Manga and Japanese comics may not seem like the makings for a senior capstone project, but Justyn Lee ‘25 saw an opportunity to raise the artform’s profile.
A double major in art and Japanese at è, Lee’s capstone, “Reclaiming Manga Aesthetics,” was inspired by his time studying abroad at Kansai Gaidai University in Japan, where he first enrolled in courses focused on the academic study of Manga, a form of Japanese graphic novel.
“I was interested in how people study and analyze Manga,” Lee said. “From there, I used my experience from that course and gave it a twist to analyze it from an artistic perspective.”
While Manga demands advanced visual and narrative storytelling skills, it’s often dismissed in the art world as lowbrow due to its commercialization. Lee’s capstone challenges that bias, viewing Manga as high art and paying reverence to its creators.
As part of the project, Lee wrote and presented his analysis entirely in Japanese, a requirement for majors in the world languages at Pacific. With guidance from his advisor, Yasutaka Maruki, Lee grew more confident in articulating complex artistic ideas in Japanese, blending his language and creative skills in new ways.
Originally from Hawai‘i, Lee found a second home at Pacific, where the close-knit campus community supported his identity and ambition. Through his capstone, Lee connected his academic studies and artistic vision, realizing that his growth at Pacific extended beyond the classroom. His work not only reflects his academic and creative development but also sets the stage for his next steps as a creative thinker ready to make an impact beyond college.