Oekaki

Oekaki (お絵描き; drawing/painting) is a form of computer art that originated from the Japanese-speaking web during the late '90s and early '00s. The term oekaki typically refers to art drawn using oekaki bulletin boards and oekaki chats, and these sites were very popular with amateur artists around the world during the first half of the '00s. Their popularity waned as the decade wore on however, before fading into near-complete obscurity during the 2010s. ~~As of 2022, there are only a few semi-active oekaki bulletin boards remaining~~ As of 2025, various bulletin board/imageboard sites and random individuals have installed their own oekaki boards, usually utilizing POTI-board EVO.

There are likely to be many reasons for the oekaki board format's waning popularity, but it was at least in part due to web users developing vastly different browsing and computing habits than were commonplace during the first half of the 2000s. The final nail in the coffin was likely the obsolescence—and eventual discontinuation—of Java and Flash support in web browsers, which prevented the average user from being able to use oekaki applets. Since then, several oekaki applets that do not require Java or Flash have been created, but the format's popularity has yet to show any major signs of revival.

Some people confuse oekaki art with pixel art due to the visible aliasing that oekaki art often exhibits, but they are not the same thing. Pixel art is typically drawn meticulously pixel-by-pixel with strict color palette limitations; oekaki art, on the other hand, is usually hand drawn with a graphics tablet in a web browser, and only appears pixelated or palette-limited if that is the artist's intent, or if there are limitations within the oekaki applet being used.

Oekaki applets

Shi-Painter (Java applet; does not work on modern browsers)
Shi-chan's PaintBBS (Java applet; does not work on modern browsers)
Shi-chan's PaintChat (Java applet; does not work on modern browsers)
PaintBBS NEO (JavaScript; a remake of Shi-chan's PaintBBS)
Chicken Paint (JavaScript; HTML5 port of ChibiPaint)
Klecks (TypeScript)
tegaki.js (JavaScript; live demo)
wPaint (jQuery)
AXNOS Paint (JavaScript; live demo)

Oekaki bulletin board scripts

List of Oekaki BBS scripts
Name	Language	Applets	Notes	Demo
POTI-board	PHP	Shi-chan's PaintBBS (Java) Shi-Painter (Java)	Based on futaba.php. Last update was 2008/12/08 and hasn't been actively worked on since 2005, so the applets won't work in modern browsers.
POTI-board EVO EN	PHP	PaintBBS NEO (HTML5) Tegaki (HTML5) AXNOS Paint (HTML5) Shi-Painter (Java; runs on modern browsers using CheerpJ) ChickenPaint (HTML5) Klecks (HTML5)	Updated version of POTI-board, with English translation. The Japanese version is called POTI-board EVO. Still maintained as of 2025/09/16.	Live demo
Petit Note	PHP	PaintBBS NEO (HTML5) Tegaki (HTML5) AXNOS Paint (HTML5) ChickenPaint (HTML5) Klecks (HTML5)	Both Japanese and English are available based on the user's browser settings, but there is Peti Note EN which has an English config.php file (and is otherwise identical). Still maintained as of 2025/09/16.	Live demo
Wacintaki Poteto	PHP	ChickenPaint (HTML5) Shi-chan's PaintBBS (Java) Shi-Painter (Java) ChibiPaint (Java)	Started out as a CSS conversion of OekakiPoteto (2001–2002). Still maintained as of 2025/09/01.	Live demo

Oekaki bulletin boards

English

Oekaki@Heyuri (POTI-board EVO EN)
Gurochan's /kaki/ - Oekaki (POTI-board EVO EN)
PaintBBS (POTI-board EVO EN)
4chan's /i/ - Oekaki (custom; utilizes tegaki.js)
TEv2 (custom; requires Twitter account)
Oekaki na smoczym (custom; requires registration; utilizes ChibiPaint, OekakiBBS, Shi-chan's PaintBBS, Shi-chan's PaintChat, Shi-Painter, and Shi-Painter Pro (note that none of these oekaki applets work in modern browsers))

