Koukei Kojima /小島光径, 1931 | Landscape painter

Koukei Kojima / 小島光径 is a contemporary Japanese landscape painter, born in Tokyo, who is highly celebrated for his serene, timeless depictions of rural Japan.

He graduated from the Tama University of Arts and is a recipient of the prestigious Sougenkai association prize.

He works extensively in the traditional Sansui style, a term translating literally to "mountains and waters".

Misawa Hiroshi, 1961 | Figurative painter

Japanese painter and art teacher Misawa Hiroshi / 三澤 寛志 was born in Tokyo.

He is interested in educating younger generations, so now he works in two art schools.

He has a fund of knowledge about human body anatomy, so he describes his works in profound perspective.

He has the great art of sketching.

1984 - Graduated from Musashino Art University.

Masaaki Sasamoto, 1966 | Nihonga style painter

Born in Tokyo, Japanese artist Masaaki Sasamoto 笹本正明 is renowned for his unique contribution to the Nihonga (Japanese-style painting) genre.

He graduated from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, specializing in Japanese painting.

He has been a permanent participant of solo and group art exhibitions throughout Japan.

Masaaki Sasamoto currently lives and works in Yamanashi Prefecture, on the island of Honshu, Japan.

Ichiro Tsuruta 鶴田-郎, 1954 | Art Déco painter

Ichiro Tsuruta was born in Hondo-shi (current Amakusa-shi), Kumamoto.

He grew up surrounded by rich nature of Amakusa area.

He has liked to paint since his childhood.

After graduating from high school, he entered Tama Art University, majored in graphic design and tried to become an illustrator.

Nguyen Tuan, 1963 | Figurative sculptor

"Art is vital for me. It is almost a religion.

It means to believe in people, in life, in love.

It is a response to what is beautiful and simple.

As an artist I do what I do for no other purpose than to express my feelings" - Nguyen Tuan

Maki Horanai, 1977 | Magic realism painter

Born in Japan, Maki Horanai 洞内麻希 moved to Australia from Japan in 2005 and has had 18 solo exhibitions in various cities throughout Australia.

She grew up in small seaside villages in Hokkaido, northern Japan, where she often sat or played along the beach.

Maki's early influences were the ocean, the shore, the birds and islands she saw both in reality and in her imagination.

Tetsuya Ishida | Surrealist painter

Tetsuya Ishida / 石田 徹也 (1973-2005) was a Japanese painter, best known for his surreal portrayal of an ordinary Japanese life.

He was born in Yaizu, Shizuoka, as the youngest of four sons.

His father was a member of parliament and his mother, a housewife.

He attended Yaizu Central High School until his graduation in 1992.

Ishida stated in interviews that it was during this period that his parents, and his principal, applied pressure on him to thrive academically well enough to develop a teaching or chemist career.

Keishi Sakurai, 1974 | Romantic painter

Keishi Sakurai / 桜井 敬史 graduated from the Tokyo University of Arts in 1999, with major in Nihonga (Japanese Painting).

Keishi applies natural mineral pigments, rock paint, natural stone and hide glue on Japanese paper to create his paintings.

Keishi’s works depicting scenes from Japan, Europe, Asia, and bring a gentle feeling of serenity, viewers experience a blissful sense of tranquility when appreciating his works.

At present Keishi lives and works in Tokyo.

La Farfalla bianca / The white Butterfly

In tutte le culture la farfalla è stata assunta come segno di rinascita e rigenerazione, come simbolo dell’anima umana capace di rinnovarsi e trasformarsi.

Il particolare ciclo vitale della farfalla ha indubbiamente contribuito a tale associazione simbolica: la vita è rappresentata dallo stadio di bruco; la morte dallo stadio di crisalide inerte racchiusa nel bozzolo; la rinascita dalla farfalla che esce dall’involucro e vola via libera, immagine vivente della rinascita dello spirito, dell’anima liberata dall’involucro della materia, che lascia il corpo al momento della morte e diventa immortale.

Nella sua Historia animalium, scritta nel 344 a.C., Aristotele, dà alla farfalla il nome di "Psyche": non a caso, nella lingua greca, la parola psyche significa sia "anima" che "farfalla"; il mito in questione fu interpretato basandosi su questo doppio significato: Psyche dunque, premiata dagli dei con il dono dell'immortalità, è l’anima-farfalla che superati vari stadi di trasformazione e maturazione raggiunge la perfezione finale col divenire immortale ed eterna.

Al mito di Amore e Psyche si ispirò lo scultore neoclassico Antonio Canova (1757-1822) che scelse una farfalla per rappresentare l’anima di Psyche in una delicatissima opera in marmo.

La Farfalla bianca | Leggenda giapponese

In una casetta dietro al cimitero del tempio di Sazanji viveva un vecchio di nome Takahama.

Questi era molto abile e piaceva a tutti i suoi vicini, anche se molti di essi lo consideravano un po' pazzo.

A quanto sembra la sua pazzia consisteva semplicemente nel fatto che non si era mai sposato e non aveva mai mostrato desiderio di restare in intimità con una donna.

Un giorno di estate si ammalò tanto gravemente, che mandò a chiamare la cognata e il figlio di lei.

