Junko Mizuno is a Japanese manga artist.
Mizuno's drawing style, which mixes childish sweetness and cuteness with blood and terror has been termed a Gothic kawaii or kawaii noir style. In addition to her comics, she designs T-shirts, calendars, postcards, and other collectibles. Some of Junko Mizuno's designs were used in the documentary series Japanorama, which aired on BBC.
Mizuno has participated in the Angoulême International Comics Festival.
Last Gasp and Viz Comics are the English-language publishers of her work.
Some of Mizuno's recent work was on display at the Merry Karnowsky Gallery in Los Angeles, in an exhibit titled Heart Throb (March 10 to April 7, 2007).
Mizuno provides the art that accompanies the horoscopes in Shojo Beat magazine.
Mizuno has stated that her work is influenced by sh?jo manga works; this influence is exhibited through her use of bright colorization and the large eyes she provides for her characters [1] Her art has a decidedly pop-art and psychedelic flair, and a sizable proportion of her published work is colored, rather than the black and white which is the norm for Japanese comics.
Mizuno's female characters are often characterized by large eyes, long flowing (and wildly colored) hair, and prominently displayed breasts/cleavage. Her works from 1995-98 portray women with almost-minuscule waists; since then they have evolved to display more curvaceous figures. Conversely, male characters are portrayed alternately as large, gauze-wrapped monster-like humanoids, sometimes green and dripping with ooze. In more recent work, men are portrayed as simple silhouettes with the bare minimum of facial features, and are significantly more plain than their female counterparts.
A notable aspect of Mizuno's work is her frequent exposition of the female form. Many of her female characters are depicted topless, or even completely nude. This is done in an unceremonious manner; none of the characters comment upon the nudity. Sex, while less often depicted, is portrayed in an oblique manner: for example, two characters "meld" into one another in Cinderalla and Princess Mermaid.
