Jang “Dubu” Seong-rak, the illustrator of the popular manhwa Solo Leveling, has passed away following the deterioration of his health.
Solo Leveling was the breakthrough for the manhwa community. Solo Leveling was one of the first manwhas that attracted a large amount of international attention, placing South Korean comics in the spotlight. The manhwa has a great storyline, strong character building, and of course the fantastic art that brought Solo Leveling attention in the first place. During the recent Anime Expo Event 2022, the anime adaption of the series was greenlit, a testament to the popularity of the manhwa among fans. Unfortunately, Jang passed away before he had the opportunity to see his work adapted.
The news of Jang’s death came from the official Twitter account ofRedice Studio. For those who are unaware, Redice is the Korean art studio famous for adapting Webtoons. The studio shared an obituary note not long after Jang’s death. As per the statement, the famous Solo Leveling artist passed away on July 23rd, 2022. The statement reveals that the artist was suffering from chronic illnesses and experienced a sudden decline in his health prior to his death. Consequently, he passed away due to a cerebral haemorrhage resulting from the illness.
The private funeral took place at his family home, attended by the family, friends, and other parties known to the deceased. The note added a special thanks to the fans for supporting Dubu’s work and noted how he always loved what he did. The note also asked for the fan’s prayers so he could go to a better place.
Jang Seong-rak has worked on several manhwa projects like Na Honjaman Level Up and Guai ke Tegong: BEAUTIFUL LEGENDS. But, what truly gave him recognition for his work was when he started working on Solo Leveling in 2018. A role-playing videogame developed by Netmarble, an anime adaptation, and millions of views on Webtoons speak for the series' success. And one of the major credits for its success goes to Dubu’s fantastic illustration work.
