Q: What is medium of art you deal with?
I generally work with print since I am in Graphic Design, but I dabble in photography and have a secret passion for jewelry making.
Q: When did you start becoming dedicated to your means of artistic expression? What was the trigger?
Since I was a child, I've always loved drawing. I couldn't speak English very well so I may have started to draw as a means of communication. Now, I try to communicate ideas with my graphic design. In that sense, I haven't changed too much in 20 years.
Q: What / Where do you get your inspirations from?
Its hard for me to pinpoint where all my inspiration comes from, but my designs do gravitate towards being natural and organic. I love taking photos of nature and going on nature walks through the park and to the beach. I also try to read a lot of books and go to museums and just be actively looking for good designs around me.
Q: What made you join this SIR exhibition?
My friend Keiko Moriyama invited me to one of the exhibitions. Around the same time, I was actually looking for artists that shared similar cultural influences and ideas so I am very grateful about the SIR group's existence. I'm not as involved in the group yet as I'd like to be, but its great to know that there is somewhere you can go to share your ideas.
Q: Tell us a little bit about your vision of your art work at the show "FIRE." How do you interpret the theme "FIRE" as one of the Four Elements of the nature?
For the fire show, I plan to do a mix media piece focusing on life and death fire creates. Several months ago, I went to Angel Island for a hiking trip. This was several weeks after 80% of the island was destroyed by the forest fire. It was a devastating sight with the scorched black ground and dead trees, but after a closer look, we found new life growing through the blackened soil. The contrast between the bright green plants growing out of the black soil was a beautiful sight. This image of life after death stuck with me and I felt it was something I wanted to recreate for the show.
Q: Do you love Japan?
Yes. I love the culture and the art. Japanese art especially speaks to me in so many ways. I would like to pursue my studies about Japanese design.
Q: Do you have any message to the audience ..
Thanks for reading, and I hope all the exhibited works can give inspiration to everyone who attends.
Nao
