Interest Stacks

If you've ever seen an anime and thought, "Wow, this anime has really good background art", and "Wow, this episode preview at the end looks amazing!" chances are it was made by Shichiro Kobayashi. An icon of Japanese animation, Kobayashi has had a fruitful career spanning over thirty years as the art director for several iconic shows. While known generally for his vibrant and highly detailed palettes, Kobayashi brought the animation technique known as "postcard memories" or "harmonies" to life alongside director and innovator Osamu Dezaki and character designer Akio Sugino, which are cels of animation superimposed with gouache to give off a lasting image.

Kobayashi's influence defined anime background art, and his output has been replicated by other art directors since—his own studio, Kobayashi Production, consists of students and proteges alike that have equally contributed to formative works in anime.

The following list is a selection of shows that contains Kobayashi's most notable and prettiest backgrounds, and I highly encourage you to check them out.

Documentary on Kobayashi: https://youtu.be/V1tiKOsCz2M
Kobayashi Production's credits: https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/company.php?id=1460