The Modern-Day Leonardo da Vinci Painting the "Future"

An Interview with Naoyuki Kato (May 12, 2026, at Myoshoji Park)
Sci-fi Painter Naoyuki Kato makes judgments based on scientific evidence and meticulously considers the details, the inner workings, and even what lies beyond the subjects he paints. Like Leonardo da Vinci, who was drawn to the novel and the uncharted, Naoyuki Kato has spent his career painting the "future." What are the things that have captured his interest and what does he hold most dear?

1. A Childhood Awakened by the World of Books

“My journey into reading began in junior high school when a friend lent me the third volume of Edgar Rice Burroughs' Princess of Mars series, which featured cover art by pioneering Japanese sci-fi artist, Motoichiro Takebe (*). At the time, only up to the third volume had been released, so I would visit the bookstore almost every day waiting for the subsequent volumes. I was so thrilled when a new one was published. Even now, I still have dreams about finding a new book with one of Takebe’s covers. I bought and read everything he illustrated, not just science fiction, but children's books as well. He was simply someone who could brilliantly express the worlds of stories.

Generally speaking, I loved paperbacks that were easy to read, and I read across many genres. From mystery novels to domestic fiction like Anne of Green Gables or Little Women, I read almost all the classics. It was around this time that I began thinking, ‘I want to work in the world of books,’ and ‘The thing I can do is draw book covers.’”

2. Imagining Beyond the Author’s Vision

“When I failed my university entrance exams, my mother encouraged me to attend design school. There, I joined a fan circle called SF Central Art (*1), where I met fellow sci-fi enthusiasts.

The joy of working on SF projects is being able to utilize your imagination to its fullest. I often imagine and incorporate elements into my drawings that go beyond the author's initial description. For example, in the work Mars Engine (*2), which I illustrated recently (May 2026), there is a shuttle traveling between Mars and Earth. I thought it would be cool to have the ship's name painted on the hull. I explained the ship's ownership by a Taiwanese company and the purpose of its mission to ChatGPT (OpenAI’s AI chat) to brainstorm a name, and then I painted that name onto the ship. Interestingly, when I checked with Gemini (Google’s AI chat) to see if the name posed any copyright infringement issues, it not only analyzed the name but it even deduced the plot of the novel. AI is incredibly convenient; I use it daily for everything from work-related tasks to getting advice on the best bicycle gears.”

3. From Encountering the Apple II Plus to Digital Art

“Actually, it’s my wife who is the expert on digital technology and IT. She was the one who bought an Apple II Plus (*1) in Akihabara. At first, I played around on it creating wireframes (*2) of spaceships, which eventually led to video game work. However, my birthday gift every year for my tech-savvy wife is an oil painting on the same size canvas.

What interested me more than digital painting was ‘computer communication.’ Through that, I met a designer who used a Macintosh II (*1). At one point, when copyright infringement became a topic of discussion among creators, I found myself advising people caught up in legal troubles. I consulted the president of a game software company I was close to, which led to an opportunity to speak about copyright issues at a social gathering of game companies. ‘You should form a group,’ I was advised. After a little research, I discovered there was a group called the Japan Art Copyright Association, so I joined. When I started in the anime industry, there were no contracts at all, but when I signed the contract for Legend of the Galactic Heroes with the publisher, I was able to use the knowledge of copyright I had gained to negotiate properly.”

4. Supported and Hindered by Knowledge

“When drawing robots or similar things that have not been drawn before for a sci-fi world, I have to think them through from scratch. For example, the ‘powered suit’ I drew for Robert A. Heinlein’s Starship Troopers had some inspiration from Motoichiro Takebe, who had already drawn something like it, and because I have a fondness for Western armor. Nonetheless I had to consider the joint structure and where the motors would be placed, otherwise I couldn't draw it convincingly. I’ve even discussed such ideas with Professor Sankai (*1) of the University of Tsukuba, the developer of ‘HAL.’

