Exhibition Time: July 6 - August 28, 2019

As the first animated series introduced to China 40 years ago, “Astro Boy” has become a shared memory for several generations. “Astro Boy, Initial Fantasy on Artificial Intelligence—The Special Exhibition of Japanese Cartoonist Osamu Tezuka” will open to the public at the Guardian Art Center from July 6 till August 28. This exhibition will not only revive childhood nostalgia associated with Astro Boy but also introduce a scintillating fusion of science fiction transcending time and space with its “AI” theme.

The exhibition’s crowning glory is the valuable original manuscripts and copy manuscripts of Astro Boy drawn by Osamu Tezuka. These manuscripts illustrated the cartoonist’s creative process, allowing the public to know how Astro Boy transformed from an embryonic concept in Osamu Tezuka’s mind into an animated character vividly shown on paper. In May 2018, an original manuscript of Astro Boy by Tezuka was auctioned for 269,400 euros, or more than 2 million yuan, in Paris, which vividly attested to the manuscript’s value. The hi-tech show invites visitors to see through black-and-white comics and the 2D world presented by 52 celluloid filmstrips via glasses-free 3D technology. A giant 3.5-meter-high sculpture of Astro Boy serves as a key to unlock many people’s childhood memories, immersing visitors in the fervor of the iconic slogan, “Astro Boy, power up!”