Hajime Sorayama is known for his hyper-realistic, metallic illustrations. He brings his typical style to his latest UT collection, a collaboration with the makers of the Jurassic World films. We visit Sorayama in his chaotic Tokyo studio and discover an artist who is both mischievous yet forthright.
Inside the door of a typical Tokyo apartment lies the studio of Hajime Sorayama—a forbidding, almost claustrophobic zone of artistic chaos. Stacked all around two desks are a shocking number of artworks and books of a sexual nature, as well as erotic clothing and sculptures. None of this is surprising to anyone familiar with Sorayama’s Sexy Robot series of taboo-busting illustrations, which combined eros with hyper- realistic depictions of metal.
“As a kid, I loved looking at the metal parts sliding in and out of the lathes at the local metalworks,” Sorayama says. “They say only crows and humans are awed by shiny things. That’s why I like to create reflectivity and transparency in my artwork. It’s easy to produce those effects in a video, but not on a flat surface. It’s an uphill battle, but here I am, trying to produce those effects with paint. So call me Don Quixote. There’s a beauty in defeat: you suffer and panic, but in the end, you create something new. Even Nobel winners are often people who nobody quite ‘gets.’ You should be proud to be an outsider.”
Sorayama likes to refer to himself as an entertainer rather than an artist. It’s evident in the way he talks constantly making jokes and weaving in humorous metaphors.
Surprising and shocking through illustrations
Sorayama was born on Feb. 22, 1946, in Imabari, Ehime Prefecture. He says even as a child, he loved drawing, “though I liked women more. [Laughs.] Getting back on topic, we were told to draw a picture of sports day for homework. Everyone drew these flat pictures, but I drew something realistic. My teacher was convinced my parents helped; I guess it wasn’t ‘childlike’ enough for him. I drew robots and firearms, too. When I was in high school, I used to submit drawings of warships to a warship magazine, and they would get published every issue. In a way, I’ve never evolved from there. [Laughs.]” He may be joking, but there is some truth there. Clearly, he has been obsessed with robots and machines all his life. His other well-known motif—voluptuous women—began appearing in his work while he was in university.
“It was a Christian university in Shikoku, and it just wasn’t for me,” he says. “While the teachers and students attended chapel, I would cover the campus with the pages of magazines featuring erotic illustrations and literature. So, I got kicked out in my sophomore year. Then I entered a design school in Tokyo, but I still didn’t feel like I fit in. But I made friends with a guy who worked in a hotel next to the US military’s air base in Yokota, and through his air base connections he got his hands on porno mags like Playboy and Penthouse. Every month, he’d give me a bunch of these magazines, and I’d draw the models. So I did go to school, but my art is self-taught.” After graduation, Sorayama joined an ad firm and worked as a graphic designer. He quit just two years later to freelance as an illustrator—he did not get along with his colleagues and ended up developing a duodenal ulcer. He did, however, learn something useful through his experience.
“Art is supposed to surprise and shock, and the easiest way to do that is by breaking taboos,” says Sorayama. “But you can’t do that in ads. If I learned anything from my company days, it’s that you need to think about how to break taboos and still meet your client’s demands. So, for example, I’ll push just a little beyond what the client wants, or I’ll sneak in a little spice—just enough so no one will notice.” The best example of this approach is the Sexy Robot series of illustrations that Sorayama began producing in 1979, initially for Suntory.
The above works were featured at Trex, the solo exhibition Sorayama held last year in Tokyo themed around the fusion of dinosaurs and robots. He says he designed each dinosaur so that it would function perfectly if converted into 3D. Asked why he likes dinosaurs, he laughs, “I don’t know, I just do.”
Copyright by Hajime Sorayama, Courtesy of NANZUKA
“I first drew a man and robot dog, and then I drew the sexy robot,” he recalls. “There was nothing like this at the time, so it really took off. It became my first worldwide sensation. Maybe it was because the West saw it as the Japanese equivalent of a Christian defiling God’s image.”Sorayama became well-known throughout the world and was eventually commissioned to draw illustrations for Penthouse.“There was a gallery in LA that wanted to form a contract with me, so I told them, ‘Get me a regular job with Penthouse or Playboy, and we’ll talk.’ And what do you know, they did! The first illustration I drew was apparently a sensation, causing the cameraman for the magazine shoot to try to create something even more elaborate. But it never worked; my work was always more out there. So, for the ten years that I illustrated for Penthouse, I was always the creative center at the magazine.”
For almost fifty years since, Sorayama has continued to illustrate new work and announce them at solo exhibitions and other events. What may be surprising is that he has also been busy collaborating with companies on a range of toys and clothing—notably Sony’s AIBO, for which Sorayama drew the concept design. His UT collections are another example. “These projects are, of course, fun,” he says, “but the best part is that these companies have influence, so it’s easier for me to offer ideas that are new or flashy. The bigger the bang, right? There’s only so much I can do on my own, so I try to get someone big enough standing behind me so they scare people into letting me do even bigger things.”
Sorayama’s desk is covered in works in progress and reference materials. He says he goes to the studio every day and works about three hours straight. Sorayama tends to lose himself in his work, so he sets his alarm to ring every hour.
For this UT collection, Sorayama has produced illustrations inspired by the Jurassic World films. Sorayama ranks dinosaurs as highly as robots, firearms, and women on his list of favorite motifs. “I loved the first Jurassic Park, and I talked about it for hours with the friends I saw it with. Those dinosaurs were the first I saw on film that didn’t have people inside them. A few months later, the team from Industrial Light and Magic that handled the special effects in Jurassic Park came to Japan, and they said they wanted to meet me! I took them out for fugu, and I told them what I would have done in the movie. Then, during the US leg of my solo exhibition, I was invited to give a lecture at the ILM offices in San Francisco. I didn’t get to meet George Lucas [who founded ILM], but he did eventually ask me to design a Star Wars character. I think it’s going to be displayed in his museum.”
When asked if he has any goals, Sorayama replies with a humorously curt, “None.” But then, he continues: “Honestly, I don’t know. There’s no one I really look up to. I mean, I love Leonardo da Vinci, but I don’t like all his work. I do sometimes wish he was around to help me with my work. [Laughs.] I’ve compiled my work to date into many books, and when I look back at that body of work, it feels like I’ve followed a very clear line. So, I’ll just keep working and extending that line. Sniffing around to make sure I’m on the right track, just like a dog in the night.”
PROFILE
Haijme Sorayama | Known mainly for his paint illustrations and sculptures, Sorayama has also participated in many collaborations,such as the album cover for Aerosmith’s Just Press Play. Recent art books include Sorayama and Sexy Robot Gigantes.
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© Hajime Sorayama Courtesy of Nanzuka
