Japanese Literary Awards

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Rimako Horikawa

ほりかわ りまこ

Horikawa Rimako

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1965-11-12 （Suginami, Tokyo, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Born in Suginami, Tokyo, Japan → Resides in Shibuya, Tokyo (as of 2024)

Career

Occupations
Painter, Picture book author, Illustrator
Active Years
1994-
Affiliations
Japan Writers' Association
Memberships
Japan Writers' Association

Education

Tokyo University of the Arts
Faculty of Fine Arts, Department of Design / Department of Design
Degree: 学士
Period: 〜1989
Year of Graduation: 1989
Country: Japan
Undergraduate graduation.
Tokyo University of the Arts, Graduate School
Graduate School (Visual Design Program) / Visual Design Program
Degree: 修了（修士相当）
Period: 1989-1991
Year of Graduation: 1991
Country: Japan
Completed postgraduate work; received the Salon de Printemps award for the graduation piece "Four Themes for the Interior: Red, Blue, White, Black".

Awards

Bunkamura Dōmago Literary Prize
2021
Work: Studio by the Sea
Category: 絵本
Organization: Bunkamura
Result: 受賞
Kodansha Picture Book Award
2022
Work: Studio by the Sea
Category: 絵本賞
Organization: Kodansha
Result: 受賞
Shogakukan Children's Publication Culture Award
2022
Work: Studio by the Sea
Category: 児童書・絵本
Organization: Shogakukan
Result: 受賞
Tsubota Jōji Literary Prize
2024
Work: It's a Secret, But I'll Tell You
Category: 児童文学
Organization: Tsubota Jōji Literary Prize Committee
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Studio by the Sea

2021 Picture book

A picture book set in a seaside studio that gently explores painting, memory and dialogue with nature. Noted for delicate, painterly illustrations reminiscent of watercolors and tempera.

seaart and creationmemorynature

Annin-chan and Paos

2023 Early childhood fiction

Horikawa's first early-childhood tale. Centers on the characters Annin-chan and Paos, depicting everyday life and small adventures of young children.

friendshipadventureearly childhood

It's a Secret, But I'll Tell You

2023 Children's literature (short story collection)

A collection of five short stories featuring a third-grade child. Delicately depicts secrets, emotional turns, and growing up in everyday life.

childhoodgrowing upsecretseveryday life

My Stew, Mama's Stew

2005 Picture book

An original picture book that portrays family warmth and everyday affection through a child's and mother's stews.

familyfoodparent-child relationship

Bibliography

  • My Stew, Mama's Stew
  • Little Bear and the Man Go Along the River
  • Little Bear's Winter Festival
  • A-chan's Birthday
  • The Great Room Adventure
  • Gen-kun's Town Shops
  • Gondainagon and the Dancing Mushrooms (Folktale Picture Book)
  • The Vanished Gondainagon (Folktale Picture Book)
  • The Country Beyond the Waterfall (Folktale Picture Book)
  • A Picture Book Full of Fruits and Nuts
  • A Child's Errand (Folktale Picture Book)
  • The House of Spirits (Folktale Picture Book)
  • Starting Watercolor Painting with Familiar Motifs: Three Tips on Shape, Color, and Light and Shadow
  • Hinamatsuri: Heian-period Life Picture Book
  • Keshigomu Pon Inugawa
  • Studio by the Sea
  • Annin-chan and Paos
  • It's a Secret, But I'll Tell You
  • The Rice Fish's Home: MY RICE FISH (Kagaku no Tomo, Aug 2019)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Painterly, delicate illustrations reminiscent of tempera and watercolorQuiet, poetic narrative tonePicture book expression informed by a painter's perspective
Recurring Motifs
seaanimals (bears, rice fish, etc.)folktale / Konjaku Monogatari motifsparent-child relationships and small everyday scenes

Legacy

Combining painterly technique with picture-book expression, she has gained strong recognition in Japan's picture-book field. A recipient of multiple major children's book and literary awards, she is regarded as a creator who has expanded the range of children's literature and picture-book expression.

Academic Societies

  • Japan Writers' Association

In Popular Culture

  • Featured in picture-book magazines such as MOE
  • Essays and interviews in monthly magazines such as 'Mother's Friend' and 'Tosho'

Trivia

  • Uses a technique close to tempera made from mineral pigments and milk-emulsion glue to produce her own paints.
  • Has a habit of buying multiple copies of out-of-print favorite books when found in secondhand stores.
  • Keeps many rice fish (medaka); this hobby influenced the picture book 'The Rice Fish's Home: MY RICE FISH'.
  • Has held numerous solo exhibitions of paintings (tablo) in venues such as Ginza Wako and Sagamiya art store.