 pm, in the presence of the artist, free admission
Exhibition dates: Tue.–Fri., 12–4 pm; Thu. 12–6 pm. Admission is free.
Venue: Mori-Ōgai-Gedenkstätte der HU Berlin, Luisenstraße 39, 10117 Berlin
Website: http://www.ogai-center.de
About the Artist –
Shūichi Kusamori
Shūichi Kusamori (b. 1961, Kanagawa) is one of Japan’s foremost Art Directors in animation. For more than four decades, his images have defined the look and feel of what we know today worldwide as “anime.”
After graduating from Tokyo Designer Gakuin, he contributed to seminal films including Grave of the Fireflies (1988), Patlabor: The Movie (1989), and Ghost in the Shell (1995). As Art Director, he shaped the visual universes of Metropolis (2001), Innocence (2004, Cannes Film Festival), xxxHOLiC: A Midsummer Night's Dream (2005, Annecy), and the internationally acclaimed PSYCHO-PASS series (2012–2023).
Kusamori stands out for his ability to create imaginative, otherworldly settings with striking realism. While most background artists paint from concepts developed by others, he conceives his own visions, imbuing films with a unique atmosphere. His work is marked by an almost obsessive attention to detail: every stroke contributes to a rich, immersive whole. Viewers often sense not only the technical mastery but also the artist’s deep immersion in his worlds, raising questions of how long each piece took and how much patience was required to achieve such density.
With his rare combination of vision, craftsmanship, and devotion, Shūichi Kusamori has developed a personal artistic language that continues to captivate audiences and inspire the field of animation.
Robotic Angel (Metropolis), scene 12, cut no. 7, final production background, Shūichi Kusamori, poster colour on paper, 50 × 70.7 cm (19 3⁄4 x 27 ⁷⁄₈ in.). Kusamori worked for two weeks on this large tableau. It depicts a section through the lower town of Metropolis, Zone -1. Pipes, vents and other components convey a sense of being at the heart of the city’s infrastructure.
© 2001 TEZUKA PRODUCTIONS / METROPOLIS COMMITTEE. All Rights Reserved.
Film Screening of Robotic Angel (Metropolis) and Artist Talk at Filmmuseum Potsdam
On Saturday, 18 October 2025, Japanese art director Shūichi Kusamori will be a guest at Filmmuseum Potsdam to screen Robotic Angel (Metropolis) directed by Rintarō (Japan, 2001, 108 min, Japanese with German subtitles). Following the screening, Kusamori will join curator and gallerist Stefan Riekeles for a conversation about his work and the creation of the film’s striking visual world.
Date: Sat., 18 October 2025, 19:00
Venue: Filmmuseum Potsdam, Breite Straße 1a / Marstall, 14467 Potsdam
Film Screening of Ghost in the Shell & Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence and Artist Talk at Parklichtspiele Buckow
The event begins at 3:00 pm with a screening of Ghost in the Shell (1995). Kusamori painted the film’s highly detailed backgrounds under the art direction of Hiromasa Ogura.
At 5:00 pm, Shūichi Kusamori will join a conversation about the making of his films, the global rise of anime, and his personal visions for the future. Audience questions are welcome.
At 6:00 pm, the program continues with Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004) art-directed by Kusamori. The film premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival—the first anime ever nominated for the Palme d’Or.
Date: Sun., 19 October 2025, 15:00
Venue: Parklichtspiele Buckow, Wriezener Straße 1, 15377 Buckow
Tickets: reservierung@parklichtspiele.de
Workshop at Filmuniversität Babelsberg KONRAD WOLF
The workshop will focus on Kusamori’s painting process with gouache, in particular his techniques for rendering weathered surfaces, rust, and urban decay – central elements of his dystopian cityscapes. After an introduction and presentation of selected works, Kusamori will demonstrate his approach step by step, followed by a practical session where participants can try out the techniques themselves.
Limited to 20 participants.
Date: Fri., 17 October 2025, 10:00 - 16:00
Costs: 120 €
Please bring your own materials for painting with gouache (colors, brushes, paper).
Registration with a short statement of motivation by October 10 to sr@riekeles.com
Exclusively for this exhibition, Shūichi Kusamori has created a new series of four original paintings inspired by China Miéville’s novel Perdido Street Station. All four works will be available to purchase.
Available artwork
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