Kofi Bazzell-Smith prioritizes cultural crossover, multicultural experiences and the combinations of different art forms in his artwork.

The Clara M. Eagle Gallery currently features a manga exhibit by Bazzell-Smith called “Azuki” that displays this international crossover.

Bazzell-Smith specializes in manga, a form of Japanese comics. His style is based in bilingual action and comedy. He has worked with professional manga editors to improve his own work and leads workshops at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to help other students improve their manga.

Bazzell-Smith focuses on the question, “What does it mean for a Black American artist to deeply engage with Japanese manga as a form?”

His work is featured in “Future Spaces in Community Places for An Afrofuturism Experience.” This collection compiles mixed-media pieces that focus on multicultural collaboration and display the work of Black artists.

Bazzell-Smith said manga fits well in this category.

“I think that the Black mangaka movement is an important iteration of Afrofuturism,” Bazzell-Smith said.

The piece on display, “Azuki,” is a bilingual manga that imagines Black potential in a world where race doesn’t exist, according to his website.

“Azuki Chapter 1” is a twist on the traditional Sh?nen genre of manga, which focuses on a young male fighter undergoing a narrative arc. “Azuki Chapter 1” instead depicts a young girl fighting male opponents in a fierce rock-paper-scissors competition. Like traditional manga, it is displayed in print form and is intended to be read from right to left.

In his artist talk on Zoom, Bazzell-Smith highlighted Brazilian jiu jitsu as an example of a cultural crossover. Brazilian martial artists created their own form of jiu jitsu that is now considered a very influential type of martial arts.

Bazzell-Smith also talked about Japanese jazz and rap artists who have taken the genre and modified it based on their native language. Japanese verbs have a natural rhyme scheme that allows for musicians to create diverse rap structures.

Bazzell-Smith says he hopes to achieve the same type of cultural crossover in his own work. He has been studying Japanese for around six years and continues to train to understand the form.

An important part of Bazzell-Smith’s success is his process as an artist. His first step in the process is writing a script. He then transfers these scripts to thumbnails, which are rough sketches of the storyline and art. The next step is to create a rough draft of the manga and send it to his editor. Bazzell-Smith emphasized the importance of a good editor-writer relationship. Bazzell-Smith’s YouTube channel, Kofi Manga, highlights each step of his process and aims to help aspiring manga writers.

During his talk, Bazzell-Smith gave advice to aspiring artists. He suggested artists always keep their portfolio with them.

“Make friends, ask questions, walk into rooms and ask if you can participate, and you’ll be surprised how many people say ‘yes’ and how much you’ll learn,” Bazzell-Smith said.

He said his best opportunities have come from showing his work and having an active social media presence.

“Always put more in,” he said. ”You never know what’s going to happen.”

At the core of Bazzell-Smith’s advice is something his uncle once told him: “Opportunity comes at the intersection between luck and preparedness.”

Bazzell-Smith is working on his Master of Fine Arts in New

Media at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and has been a professional boxer for over a year. Bazzell-Smith is currently working with the Mellon Foundation in the Interseminars Initiative, an interdisciplinary fellowship. He currently works with fellow graduate students creating projects that surround social

Bazzell-Smith’s current goal is to get approved for a year-long study of manga in Japan. Bazzell-Smith said he continues to focus on his art and is developing the skills necessary to be published by a Japanese manga company.

“Azuki Chapter 1” will be showcased in the upper wing of the Eagle Gallery until Oct. 29.