Guardians Of The Louvre ( Japanese title : 千年の翼、百年の夢 – Millenium wing, Centennial Dream ) is a comic by Japanese manga artist Jiro Taniguchi. The story follows a Japanese designer’s visit to Paris, where after recovering from a strong fever embarks on a dreamlike tour of the Louvre, encountering renowned artists whose great art works line the halls of the museum.

The 133 page manga is illustrated in great detail with full colors, and I was lucky enough to see some of the artist’s original manga panels at the Louvre No.9 Exhibition held in Tokyo last summer.

Admittedly, I know and have seen little of Jiro Taniguchi’s work until he released an art book last year; a fantastic volume that I highly recommend, and I’ve been piqued to discover more of his work ever since.

The artist pays great attention in giving an accurate and authentic look to the Louvre – a video I saw at the Louvre No.9 Exhibition shows him touring the museum as part of his research for creating this manga.

Jiro Taniguchi is a recipient of French Knighthood and cites Moebius as a major influence on his art – I thnk that is why the style of his illustration bears some similarities to Otomo Katsuhiro as well.

The manga is a great treat for those who love Western art/paintings as well as the Louvre, with Jiro Taniguchi’s beautiful art work akin to a visit ( or revisit ) of the museum. Recommended.

This version of the manga I’ve reviewed is the original Japanese edition – an English edition is also available from Amazon.com and Amazon UK.

I also recommend checking the artist’s art book, simply titled Jiro Taniguchi.

“Guardians of the Louvre – Jiro Taniguchi 千年の翼、百年の夢 豪華版 コミック” manga details :

– Dimensions – 26 x 18.8 x 2.6 cm
– Hard cover, 133 pages
– Full color, in Japanese language

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