Being a Japanese artist living and working in Europe, how do you handle your cultural roots within the Western world? How has this influenced your art practice?
When I visited the Metropolitan Museum years ago I was fascinated by the suits of armour from around the world. The Japanese ones caught my eye because of their extreme, almost manic detailing, as if it was a compulsion or even a prayer, but they also had a certain primitivity. No idea if this has anything to do with my ethnic origins.
You are based in Berlin. Does this city influence and/or contribute to your practice in any way?
I miss the skyscrapers. The endless expanses certainly have an effect. But a bigger impact is made by the museums that represent a core of extreme energies.
