Final Fantasy artist Yoshitaka Amano’s Kickstarter for first European exhibition reaches target in just 3 hours   

A kickstarter campaign to fund an art exhibition celebrating the 50-year career of Yoshitaka Amano, the prolific artist known for his work on the Final Fantasy series and Vampire Hunter D, was just launched on July 19. However, it reached its funding target of 50,000 euros in only 3 hours (at the time of writing, it has received 60,505 euros worth of backing). The exhibition will be the artist’s first ever in Europe, and is scheduled to be held at Fabbrica del Vapore in Milan, Italy from November 13, 2024 to March 1, 2025. 

The exhibition is set to display over 130 of Amano’s works spanning his entire career. The Kickstarter is organized by Lucca Comics & Games, an annual convention set to be held from October 30 to November 3 this year. Yoshitaka Amano has produced 3 new works for the event, each appropriately inspired by classic Italian Operas (Madama Butterfly, Turandot and Tosca). These will also be on display at the art exhibition. 

The Kickstarter is still open to backers with a range of rewards on offer. The top reward for a pledge of 499 euros is an exclusive tour of the exhibit with Yoshitaka Amano himself (which will be interpreted in English and Italian).  

Although most comments about the planned exhibition in Italy have been positive, others expressed concerns. A previous Amano-related Kickstarter campaign, Yoshitaka Amano’s VR Museum, has been plagued with delays, leading to many critical comments from backers who have yet to receive their rewards. However, it should be noted that the in-person European exhibition Kickstarter is being organized by a different organization, Lucca Comics and Games. 

The Amano Corpus Animae exhibition is scheduled to be held at Fabbrica del Vapore in Milan, Italy from November 13, 2024 to March 1, 2025.