About

From Art to Life

In the Showa era, there was a small shop on the corner of a town called “Kadoya” that sold bread, tobacco, and other daily necessities. As time passed, the place became vacant and I moved in.

My career began with art, mostly installation work. While contemplating how to bridge the gap between art and everyday life, I passed by a different street one day and came across a house with a storefront with a vacant sign. I then opened “KADOYA Kobo” (KADOYA Studio), almost a general store, as an easy-to-entry gallery/atelier that anyone could feel free to visit.

KADOYA: A Meeting Place

Domestic and foreign interior items, kitchenware, clothing, antiques, and handcrafts were lined up, and visitors could see the progress of two-dimensional and three-dimensional works made by me, my friends, and neighborhood children.

KADOYA soon started attracting neighbors, mainly children, and I held a summer festival to show my appreciation (food stalls set up with the help of flatmates and friends were popular). Since many people came to chat, soft drinks were sold after the summer festival so that people could take a break.

Children from the neighborhood visited almost every day, and many visitors stayed for a long time, so the attic was later renovated to create a secret base that could be used by anyone, adults or children, when they wanted to be alone.

Later, a guesthouse was also started in a vacant room in the living spaces. KADOYA became a place for travelers to return to, for neighbors to gather, and for exchange between travelers, residents, and restaurants in the neighborhood.

Journey Continues

Nearly 10 years later, I closed KADOYA when I was given the chance to complete a sculpture I was working on at the time in a foreign country. According to what I hear, a new resident has moved in there who is now running a wonderful shop that is loved by the locals.
My journey has taken longer than I expected and is still continuing. Just when I thought I had settled down, I moved on, and meeting and parting with people in various places, I began to think about what I could do as a migratory butterfly.
During my travels, I search for craftspeople and workshops, and when I find meaningful connections, I stay in that town for a while to create. I created this site because I thought it would be possible to write something like a letter to people I met in the past, whom I don’t know if I’ll ever see again, and people in the future whose paths might cross temporarily.
As the things I’ve made and the stories of encounters have increased, I’m happy to be able to share them through this website.

Homecoming and New Beginning (2024-2025)

Homecoming and New Beginning (2024-2025)

While I was planning to start a business in the Netherlands during my travels, for the first time in my life, I felt the emotion of “wanting to return to Japan.”

After returning home, Japan appeared different from before. Even though it was a country I knew, I was like a traveler from a foreign land, curious about various things as if I didn’t know them. Speaking Japanese itself felt interesting—everything was fresh.

Currently, I am involved in archaeological excavation work while preparing for the second chapter of KADOYA Studio.

My creative activities span photography, video, installation art, sculpture, ceramics, and music.

“Where do we come from, and where are we going?” “The reconstruction of time and memory” “Eternity in everyday life”

I have visualized these questions in various forms. What matters is playfully scattering them in everyday life. That’s why I opened a shop in Kyoto, carved stones in Brazil, kneaded clay in Turkey, and fired clay figurines with soil from excavation sites in Japan.

In the end, I realized that I love making people close to me laugh and seeing my work pass into their hands. Perhaps that’s why my activities and society’s point of contact fit well with the “mimicry of a shop.” After coming full circle, I’m convinced and restarting.

Detailed portfolios of my art activities are in a separate archive site.※ If you are interested, please contact me. ※Currently, this is available for a limited audience only.