Coming from a Japanese/Okinawan traditional textile and modern fine art background, and working in the New York fashion industry as a textile designer, I have an interesting perspective on making art. On the earthy side, in an early stage of my work, I was introduced to indigenous, skilled hand weavers of Okinawa Islands. After obtaining an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan, I moved into the fashion and textile industry and worked with master dyers in the Italian mills. There are so many contrasts and yet those elements coexist harmoniously. Eastern/Western, traditional/modern, fine art/commercial design, hand work/high tech (CAD). The interlace of those elements is my chronicle as well.

I draw imagery from my home island Okinawa, New York City, and the places I visited over the years. Sometimes they're of snow or ice scenery in the park; sometimes they're the ocean or sky. As an additional effect, random stripes and plaids are used for layering. Because of the textile software technologies and carefully controlled color and composition, the original photographs are no longer visible at the finished stage.