Autobiography

I was born and grew up in a suburb of Tokyo in the 60s. Both of my parents have college degrees and spoken English which was rare in those days. My mother was a housewife who loved to grow some flowers in a small garden, and she also taught French embroidery at home. Her students were also the housewives who lived in the local area. All of her works were so beautifully organized with colors and details that I could recognize the difference between that of her students' even as an eight-year old girl. I used to sketch a lot of those flowers in our small garden and at school with crayons and colored pencils.

Perhaps, this was how I was influenced by my mother to pursue to obtain a degree in the Art World.

My artistic career did not start until in my late forties. I have been working in the industries that have no connections to art because I knew that it was not easy to make living by art unless you have big family support. After me and my husband moved to Texas, I wanted to do pottery again as I had experienced one year of study in Tokyo which opened my eyes to the Art once more. When I found that Texas A&M University of Commerce had the Ceramic department, I did not hesitate. I believed the time had come to jump into the Art world and here I am.

My ceramic artworks have a taste of Japanese historical and cultural influences. I love to draw and paint the traditional Japanese Ukiyo-e Art from Edo period (early17C- late19C) and ancient Kimono patterns on my dog sculptures. My motivation of doing the dog sculpture is from my lost dog in my past so that I could feel him right beside me. Barbara Frey, who was my professor at the time, taught me how to handle a large sculpture and the process to complete them with some paintings on them. I found it was amazing because she taught me so many ways to express the surface by using different mediums. Since then, I finished four different dog sculptures with different mediums to experiment with them. When I build my dog sculpture, I become passionate and time flies by. In addition to sculptures, I love to throw mugs and bowls. Mishima technique on my Japanese tea pot and mugs and the traditional Nerikomi technique on large bowls by slip casting are all expressing my identity of far Asia. My goal is not only focus on those styles but also unite them with the Western forms to create my distinctive art style. 

Artist Statement

My artwork is functional and sculptural, utilizing painting and ceramic techniques as well as expressive colors. I am inspired by historical and naturalistic features, such as Japanese classical motifs from ancient books and traditional Kimono patterns since those cultures are my origin. I create full scale dog sculptures with earth clay. I begin by building up the sculpture of the whole body, then move on to details to make the characteristics of the figure. Particularly, to inspire a feeling of fullness when the clay body is engaged with the soul and seems like a live dog sitting there. I came up with a dog sculpture since I lost my dog in the past and felt such an emptiness. After I created him, I marvelously felt at ease because his presence makes me feel like my dog is close to me.

I utilize various colors. Color has power. Color gives me energy. My favorite colors, vivid orange and yellow make me optimistic and bring me joy. Those colors are part of my motivation for creation. I cannot imagine without utilizing colors. I conceive of both functional and sculptural as beautiful because they are useful. From that perspective, there is no essential difference between functional pottery and sculptural ceramic art. As a ceramicist, I use earth to form clay, water to shape a form, mix ash to make glaze, and fire to turn the clay into stone, to create a new form. The new form is a confluence of the basic elements of nature and the heart of the ceramicist. All these processes have not been changed for thousands of years, and I conceive of ceramic art not as an act of self-expression but ceramic art as a relationship between me and the world of nature.

C.V.

EDUCATION

2020 Bachelor of Ceramics in Fine Art / Texas A&M University of COMMERCE, TEXAS

1985 English language and mannerism /Tokyo Foreign Language College, Tokyo JAPAN

1983 Niigata Chuo High School of Niigata-Prefecture JAPAN

WORK EXPERIENCE

2000-2009 Worked as an Executive Assistant of Market risk Management of J.P. Morgan Chase,

Tokyo Branch, JAPAN

1995-1998 Worked as a Florist/Instructor of flower arrangement, Owner of the Flower School of

Papa Meilland, Tokyo JAPAN

1987-1993 Worked as a Cabin Attendant, inflight service of charter flights for V.I. P. passengers

such as Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad of Malaysia, King of Tonga, and

Japanese politicians, Jet Aviation Business Jets, AG of Zurich, Switzerland

1985-1987 Cabin Attendant, Cathay Pacific Airways, Hong Kong

GRANTS AND AWARDS

2018 Honorable Mention Award in the Annual Juried Student Art Exhibition of Texas A&M

University of Commerce

2020 Honorable Mention Award in the Annual Juried Student Art Exhibition of Texas A&M

University of Commerce

2020 Purchase Award for Japanese Teapot Sets as a Permanent Collection of Texas A&M

University of Commerce