Japanese

Oekaki Keijiban Art.net (custom; various oekaki boards; utilizes PaintBBS NEO, ChickenPaint, and Shi-Painter)
Kigaru ni Oekaki (POTI-board EVO)
Petit Note (Petit Note)
Ecchi na Oekaki Keijiban (POTI-board EVO)
Oekaki sql@Futaba (futaba.php; utilizes PaintBBS NEO and Shi-chan's PaintBBS)
Rakugaki ura@Futaba (same as above)
Rakugaki@Futaba (same as above)
Oekaki sqlip@Futaba (same as above)
Oekaki@Futaba (same as above)

Gallery of epic Heyuri oekaki

*Note that this is not a complete collection of Heyuri oekaki, just some of the best/notable ones. They are sorted from most recent to least recent.

Awesome oekaki of Heyuri!!
Silent loli artist #24
Silent loli artist #23
Anonymous' character: nau
Silent loli artist #22
Silent loli artist #21
Nevermind, it lives!(ﾟｰﾟ)
Iz it teh end 4 heyuri?...
Disaster struck...
On the first of December 2023...
Silent loli artist #20
Silent loli artist #19
Heyuri-tan firing a laser at something while teh city is asspl0ding!
"Gentlemen, please! There's room for both of your abstract cocks in my mouth!"
"My abstract art is cooler than ur abstract art!!!!!"
"Abstract art. Praise me and suck my cock"
Heyuri's first tegaki oekaki!
Silent loli artist #18
Silent loli artist #17
Silent loli artist #16
Loli put some clothes on for the Führer's birthday
Silent loli artist #15 - he's back!!! ヽ(´∇`)ノ
NO
There's no response. It's just a corpse.
"heyurian portrait"
"shalom... they call me the kaijew"
"Herro I am chinese kaiju"
Anonymous takes your sadness very seriously
J/K, it is XD
Heyuri ojisan is kowai...
7-Zip-tan - a 7-Zip is you!
Teenage angst Heyuri-tan
Bunny and Heyuri-tan #2
"bunny says hi to heyuri!"
Chen!
What cute things she's probably saying!
This anonymous also loves risotto...
Fem-Risotto is apparently anonymous's waifu
Party bus TO THE FACE!!!
"HAHAHAHAHAHA YOU FOOLS"
Adorable sukumizu loli!!
Smokin' angel
Cute brown bunny girl!
Cute angel!
Cute nekomimi girl #4
Cute nekomimi girl #3
のワの
Cute nekomimi girl #2
Cute nekomimi girl
Cute~
This guy read the tutorial!
But you're the reason keeping me here!
Truth
"zzzzzz tiem"
Self portrait by anonymous
Self portrait by purple-sage
ｵﾜﾀ＼(＾o＾)／
Bonerific brown girl by usagi
YOU GONNA GET GRAPED... by faganon!?
...
Ai-ai-aiii I'm your little butterfly~ ヽ(´∇`)ノ
I moon'd
Usagi's unfinished Chun-Li drawing (FINISH IT!!!)
Gettin' jiggy with it
Anonymous was inspired
Presented without comment
Probably the best oekaki ever made, taking ＿ﾉ乙(､ﾝ､)_-san 8 days to create!!
Rena ^_^
Nothing a paper bag can't fix
WOMEN DRIVERS AMIRITE?
KABOOM
He's probably fine
I Mao'd
I maru'd
"Keeper of the Cuboid Prism Matrix"
Awoo~
dunno lol
Silent loli artist #14
Just Reimu... no bunny... no bewbs...
Ruukoto (EVEN BIGGER BUNNY BEWBS)
BIG BUNNY BEWBS
Happy ~~2023~~ 2003, featuring delicious chocolate rabbit!
New Year Mechazawa
Happy ~~2023~~ 2007!
"new years eve is an ideal time to play mahjong"
Hello Kitty girl
A ~~sweet peppermint cat~~ FURRY
Nappy-chan gonna nap
Silent loli artist #13 (MY FUCKING B0NER)
Moar 2hu
Silent loli artist #12
...probably
Kaguya emote!
Kana
Chiyuri
Nappy-chan
Ellen
GET BETTER!!!
Kotohime
Rikako
Celebrating 25 years since teh 3rd 2hu game: Yumemi
Cute Yotsuba!
You gonna get help'd