Louise Abbéma | A butterfly fairy

Naoto Hattori, 1975 | Pop Surrealist painter

Japanese painter Naoto Hattori was born in Yokohama Japan.

He graduated with honors from the Illustration Department at School of Visual Arts in New York.

He received Awards from the Society of Illustrators and The New York Directors Club.

Akira Kusaka | Fly Me To the Moon

Akira Kusaka 日下 明 is a freelance illustrator and graphic designer based in Osaka, Japan.

Akira Kusaka only works with Photoshop where he creates all of his artwork.

He creates for advertisements, book covers, children's picture book, web design, and more.

His all works are drawn only with photoshop.

Kazuhiko Fukuōji, 1955

Born in Mitaka City, Tokyo, Japanese artist Kazuhiko Fukuōji (福王寺一彦) as the second son of the painter Horin Fukuoji (1920-2012).

After graduating from Seijo Gakuen High School in 1974, he was selected for the first time at the institute exhibition in 1978, and won the Nihon Bijutsuin Award and Grand Prize at the institute exhibition in 1987 and 1988.

In 1992, his institute exhibition work was purchased by the Agency for Cultural Affairs.

Asako Eguchi, 1952 | Children's Illustrator

Asako Eguchi / 江口あさ子 an incredibly talented artist, dotted with magic, has given us many illustrations that make us dream.

A beautiful world where people, animals, and plants all harmonize and resonate together.

Born in Sanjo City, Niigata Prefecture, artist Asako Eguchi graduated from the Tokyo Designer Academy in 1973.

She is conducting a method of overlapping the watercolor and drying them in order to present a fantasy world.

Kaoru Yamada | Illustratrice digitale / AI

Kaoru Yamada / 山田カオル è un artista nata a Kamakura, in Giappone.

Dopo la laurea, ha studiato in Francia per tre anni.

Tornata a casa, lavora come copywriter in una società di produzione pubblicitaria ed inizia l'attività come illustratrice freelance.

Dal 2023 esplora nuove forme di espressione che combinano l'Intelligenza Artificiale con la tecnologia digitale.

Atsushi Koyama, 1978 | Humans and Machines

Born in Tokyo, Atsushi Koyama / 小山 篤 is a visual artist from Japan. He holds both a BFA in art from Tama Art University and a Bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Tokyo University of Science in 2008.

Koyama’s work clearly uses the backgrounds of his tutelage as he beautifully blends anatomical illustration with mechanical diagrams.

METAMACHINE is his collaborative project at the border of visual art and electronic music.

Although the meaning behind these oil paintings by Atsushi Koyama is somewhat ambiguous, it’s easy to appreciate the exactness of his paintbrush that colorfully and elegantly depicts mechanical diagrams mixed with anatomical illustrations.

Kinuko Yamabe Craft, 1940 | Fantasy painter

Kinuko Yamabe Craft /キヌコヤマベ・クラフト/ is an Japanese-born American contemporary painter, illustrator and Fantasy artist.

Kinuko Craft is one of the most widely respected and well known fantasy artists in the United States today.

Her past commissions have included paintings for the book covers of many well known fantasy authors, opera posters, fairy tale books and covers for many national magazines.

During her career Kinuko Craft has become known for meticulous attention to detail, a passionate love of fine art and a deep knowledge of art history.

Kaoru Yamada | Digital / AI illustrator

Tokyo based illustrator and copywriter Kaoru Yamada / 山田カオル was born in Kamakura, Japan.

Yamada finds beauty in nature, in people's expressions and gestures, and in living things.

She believes that people find something beautiful when they are at peace and when they have the space to feel compassion.

- "As an illustrator, I enjoy drawing seasonal landscapes and illustrations of everyday life.

Masayo Odahashi, 1975 | Glass sculptor

Masayo Odahashi / 小田橋昌代 was born in Mie, Japan.

She earned Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees from Aichi University of Education in Japan, Her master's degree was in fine arts, with an art education specialty.

In 2010, she had a solo exhibition, Inner Sight, at the Glasmuseet Ebeltoft in Denmark.

Her work is in the permanent collections of the Alexander Tutsek-Stiftung in Germany, and Glasmuseet Ebeltoft.

Kobayashi Noriyuki, 1986 | Nihonga style painter

Kobayashi Noriyuki / 小林範之, a contemporary Nihonga (Japanese-style) painter from Funabashi, Chiba Prefecture, Japan.

Working from the belief that one thread connects all life, Noriyuki Kobayashi forms his subject matter with thin gold lines that intersect to create a woven pattern full of life.

The geometrically sublime results are graceful landscapes and dynamically posed animals that race across the sky.

Kobayashi's utilization of traditional materials and techniques mixed with vibrant subjects celebrates the brilliance and interconnected nature of all living things.

Torajirō Kojima | Impressionist painter

Torajirō Kojima / 児島虎次郎 (1881-1929), born in Shimohara Village, Kawakami-gun, Okayama Prefecture (now Naruha-cho, Takahashi City) in 1881, was a leading Impressionist painter in Japan.

Torajiro Kojima was first a disciple of Takeji Fujishima and then attended the University of Fine Arts and Music in Tokyo, and in 1908 went to Paris to continue his studies.

In 1909 he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent, Belgium, where he trained in Luminism.