My motto is 忍耐, which means "perseverance" in Japanese. In turn, I aspire to take any project and not only exert 100% of my effort into it, but also view it as an experience. This experience is invaluable to my personal growth and to my desire for expression and self-exploration.

          Initially, I preferred one medium: LEGO®. It was, and still is, the material that I believe I could manipulate to its full extent. My relative liberty and creativity in youth have enabled me to create models such as towering windmills, my personal symbol (see current background), and The Helmet. I have explored other media such as calligraphy (see Elements of Humanity in Archive); however, with LEGO® I have had the autonomy to transfer the images in my head to tangible pieces of expression.

          It was not until my digital imaging class in the spring of 2016 that I explored digital art. Though initially reluctant to use the medium, I soon experimented with the myriad possibilities possible through programs such as Adobe Photoshop.

          Given the many tools available in my digital imaging class, I have been able to create works that I thought were impossible to depict. My first major project did not even involve a complex computer program, but simply dealt with using a scanner. Until Kowareta Michi, I was unaware that creating a hand-made composition and scanning it was considered "digital art." Green Madness, my first project with Photoshop, was a personal milestone for me as my first insight into Photoshop. From the random antics of the green titan, I transitioned into the usage of distortion and manipulation to create abstract compositions. While creating Moeru Hana, I continued to explore Photoshop's capabilities by transforming mundane apple slices into a burning flower wilting into an abyss. With a similar idea in mind, I created an intentionally battered image of a LEGO® brick by making a collage-like image in No System of Play. To become familiar with pop artist Andy Warhol, I took even greater liberties with Octuplet Troll. 

         I later realized that digital imagery would enable me to reflect on my personal background and interests. Kyouto Sansaku was my first piece to reflect this notion, but I was able to express more of my identity with Bunka Taifuu, translating to "Culture Typhoon." Just as LEGO® enabled me to create the Japanese flag to attribute to my Asian heritage, Bunka Taifuu was a personal map depicting my acceptance of my Japanese and African American lineages. I, like the subject, am destined to utilize my background to achieve so much more in the years to come.

          As an artist and a human being, I continue to evolve. Making the transition from lingual to visual and digital expression, I will aspire to seek more opportunities of artistic communication. Sketching and calligraphy made a pivotal start for this task, and LEGO® model making has become my preferred medium. Only recently have I discovered the splendor of digital imagery and have now acknowledged it as an expression of art and personal feelings. With these media and more to be explored in the future, 忍耐 will be a guide through my endeavors and be the main proponent of my endless canvases.