is a Japanese manga artist

Mangaka

is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...

 and actor

Actor

An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...

 from Shizuoka

Shizuoka, Shizuoka

is the capital city of Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan, and the prefecture's second-largest city in terms of both population and area. It became one of Japan's 19 "designated cities" in 2005.-Geography:...

, Japan, known for dark humor and his social criticism. In early 1981, after graduating from Tama Art University

Tama Art University

is a private university in Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan. The predecessor of the school was founded in 1935 as a spinoff from what is today Musashino Art University...

, he began to work in the field of advertising as an illustrator at Kirin Brewery Company. He maintained his regular day job along with his manga work until 1994. His first manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 series is Ereki na Haru, a manga strip launched in 1985. He has been teaching at the School of Progressive Arts in Kobe Design University

Kobe Design University

is a private university in Kobe, Hyōgo, Japan.It was established in 1989 by Tanioka Gakuen Educational Foundation , which runs several schools such as Osaka University of Commerce.- Undergraduate schools :* School of Progressive Arts...

 since 2006.

Known for his gag manga, he keeps his humor close to the dramatic aspects of life. "I always have the choice of telling it with laughter," said Kotobuki Shiriagari in an interview about his storytelling. His series appears regularly in Comic Beam

Comic Beam

is a Japanese seinen manga magazine published by Enterbrain on a monthly basis since November 1995. In 2006, it had a circulation of 25,000. Popular manga serialized in Comic Beam include Kaoru Mori's Emma about the love story between a maid and an aristocratic man in Victorian England. Emma was...

 and experimental Magazine AX.

Manga

• Ereki na Haru (エレキな春), 1985
• Ora Rokoko da (おらあロココだ) Hakusensha
  Hakusensha
  is a Japanese publishing company. It is headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo.The company mainly publishes manga magazines of various genres and is involved in certain series' productions in their games, original video animation, musical and their animated TV series....
  
   1987
• O.Shi.Go.To. (おしごと), Hanako
  Hanako (magazine)
  Hanako is a Japanese magazine for young women, published by Magazine House since 1988. It features shops, fashion, restaurants and theaters in Tokyo and abroad...
  
   / Magazine House, 1992
• Koisomore-sensei (コイソモレ先生), 1993
• Hinshi no Esseiisto (瀕死のエッセイスト), 1993–2002
• Ryuusei Kachou (流星課長), Take Shobou, 1996
• Yajikita in Deep (弥次喜多 in DEEP), 1997–2002
• Futago no Oyaji (双子のオヤジ), 1998–2001
• Jijö Oyaji 2000 (時事おやじ2000), 2000
• Haikai rōjin Don Quichote (徘徊老人ドンキホーテ), 2001
• Shin Hige no OL Sasako Yabuuchi (真・ヒゲのOL藪内笹子), Enterbrain
  Enterbrain
  is a Japanese magazine publisher established on April 1, 2000. Enterbrain magazines are generally focused on video games and computer entertainment as well as video game and strategy guides. In addition, the company publishes a small selection of anime artbooks. Enterbrain is based in Tokyo, Japan...
  
  , 2002–2004
• Chikyu Boei Ke no Hitobito (地球防衛家のヒトビト), Asahishimbunsha, 2004
• Mayonaka no Mizukokikado (真夜中の水戸黄門), Comic Beam
  Comic Beam
  is a Japanese seinen manga magazine published by Enterbrain on a monthly basis since November 1995. In 2006, it had a circulation of 25,000. Popular manga serialized in Comic Beam include Kaoru Mori's Emma about the love story between a maid and an aristocratic man in Victorian England. Emma was...
  
  , 2004–2005
• Mayonaka no Hige no Yaji-san Kita-san (真夜中のヒゲの弥次さん喜多さん), 2005
• Hogaraka Shinjiru Kimi (ほがらか信じる君)
• Gero Gero Pusuka (ゲロゲロプースカ) Comic Beam
  Comic Beam
  is a Japanese seinen manga magazine published by Enterbrain on a monthly basis since November 1995. In 2006, it had a circulation of 25,000. Popular manga serialized in Comic Beam include Kaoru Mori's Emma about the love story between a maid and an aristocratic man in Victorian England. Emma was...
  
  , 2006

Films

• 1997 - Tokyo biyori
• 2004 - Kyûtî Hanî
• 2004 - Koi no mon
• 2005 - Yaji and Kita: The Midnight Pilgrims
  Yaji and Kita: The Midnight Pilgrims
  is a 2005 Japanese film directed by Kudo Kankuro. The film stars several well-known and highly respected Japanese actors.The story follows two Edo-era gay men, Yaji Robei and Kita Hachi , on a pilgrimage to Ise Shrine. It is loosely based on the Tōkaidōchū Hizakurige.-Plot:Yaji and Kita are two...
  
  
• 2007 - Quiet room ni yôkoso

Reception and awards

Kotobuki's series Jiji Oyaji 2000 and Yuruyuru Oyaji won the Bungeishunjū Manga Award

Bungeishunju Manga Award

The was an annual award established in 1955 and given out by Bungeishunjū in Japan for gag, yonkoma, one-panel, and satirical manga. The award was also given out for works considered the magnum opus of manga creators....

 in 2000.

He received the Tezuka Osamu Cultural Prize excellence Award in 2001 for his manga Yajikita in Deep.

See also

• Sukiyaki Western Django