Shojo, Shonen, Seinen,... Manga bookends are invading Shohan-design.

A global cultural phenomenon made in Japan.

Over the past fifteen years, the popularity of manga has exploded around the world. You'd have to be an Amazonian native, a hermit or an alien not to have heard of manga: this small-format comic book with a characteristic style that reads backwards, touch on a wide range of subjects and can be carried anywhere.

Some, like One Piece, are read and seen in cartoons by millions of young and old. The graphic style and captivating stories of these comics have a lot to do with it.

In France, this success is not surprising. Manga had been present there for a long time in the form of cartoons. Goldorak, Candy, Albator, Capitaine Flamme, Cat’s Eyes and Cobra have fascinated the parents of today's children. I know a thing or two about that!

Manga has an impact on fashion and even in decoration. Figurines, posters and other ornament can be found in many teenagers' bedrooms. So why not bookends to prop up series and decorate a bookcase? Shohan-design had to offer them.

The Shohan-design designer: An avid manga reader.

Let's be honest, it's mainly because I'm a fan of this kind of comic book, that I chose to create decorative objects derived from it.

I hesitated for a long time before taking the plunge, because I wanted to draw silhouettes that really look like manga. I started by drawing Kitsune: a masked high school girl armed with a katana that I imagined as a Yokai or demon hunter. It is a mix of several typical chara-designs (character style) found in manga or anime like Blood C. But it was the short film Kakurenbo and its strange masked kids that inspired me. I wanted to make a mysterious, almost menacing young woman who stares at you forcefully, standing in the wind...

Once the first silhouette was drawn, the others came to mind more quickly. And since I enjoy all styles of manga, I drew different types of characters. Some are inspired by Shojo like "In the Puddles", Shonen like My Young Samurai or Seinen like Ronin and Oni.

Two new pairs of bookends: high school girls and the Maneki Neko Family.

A pair of silhouettes of high school girls.

Indeed, high school girls, or college girls, in uniform are among the most represented heroines. Rebels, cute, introverts or top of the class, etc. They are the protagonists of most romances or comedies. They can also be found in fantasy (Bakemonogatari), with zombies (HSOTD), ), more poetic feature films (Liz et l’oiseau Bleu) or manga for boys with very moronic stories.

And the Maneki Neko Family.

With this pair of bookends, I mixed two famous figures in Japanese culture: the chat porte-bonheur and the young woman in cat cosplay. As a decoration on your shelves, these original objects should bring you luck!

For Christmas, great gift ideas for manga fans.

You don't know anything about manga news? Do you get lost in genres, series or volumes? Opt for a manga decorative object. Whether for a young girl or a teenager, you will find a gift that is both useful and beautiful among our bookends.

And the fans, I don't think I need to convince them to be seduced by these characters.