Yoshiko Nishitani

{{Short description|Japanese manga artist}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}

{{Expand Japanese|topic=manga|西谷祥子|date=October 2011}}

{{Expand French|topic=bio|date=August 2017}}

{{Infobox comics creator

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| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1943|10|2|df=yes}}

| birth_place = Kōchi, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan

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| nationality = Japanese

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| manga artist = yes

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| notable works = Mary Lou

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{{nihongo|Yoshiko Nishitani|西谷祥子|Nishitani Yoshiko|born 2 October 1943}} is a Japanese manga artist pioneering in shōjo manga. She released her works in Shōjo Club and Margaret.{{cite web|url=http://mastersofmanga.com/2010/06/hagioyear24/|title=What is the "Year 24 Group"?|date=23 June 2010|publisher=Manga Masters|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202143629/http://mastersofmanga.com/2010/06/hagioyear24/|archive-date=2 February 2014|url-status=dead|access-date=19 October 2016}} According to Rachel Thorn, Nishitani "more or less single-handedly invented the school campus romance that remains the mainstay of shôjo manga today",{{cite web|url=http://matt-thorn.com/wordpress/?p=154 |title=Mommy, the White Girl Is Scaring Me! |author=Matt Thorn |date=3 September 2008 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110918140218/http://matt-thorn.com/wordpress/?p=154 |archivedate=18 September 2011 }} and Robert Petersen regards her innovation as giving her characters personality.{{cite book|last=Petersen|first=Robert S.|title=Comics, manga, and graphic novels : a history of graphic narratives|year=2011|url=https://archive.org/details/comicsmangagraph00pete|url-access=limited|publisher=Praeger|location=Santa Barbara, Calif.|isbn=978-0-313-36330-6|page=[https://archive.org/details/comicsmangagraph00pete/page/n203 181]}} She gave her readers characters that were like them, "teenaged Japanese girls dealing with friendships, family, school, and, yes, falling in love."{{cite web|url=http://www.matt-thorn.com/shoujo_manga/colloque/index.php |title=The Multi-Faceted Universe of Shōjo Manga |author=Matt Thorn |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005013834/http://matt-thorn.com/shoujo_manga/colloque/index.php |archivedate=2011-10-05 }} Her success inspired an influx of female manga artists.{{cite web|url=http://mangacritic.com/2010/05/23/manga-moveable-feast-to-terra/|title=An Introduction to Keiko Takemiya's To Terra|author=Katherine Dacey|date=23 May 2010}} Her manga Mary Lou is thought to have opened up the idea of shōjo manga telling stories about ordinary teenagers. Nishitani's characteristics have been described as 'big eyes and huge reflections within' as well as a use of curly hair and frilly clothes, with an attention to detail when drawing that inspired later artists like Nanae Sasaya.{{cite journal |last1=Kálovics |first1=Dalma |url=http://www.kyoto-seika.ac.jp/researchlab/wp/wp-content/uploads/sa_dalma_kalovics1.pdf |title=The missing link of shōjo manga history: the changes in 60s shōjo manga as seen through the magazine Shūkan Margaret |journal=Kyōto Seika Daigaku Kiyō |issue=49 |publisher=Kyoto Seika University |date=2016 |archive-date=November 4, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191104101525/http://www.kyoto-seika.ac.jp/researchlab/wp/wp-content/uploads/sa_dalma_kalovics1.pdf |url-status=live}}