Niccolò Caranti
Junji Ito
IllustratorKnown for:
Master of horror manga. Creator of Uzumaki, Tomie, Gyo, and The Enigma of Amigara Fault.
Education:
Vocational school (Dental Technology degree); self-taught manga artist
Junji Ito is a Japanese horror manga artist born in 1963 in Sakashita (now Nakatsugawa), Gifu Prefecture. He trained and worked as a dental technician for six years, developing hand-tooling skills he later applied to customizing his drawing pens. In 1987, he submitted a short story to Monthly Halloween magazine and won an honorable mention in the Kazuo Umezu Prize, launching his career. He is the creator of Uzumaki, Tomie, Gyo, and The Enigma of Amigara Fault, and his extraordinarily detailed crosshatching and stippling techniques produce uniquely disturbing imagery through the contrast of jet-black ink on pure white paper.
Junji Ito's Gear List(4)
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Connection note
Primary drawing tool. Modified with dental pliers: "when you buy it, it's straight, but I modify it slightly because the straight version is hard for me to use."
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Connection note
Secondary nib for fine detail work alongside the G-pen.
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Product description
A carbon-based drawing ink made from fine soot particles (lampblack or carbon black) suspended in water with a binding agent, traditionally shellac. India ink dries to a permanent, waterproof, deep black finish and works with brushes, dip pens, and technical pens. It has been used for writing and drawing for thousands of years across Asian and Western traditions.
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Last updated March 21, 2026
