Tezuka's Desk

Ever wanted to see where a genius worked? If you're in Tokyo, you've got your chance! Osamu Tezuka's desk is going on display! Read this article from the The Yomiuri Shimbun for more.

Tezuka's work desk to be displayed for 1st time

The work desk at which legendary manga artist Osamu Tezuka is believed to have drawn some of his classic works, such as "Black Jack" and "Hi no Tori" (Phoenix), will go on public display for the first time at an exhibition that starts in Tokyo next week.

Tezuka used the regular steel office desk for 20 to 30 years until his death in 1989. Inside the desk drawers were his favorite pair of glasses, notebooks and a vintage stethoscope--a reminder that Tezuka was a qualified physician.

The desk had been left in Tezuka's eight-tatami-mat workroom on the second floor of his home in Higashi-Kurume, western Tokyo, where he had lived since 1980.

According to Tezuka's son Makoto, Tezuka did much of his work at home, and would pull out a futon when he got busy and draw while lying on his stomach.

"When my dad was young, he wasn't very picky about his tools--he even drew on mikan boxes," Makoto said. "I think the simplicity of his beloved desk shows that he lived his life without being too hung up on his tools."

The desk will go on display beginning April 18 as part of an exhibition on Tezuka's work at the Edo-Tokyo Museum in Sumida Ward, Tokyo. The Yomiuri Shimbun is a cosponsor of the exhibition.

Hmm, simple tools, huh? That almost makes me feel bad about buying one of these. Almost, but not quite!