These ways of thinking were shaped by my fondness of bicycles. If you ride a store-bought bike as it is, it often doesn't fit your body, so I modify mine to suit me. For instance, I’ve even designed my own handlebars and had them custom-made.

However, if you are too bound by knowledge, it can actually be a hindrance. Usually, when I’m working on a piece, the very first image I have is the best, and the more I try to refine it, the worse it gets. I am currently working on the box art for Chapter 7 of Be Forever Yamato: Rebel 3199, and I’ve already redone it about three times. The first image was fantastic, and even I thought, "This is cool!" But it wasn't accurate when cross-referenced with the anime’s character sheet. Digital tools allow you to add endless detail, but in the end, I decided to stop that level of detailing and redrew it focusing on the overall volume and presence of the piece.”

5. My Best Work is Always My Latest Work

“Essentially, the work I am currently struggling with is my ‘best’ work. So, right now, that would be Mars Engine. Since I heard it was the author's first SF work, I drew it with the intention of saying, ‘This is what SF is!’ (laughs).

In the past, with paperbacks, we could draw across the entire back cover, but once barcodes were introduced, we were limited to just the front cover. To me, a ‘cover’ isn't just the front; it is a composition that includes the back as well. The worldview I create cannot be contained in that small, vertically elongated space. However, some years ago, my preferences started to be accepted, and I’ve been able to draw around to the back cover again. Also, the art I created for the Future Special Zone Project (*) was a source of pride, printed as a large 5-6 meter display.”

6. Enchanted by the Planetarium

“Speaking of drawings that wrap around, I have also created dome art for planetariums.
I’ve loved planetariums since I was a child. There was a science museum for children in my neighborhood, and I spent my elementary school days gazing at the starry sky in its planetarium.

When I became a professional illustrator, there was the Suginami Science Museum (*) nearby, equipped with a planetarium. The director asked me to do the illustrations for a book about planetariums he was writing, and that was how I learned about their structure. When I watched the movie Star Wars projected onto a dome, I realized I could project my own art, and I thought, ‘I want to draw pictures for a planetarium too!’

Afterward, I kept drawing idea sketches for planetariums as a hobby, but as my desire to officially present them to the public grew, I launched a crowdfunding campaign in 2019 to cover the production costs for dome art. I asked Goto Inc. (a professional planetarium installation company) to distribute the art for free so that it could be projected at any planetarium.

Actually, the dome projection simulation app I used was developed by the director of the Science Museum in Kitanomaru Park (central Tokyo). I learned about it from a scholar who was in charge of space science verification for Space Battleship Yamato, and they even let me test-project my work on the dome at the Science Museum.”

7. A Painter Needs Health and Stamina

“Since the COVID-19 pandemic, I stopped doing live painting. The threat of the virus, including its long-term effects, was that serious. After all, you need health to be able to paint.

Stamina is also essential. Shigeru Komatsuzaki (*1), famous for his watercolors, also painted oil works. I heard from his students that ‘when his physical strength fades, he can no longer paint with oils,’ which made me realize I need to build up my stamina to keep painting.

I train my lower body with cycling and my upper body with pull-ups. I ride my bike to a park where I can do pull-ups, and I work out daily. If I skip even a little, I lose the ability immediately.

When I moved to Tokyo, I lived in my grandmother's house in Shimo-Igusa, and I still live in Shimo-Igusa today. In the past, the manga artist Keiko Takemiya had an office nearby, and another manga artist, Moto Hagio, even came over to check out at our computers and such.

I do go to art museums in neighboring wards and the Suginami Animation Museum (*) which is relatively close by. All by bicycle, of course. It’s more fun to ride my bike outside than to be stuck at home drawing! (laughs).

Maintaining the motivation for work is truly difficult. These days, my concentration drops after about an hour. When that happens I’ll check X (formerly Twitter) or something for a bit. In any case, I couldn't keep going if it wasn't interesting, so I’m always on the hunt for something intriguing.”