Traditionally there were not many self-portraits of artists in Japan. This was caused by the social situation in our culture. In the West individualism has been appreciated, but in our country it is not appreciated and, in fact, it is discouraged. Working in the West has allowed me to make my self-portrait. Making a self-portrait is like an exploration of the inner self. When I make my self-portrait I look at myself in a "mirror". I see not only my image, but also my thoughts, feelings, emotions, and ideas.

I understand sculpture/ceramics as a visual language and by using it, I can communicate without words. I want to be an artist who can communicate and make work that is accessible to the people who see it. I work with material to convey to the viewer my thoughts, feelings and love for the material. I believe that art is a metaphor and therefore is valuable for communication. In my work the metaphor is developed out of the relationship between myself, Japanese culture and the "other."

I am an artist who find topics from everyday-life experience to ask viewers' thoughts. I see the viewers comprehend and respond to the work. This will give me some feed backs to make my new works. I teach at Pima Community College as Director of Ceramic Department in Tucson, Arizona.

I studied art in Japan and in the United States. In Japan I had my under graduate degree in ceramics from the Osaka University of Arts. I spent one year as an exchange student at Maryland Institute, College of Art in Baltimore. I hold my M.F.A. degree in Ceramics at New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University.

For the past seventeen years, I have exhibited my work and organized my slide lectures/workshops in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Hungary, Denmark, France, China, Korea, and Japan. I also had the opportunity to be an artist-in-residence at the Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park in Shiga, Japan, The Banff Centre for the Arts in Alberta, Canada , The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA, International Ceramic Studio, Hungary, International Ceramic Research Center, Denmark, A.I.R. Vallauris, France and Australian National University. As a result, I have met and worked with many artists from all over the world.

You can see my work on David Bowie's home page (Bowieart.com/featuredartist/) and Museum Loan Network home page (loannet.mit.edu/Web/)by Everson Museum.