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Junko Okamoto
Born in Kanagawa in 1972.

Her work explores the weight of material and the beauty of weathering,
capturing traces of time within the surface.

By layering plaster and repeatedly soaking it with pigments,
she creates surfaces that evoke a sense of duration and mass.

In her pencil drawings, she builds up marks through repeated acts of drawing and erasing,
resulting in images that balance delicacy and strength.

Kisho Kakutani (b. 1993, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan) completed his PhD in Japanese Painting at Tokyo University of the Arts in 2022. Using everyday snapshots taken with his smartphone as source material, he creates paintings that explore the ambiguity of memory and visual perception. In series such as *Frosted Window* and *Curtain*, Kakutani deliberately obscures parts of the image with visual noise resembling frosted glass or curtains, inviting viewers to complete what is unseen through their own memories and imagination. His practice reconsiders the act of seeing in an age of visual overload, positioning painting as a device for generating new images within the viewer’s mind.

Mayuno Kobayashi (b. 1993, Aichi, Japan) completed her MFA in Japanese Painting at Joshibi University of Art and Design.
Grounded in the techniques of traditional Japanese painting, she transforms emotions and memories drawn from everyday life into images of animals and imaginary creatures.
Through these playful and approachable motifs, Kobayashi projects the complexities of human emotion and inner experience, weaving together personal memories and cultural influences to create a distinctive visual world.
In 2024, she held her first solo exhibition, A Delightful Abyss, at SHIKISAISHA and received the ONE ART AWARD 2024.

Naoki Shimoyama
Born in Gunma in 1972.
Completed his MFA in sculpture at Tama Art University.

Working primarily in wood carving, he creates sculptures based on animal forms.

Defining his works as “self-portraits in sculpture,”
he projects his inner thoughts and emotions onto animal figures, developing a distinctive sculptural language.

With refined craftsmanship and a strong physical presence,
his works evoke an existential sense of being, reflecting a deep contemplation of human existence and society.

Natsuko Yamazaki
Graduated from Tokyo University of the Arts.

Her work explores intangible sensations and memories,
seeking to give form to what cannot be expressed in words.

Using alkyd resin and glitter,
she creates semi-relief surfaces that emphasize light and materiality,
shifting in appearance depending on the viewer’s perspective and environment.

Her works quietly evoke layers of emotion and memory.

Mitsuko Taira
Born in Azumino, Nagano in 1996.
Completed her MFA at Tokyo University of the Arts.

Her work explores a quiet and contemplative world through wooden sculptures of living beings.

Drawing inspiration from the Bible, poetry, and folklore,
she creates poetic scenes that evoke moments from imagined narratives.

Her delicate attention to texture—suggesting soft fur and warmth—
reflects a deep sensitivity and affection toward living creatures.