Macabre Kids’ Book Art by Gojin Ishihara




I stumbled upon this great post today. What it must have been like to grow up in 1970s Japan as opposed to 1970s America. Amazing work from Gojin Ishihara.

from Pink Tentacle

Here is a collection of wonderfully weird illustrations by Gōjin Ishihara, whose work graced the pages of numerous kids’ books in the 1970s. The first 16 images below appeared in the “Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters” (1972), which profiled supernatural creatures from Japanese legend. The other illustrations appeared in various educational and entertainment-oriented publications for children.

Illustration by Gōjin Ishihara --
- Kappa (river imp), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Jorōgumo (lit. “whore spider”), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gōjin Ishihara --
- Kubire-oni (strangler demon), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Goujin Ishihara --
- Rokurokubi (long-necked woman), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Goujin Ishihara --
- Onmoraki (bird demon), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Nekomata (cat monster), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gōjin Ishihara --
- Tengu (bird-like demon), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Tenjō-sagari (ceiling dweller), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Enma Dai-Ō (King of Hell), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Kyūbi no kitsune (nine-tailed fox), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Baku (dream-eating chimera), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Yūrei (ghost), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gōjin Ishihara --
- Yamasei (mountain sprite), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Goujin Ishihara --
- Rashōmon no oni (ogre of Rashōmon Gate), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Waira (mountain-dwelling chimera), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Nure-onna (snake woman), Illustrated Book of Japanese Monsters, 1972

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Hell of Repetition (Illustrated Book of Hell, 1975)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Burning Hell (Illustrated Book of Hell, 1975)

Illustration by Gōjin Ishihara --
- Demons of the Orient (The Complete Book of Demons, 1974)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- The appearance of Satan (The Complete Book of Demons, 1974)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Gorgon (Illustrated Book of World Monsters, 1973)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Aliens in ancient Japan (Mysteries of the World, 1970)

Illustration by Goujin Ishihara --
- Alien (Mysteries of the World, 1970)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Emergency Command 10-4 10-10 (sonosheet book, 1972)

Illustration by Gōjin Ishihara --
- Emergency Command 10-4 10-10 (sonosheet book, 1972)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Kaiketsu Lion-Maru (sonosheet book, 1972)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Kaiketsu Lion-Maru (sonosheet book, 1972)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Prehistoric man as modern-day baseball player (Prehistoric Man, 1970)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Prehistoric man as modern-day wrestler (Prehistoric Man, 1970)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Prehistoric man as modern-day security guard (Prehistoric Man, 1970)

Illustration by Gōjin Ishihara --
- The secretary who spied for 18 years (from Spy Wars)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- World’s biggest glutton (World’s Greatest Wonders, 1971)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Precognition of plane crash (Mysteries of the Body, 1973)

Illustration by Gojin Ishihara --
- Nostradamus (Psychics of the World, 1974)

Illustration by Goujin Ishihara --
- Frozen planet (Year X: End of the World, 1975)

Illustration by Gōjin Ishihara --
Dark star gravity (Year X: End of the World, 1975)

[Link: Gōjin Fechi]

99 To Go...


So I'm sitting here after a long, hard week, sipping on a delicious Rogue Double Dead Guy Ale, and I realize that there's only 99 more days until the big night. I am now officially way behind schedule, but hey, what's new? 

Oh, I know what's new! If you look up, you'll notice the ghoulish new header that I created. Much better than what was there before, if I do say so myself. I got inspired one night while listening to the Sator Absentia channel on Pandora. Perfect ambient to get you into the Halloween spirit. If you so desire, drop me a comment and let me know what you think.

Also, I'll be pulling some of my tombstones out for detailing this weekend, and the shihatsu massager arrived in the mail, so I'm going to be starting on Highbury Cemetery's first animated prop. But that's all I'm going to give away for now. Check back soon, because the blog entries are going to start flowing with a frenzy.

On a final note, I scooped this juicy tidbit from Johnny Thunder's totally awesome blog (if you haven't checked it out yet, do so immediately!):



Wow! I know I'm a day late, but the Missus and I have already entered. I can't wait for this to drop on AMC in October. The photo stills look amazing! And of course I've already filed them away as reference for this Halloween.

That's all I've got for now, but a big congratulations to Scrapes on his new house that I'm going to destroy at tomorrow night's Housewarming Party!!! I've got the perfect gift for you...