Adrian Tomine Quotes

Powerful Adrian Tomine for Daily Growth

About Adrian Tomine

Adrian Tomine, an accomplished American cartoonist and graphic novelist, was born on March 19, 1974, in Sacramento, California. Growing up with a love for comics, he was heavily influenced by the works of artists such as Herge (Tintin), Art Spiegelman, and Chris Ware, all of whom shaped his unique storytelling style. Tomine's career began in earnest while he was studying graphic design at the Rhode Island School of Design. His work started appearing in various publications like The New Yorker, Optical Alloy, and his self-published series 'Optic Nerve'. This groundbreaking series has been published in three volumes since 1994, showcasing Tomine's knack for character-driven narratives, social commentary, and visual storytelling. In 2007, Tomine released 'Shortcomings', his first long-form graphic novel. This work explored themes of identity, relationships, and cultural expectations within the Asian American community, reflecting his own experiences growing up as a Japanese-American in suburban California. Tomine's most recent significant work is 'Killing and Dying', published in 2016. This collection of stories delves into the lives of various characters grappling with their own mortality, love, and loneliness. His work often focuses on ordinary people faced with complex situations, making them relatable to a wide audience. Adrian Tomine's impact on contemporary comics is undeniable. His intricate storytelling and vivid art have garnered numerous awards, including multiple Eisner Awards for Best Humor Publication, Best Graphic Album—Reprint, and Best Short Story. Despite his success, he continues to push the boundaries of graphic storytelling, making him a pioneer in the industry.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"The beauty of youth is not in its immortality, but in its fearlessness."

Adrian Tomine's quote emphasizes that the essence of youth lies not in its invincibility, but in its fearlessness. This fearlessness comes from a lack of inhibitions and a readiness to take risks, explore new ideas, and challenge boundaries without the burden of fear or self-doubt that often accompanies maturity. It's a reminder to embrace boldness and curiosity, even as we age, recognizing that these qualities are essential to growth and personal development.


"It's never too late to realize that you've been living someone else's life."

This quote suggests the idea that it's possible for individuals to spend significant parts of their lives living in a way that is not truly authentic or aligned with their own values, aspirations, or identity – essentially living someone else's life. Recognizing this late in life implies a profound realization and an opportunity for personal growth and self-discovery. It underscores the importance of introspection and embracing one's unique path towards self-actualization.


"Art is a way to make sense of the world, or at least a small corner of it."

This quote by Adrian Tomine emphasizes that art serves as a tool for understanding and interpreting our surroundings. It suggests that through creative expression, we can find meaning in our complex, often bewildering world. This could be our own personal reality or the universal human condition. Essentially, the act of creating art becomes a quest to make sense of life's mysteries, one small piece at a time.


"The past is something you can't ever really leave behind. It's always with you, even if it's just in your mind."

This quote by Adrian Tomine emphasizes that our personal histories, or the "past," are an integral part of who we are as individuals. The past may not physically accompany us, but it continues to influence our thoughts, emotions, actions, and perceptions in significant ways. It shapes our perspectives, informs our decisions, and contributes to our identity. This quote suggests that even when we try to move forward or leave the past behind, its imprint remains within us, shaping our present experiences and future choices.


"Everyone wants to be special, but few are willing to do the work that makes them so."

This quote by Adrian Tomine highlights the notion that individuals often desire to stand out or be exceptional, yet they may not always be prepared to put in the necessary effort and dedication required to become special. It suggests a discrepancy between people's aspirations for greatness and their willingness to undertake the demanding process of self-improvement and hard work that underpins achieving such status. In essence, Tomine emphasizes that true greatness is attainable only when one is committed to the consistent effort and discipline needed to make themselves remarkable.


All my stories take place on the West Coast - not the beach, but smaller inland towns. I feel homesick, and I find inspiration in capturing that.

- Adrian Tomine

West Coast, Stories, Smaller, Homesick

It's a strange thing to be a so-called alternative cartoonist, because in the early part of my career, I was really tethered to the superhero world.

- Adrian Tomine

Career, Superhero, Part, Strange Thing

For a lot of the time I was in Berkeley, I was single. I was living in a kind of collegiate apartment by myself - it was like a protracted summer vacation. So at least in hindsight, I have gloomy emotions attached to Berkeley, whereas I started coming to New York because I was dating someone, and it was very exciting and romantic.

- Adrian Tomine

Hindsight, Very, Least, Attached

I really love New York, but I have to say, the humidity during the summer is a nightmare for a cartoonist. Not only am I sweating in my studio, my bristol board is curling up, the drafting tape is peeling off the board, my Rapidograph pens bleed the minute I put them to paper... it's a disaster.

- Adrian Tomine

Love, Summer, Studio, Drafting

When I'm sitting at my drafting table in my studio, I could really be anywhere.

