A special goodbye to Sugimoto and Asirpa.

Few anime/manga series are linked as closely to a real-world location as Golden Kamuy, the historical adventure is set in Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost prefecture. Several aspects of the story are steeped in the cultural traditions of the indigenous Ainu, and the region’s rugged, snow-covered landscape is a common backdrop for the journeys of protagonists Sugimoto and Asirpa.

With the manga having just reached its conclusion at the end of last month, publisher Shueisha wanted to give a special salute to Golden Kamuy to make the finish of its eight-year run, and they did it in a uniquely Hokkaido way.

That’s snow artist Tomohiro Kajiyama walking around a frosty field in Hokkaido, wearing a pair of snowshoes. In the video below, though, you’ll see he’s not taking a straight path across, though, but doubling back time and time again.

Why? Because he’s not just taking a stroll, he’s creating a picture of Golden Kamuy’s two main characters!

These aren’t simplified doodle-quality or super-deformed renditions either. Both characters are recreated in amazing detail, and Kajiyama even includes Golden Kamuy’s Japanese-language logo at the bottom of the 100-by-70-meter (328-by-230-foot) “Snow Comic,” as the video dubs it.

▼ Art from the manga, superimposed to show how close the Snow Comic is

Though Golden Kamuy’s serialization in Weekly Young Jump has ended, its final two collected volumes are scheduled for release this summer, so who knows, maybe we’ll see some rice paddy art for the series later this year.

Source: YouTube/ヤンジャンTV【集英社ヤングジャンプ公式】 via Anime News Network/Kim Morrissy
Images: YouTube/ヤンジャンTV【集英社ヤングジャンプ公式】
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