This is how nude painting works, rite?
Heyuri-tan says "Merry Chrismas!" (she can't spell)
Loli got shot :(
How it feels to browse Heyuri
Hollywood Heyuri-tan
newds.
bewbs.
kuz x kaguya
*chira*
Your future
What REALLY happened during teh golden age
Cute blob
j00 r f33l1n v3ry sl33pz0rs...
If it's breasts, I'm including it!
Homura had enough :(
Heyuri racing!
Heyuri dog
Heyuri-tan = buffz0rs
Chubby loli in sukumizu!
"herui"
ｷﾀ━━━(・∀・)━━━!!
Nigra in search of the waters of boku...
"Strange World"
I computer'd
AAAAAAAAA
I have heard of it
Silent loli artist #11
I see ~~shadow people~~ bewbs...
O_O
Apparently, she lost control (????)
"he is dead, now I can steal all his games and boku"
"for a brief moment in space and time, heyuri was here. and i was fortunate enough to be there with you"
Girl with loli sex slave...
He died for our wins
...due to trades
Loli says POOLS CLOSED!
Squirting olympics!
This respectable Heyuri user demands MOARRRRR
GET B&NNED!!!
Squirt on men #4
Look up R.Crumb's work if u liek teh weird pornz ( ´ω`)
Initial H
Long leg loli #7
Squirt on men #3
Long leg loli #6
Squirt on men #2
Long leg loli #5
Long leg loli #4
The legend of squirting on men begins!
Long leg loli #3
Long leg loli #2
The legend of the long leg loli begins!
Delicious usagi-chan bewbs (´￢`)
Protip: it's not furry if it's usagi-chan!
To Catch a Heyurian
GUNBUSTAAAAAAA!
It was an OC frenzy!
Is that so much to ask?
"It's the place for lolis!"
Ojisan becomes an hero ;_;
POWARRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!
Heyuri go KA-BOOM
A wild toddlercon appears!
A very ecchi Kiko-chan
Silent loli artist #10
Silent loli artist #9
Osaka roasts you!
Silent loli artist #8
Silent loli artist #7
A very cute loli!
Silent loli artist #6
Silent loli artist #5
Silent loli artist #4
Loli demands MOAR LOLI!!!
Silent loli artist #3(?)
I highly recommend Aria ( ´ω`)
Silent loli artist #2
The legend of the mysterious silent loli artist begins!
WAHA gonna B& u
Makin' their wayyyy the only way they know how
Neko gonna catch a Chiyo
Just the good ol' boys, never meanin' no harm
The futanari age is upon us!
Commemorating our new Heyuri overlord, kaguya!
(ﾟДﾟ )
TOMO PUNCH!!
*dies of 2hu overdose*
Shinku HAET penis T.T
Shinku HAET 2hu hijack T.T
こんにちは
Not again (;´Д`)
Another...
A couple of Easter bunnies
...DENIED!!!1
Hunting for Easter eggs in the most likely places...
Nurse Heyuri-tan will cure your AIDS!
Dr Heyuri-tan diagnoses a very serious condition
Loli states the truth
Onpu mongles ur cock
Nekkid school loli
Heyurian is healed by loli doctor
Heyurian enjoys some Loli Penis Abuse
TOOT TOOT SONIC WARRIOR
IN THE NAAAME OF LOOOVE
As OP requested, anonymous draws Luffy. Wait...
Now with 100% moar CRT!
And he was searching...
Heyuri anon at his computar
The power of ChickenPaint
Yaranaika?
Faganon has a bad day
Faganon has a good day
Epic OC
no body
WAHA
There is sometimes spam on /o/
TOUHOU HIJACK LOL
derk nerkum
:o
"It's the place to be!"
...
Tomo
Heyuri-tan
Megpoid
Heyuri-tan having fun on XP hill
Cute Lum
Uh I wish I were a bird
OH MY GAH!!!
Fuck you everynyan!
Tomo approves!
KAWAII UGUU~
Glorious pen0rs are a specialty on /o/
Chiyo approves!
LOL
Heyuri anon concept