- Adrian Tomine

Could, Studio, Anywhere, Drafting

Even though I'm usually not conscious of it, I think drawing has always served a sort of therapeutic purpose in my life. There's something about the process of translating the messy chaos of real life into a clean, simple drawing that's always been comforting to me.

- Adrian Tomine

My Life, Been, Translating, Conscious

I was just taking my sketchbook to Kinko's and making photocopies and hand-assembling them - folding them over and stapling them.

- Adrian Tomine

Over, Making, Them, Folding

I'm always a little apprehensive about 'decoding' fictional stories.

- Adrian Tomine

Always, Stories, About, Fictional

I'm not the best person to analyze any kind of evolution in my work, but I do feel like it's been an ongoing struggle to basically teach myself how to tell the kinds of stories that interest me in comics form.

- Adrian Tomine

Tell, Been, Comics, Analyze

My 20s were peaceful, privileged, but still I felt the desire to write angsty dramas.

- Adrian Tomine

Desire, Still, Privileged, Dramas

I don't pick up my work at all. If it's something that's still in progress and I have the chance to make some edits on the material or think about the order, little things like that, I'll keep those stories at hand and go through them. But once it exists as the book, it's locked away in a vault, and I kind of put it behind me.

- Adrian Tomine

Behind, Through, Some, Locked

When I started creating my work for publication, I just assumed that the focus would be on the work itself and that there wouldn't be a lot of interest in who was creating the work.

- Adrian Tomine

Work, Focus, Started, Publication

For a long time, I was very resistant to the idea of online publication or even e-books or something like that.

- Adrian Tomine

Like, Idea, Very, Publication

It's absolutely chilling to think that I've been working on a comic-book series called 'Optic Nerve' since I was sixteen.

- Adrian Tomine

Think, Been, Series, Chilling

I intentionally approached each story in 'Killing and Dying' in a different way, and that includes the writing process.

- Adrian Tomine

Process, Different Way, Each, Writing Process

In general, daily strips were just a regular part of my childhood. So even if I wasn't a huge fan of most of those strips, I still read them religiously every morning while I ate my cereal.

- Adrian Tomine

Part, While, Huge Fan, Cereal

I had relatives who would go to Japan and bring back random stuff they bought at the airport or whatever - 'Ultraman' and 'Speed Racer,' stuff like that.

- Adrian Tomine

Like, Japan, Bought, Relatives

When I started publishing my work, one of the biggest surprises to me was the recurring question about my background and why I wasn't doing more stories about Asian-Americans.

- Adrian Tomine

Doing, Question, Stories, Surprises

To me, one of the big fears of doing a big huge graphic novel is locking yourself into one style and getting halfway through it and going, 'Oh I made the wrong choice,' which is a recurring nightmare I have.

- Adrian Tomine

Big, Through, Which, Recurring

The story entitled 'Good-Bye' is probably Tatsumi's most well-known work, and I think it's a good representation of many of Tatsumi's skills and stylistic tendencies.

- Adrian Tomine

Think, Well-Known, Entitled, Stylistic

On a very basic, concrete level, there have been times when my work, regardless of the content, has harmed relationships because I made that work such a primary priority in my life.

- Adrian Tomine

My Life, Concrete, Very, Primary

When I first started drawing the earliest incarnation of 'Optic Nerve,' I hadn't even been on a date; I hadn't had a romantic relationship of any kind yet, so in a way, I was almost writing science fiction.

- Adrian Tomine

Date, Been, Almost, Science Fiction

I've always published a range of responses to my work in the letters section of my comic book.

- Adrian Tomine

Work, Book, Always, Comic Book

I had a mundane, happy childhood, without much struggle.

- Adrian Tomine

Happy, Childhood, Mundane, Struggle

What was a very private childhood hobby turned into a very a public, professional job, and I think that there's a lot of inhibition that can grow from that.

- Adrian Tomine

Think, Private, Very, Inhibition

I wanted to be as invisible as possible as an artist. I wanted to differentiate between myself and who I'm writing about.

- Adrian Tomine

Myself, Artist, Wanted, Differentiate

There's never been a moment where I sat down at my drawing board and thought, 'I'm a pro!'

- Adrian Tomine

Thought, Been, Sat, Board

The art editor in charge of the covers at the 'New Yorker' is Francoise Mouly. She's very familiar with the eccentricities and personalities of cartoonists, so working with her is very easy.

- Adrian Tomine

New, Editor, Very, Personalities

I would honestly be elated if I could wave a magic wand and eradicate my back catalog and then have a fresh crack at some of those ideas.

- Adrian Tomine

Magic, Some, Elated, Fresh

I do think that many Americans have a limited view of what constitutes Japanese cartooning based on what gets translated, so it's great to see an increase in diversity.

- Adrian Tomine

Think, Limited, Based, Cartooning

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