ZUKAI

(1) Draft

My illustrations followed an architectural drawing method called “isometric” method. Simply put, it is a drawing technique in which the height of a floor plan is drawn by squashing it, and the scale is determined in the same way as for a floor plan. Since the building this time was larger than my usual subject, I set the scale to 1/100 and drew on the copy paper as if drawing a plan.

I always used a Frixion pen to draw, color-coding the buildings and furniture.

As I continue to write, I was surprised to find out that even two sheets of A3 paper were not big enough. I drew the whole picture by connecting the back side with masking tape.

After the buildings were drawn, they were scanned and converted into data. At this point, I used software on my iPad to draw people, furniture, and other small details. I used to draw everything in analog, but the paper was so detailed that it started to tear; therefore, I now attempt to draw everything digitally except for the building.

I drew people and furniture in the lounge. This time, since desks and chairs are similar, I copied and pasted the furniture as much as I could. I also copied some of the people, but I drew each person individually when I marked them in pen.

I was also asked to draw Tokyo Station which can be seen from EGG. However, as I did not have a reference of Tokyo Station from the same angle as would be depicted in the illustration, I downloaded a PDF file of the station building’s paper model and positioned it at a similar angle to use as my reference.

The draft was finally finished, taking about a month to get to this stage. I printed a rough draft to later be transcribed on watercolor paper. The size of the paper was almost decided at the stage when the draft was finished, but this time, it was about 1 m and 10 cm wide. I made a special order for watercolor paper, which is not available in retail shops.

(2) Pen line work

On the tracing table, the lines were traced with a waterproof pen, relying on the lines that would show through from below. The reason why only the lower left side is colored is to check the paper’s color.

I drew steadily from the lower left side.

All done. The finished work was backed on a large board and placed on an easel that was also specially ordered for this project.

(3) Painting

The painting was also done slowly, starting from the edges. The person through the glass was outlined in pencil to give it a hazy look. The cloudy glass was also painted over with white to give a lighter impression.

I painted half of the office area.

Ten days after I began painting, I was about halfway.

I was also carefully illustrating the Tokyo Station.

All done. It took about three months from the interview to the painting.

The 9th floor was also done in the same order: drafting→line work→coloring.

Altogether, it took about five months to create the 9th and 10th floors. Normally, it would take about one month per picture; however, it took even longer than usual due to the large scale of the building and the detailed portrayal of each individual. I felt bad about making them wait so long, but when I handed off the final product to them, I was so relieved when I saw them staring at the paintings as if they were gazing deeply into my paintings, devouring every detail, as if to say “Wow…I could look at this forever.”

The paintings are now on display by the entrance to the office area on the 10th floor of EGG and in front of the football game table on the 9th floor. As the illustrations are too detailed to show on the digital image, I hope you will be able to see them onsite.
I hope that by listening to everyone’s ideas and by visiting EGG many times, I was able to create a painting that encompasses not only the building itself but also the vibes that pervades the space. I hope that these paintings will help the folks at EGG in their future endeavors and that they will soothes the eyes of those who spend time at EGG.