Collection: Zenji Fanabashi

Zenji Funabashi (b. 1942, Kawasaki, Japan) was an artist, designer, and illustrator. He graduated from the Design Department of Tama Art University in 1965 and received the Special Selection of the Japan Advertising Artists Association in 1968. He moved to Toronto in 1970 and worked for Kramer Design Associates and the Phantasmagoria design studio. During his time in Toronto, Funabashi used the facilities at Open Studio to create his own screenprinted artworks. He relocated to San Francisco in 1977 to work at Korty Films Inc., producing animated features, and returned to Japan in 1980.

In later years, Funabashi’s practice expanded into environmental design and public art. He created sculptural works for locations including Izumi Garden Place, Tokyo; Seijo Gakuen Hospital, Tokyo; the National Center for Child Health and Development, Tokyo; and a subway mural at Komagome Station, Tokyo. Solo exhibitions of Funabashi’s work have been held in Tokyo, Toronto, Ottawa, and Frankfurt. He illustrated the book column in the Sunday edition of the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper, created the cover artwork for Hokuren’s Green magazine, and taught at the Aoyama School of Illustration for many years. Zenji Funabashi was based in Kamakura, outside of Tokyo, until his passing in December 2023.