Jun-Pierre Shiozawa

Summary

Hello, my name is Jun-Pierre Shiozawa. I am a painter, Eisner-nominated comic artist and a Resident Artist partnering with Etchr Lab. ​ I primarily work in water-based media, such as watercolor and ink. I have been an art educator with over twelve years experience teaching watercolor, oil painting, drawing and art history. For as long as I can remember, I have found joy in making pictures. I copied cartoons and comics as a kid. My first job was as a caricaturist at the local town fair when I was twelve years old. At 19 I attended the Aegean Center for the Fine Arts in Italy and Greece where I studied classical painting under Jane Morris Pack. ​ ​After graduating I lived in Minneapolis, Martinique, Paris and Tokyo where I continued to exhibit in group and solo art shows. In 2008 I returned to Greece to teach oil painting and drawing at the Aegean Center. Living in Paros, Greece deeply affected the way I approached painting and how I paint today. I preferred to paint in nature as opposed to the studio. I began to watercolor for practical reasons—in how fast I could paint and how easy it was to carry everything. Soon I found how well the medium of watercolor fits my own sensibilities and aesthetic--I was hooked. In 2011 I led my first watercolor workshop called “The Craft of Watercolor” which merged my passions of watercolor painting and travel sketching/painting. Since then I have led workshops in Italy, Ireland and Greece all with the focus of discovering and experiencing a place through drawing and watercolor. ​ Last year I began teaching painting online. I have been instructing watercolor courses and also am working in collaboration with Etchr Lab in teaching mini-workshops and classes to students of all ages, all over the world. My first graphic novel “GENIUS ANIMALS?” written by Vali Chandrasekaran was released in 2020 and was featured in the New York Times, Comics Beat, Panel Patter and was nominated for an Eisner Award for best Digital Comic. I live in Nice with my wife and two young daughters. If you want to ask questions, discuss commissions or anything else, feel free to contact me. Otherwise you can find me on most social media as @junpierre: