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The Boy and the Heron Poster, Scene 790
About the Artist
Kosuke Hayashi (born 1984 in Toyama) is one of the defining voices of a new generation of artists who are reshaping the background art of Japanese animation. He studied traditional Japanese painting (Nihonga) at the University of Tsukuba and works at Studio Ghibli. As art director he gave Giovanni's Island (2014), In This Corner of the World (2016) and The Imaginary (2023) their visual language. In 2025 he received the Nippon Rising Star Award at Nippon Connection in Frankfurt, and Riekeles Gallery presented his first solo exhibition outside Japan.
Hayashi paints with brush and poster colour on paper. While almost the entire industry has moved to digital workflows, his work is a resolute return to the material essence of the image. He stands for a generation of artists, both young and established, who have kept their joy in this medium. His signature is recognizable in his film work as well as in his personal paintings, where he pursues a visual poetry away from the constraints of production.
