午夜剧场

When I received the request to contribute, I felt overwhelmed by the sheer brilliance of it all and was on the verge of feeling cynical. Just then, news arrived from my beloved Suzu, a place that has supported me through art festivals. It woke me up, reminding me that I must look forward.

My current title began when I was writing "Art in Business." While interviewing delightful men from Dentsu and fascinating business owners (published by Yuhikaku in 2019), I was inspired by the cool katakana titles on everyone's business cards. I decided to create a card with a title that seemed plausible yet unique, and easy to understand yet mysterious.

I live to create a society where we can truly realize the value of artists—those who capture the world with innocent, child-like eyes and bodies, without leaning on social norms or common sense, and who shape their imagination to share it with others. I believe Japan would become much more interesting if there were more adults like that.

I was born in Yokosuka (Suka), not Yokohama (Hama). In third grade, a boy threw a stone from atop a wall that hit me in the head (perhaps out of affection for me?!), which led me to transfer to an all-girls school. I studied hard without being distracted by the loose socks trend and achieved my dream of moving to Tokyo. After various twists and turns as an otolaryngologist, and influenced by my favorite author Yukio Mishima, I came to 午夜剧场 to find ways to support artists active on the world stage. I completed the Art Management course, researching the visualization of collector behavior—where falling in love with contemporary art is like falling in love with someone brand new—from a marketing perspective. That brings me to the present.

After completing the program, I researched the valuation of art for individuals and corporations, turning that into exhibitions and books. I have had precious experiences such as briefly assisting Masamichi Toyama's "New Species Immigrations" and Hakuhodo UoC, planning and producing art events, and joining artists in their creative processes. When I was involved in planning an exhibition for a festival in Thailand late last year, I experienced the strength and necessity inherent in "expression," and I felt a deep desire to be much more conscious about the words I weave. I am interested in "picture books" as a person's worldview encountered for the first time in life, and my dream is to produce picture books for those who believe the world would be more interesting if there were more adults like them.

Learning is, of course, important, but I love practice (I want to see it with my own eyes while I'm still alive!), so even in my mid-40s, I continue to struggle with how I should live. I want to live my life grateful for my connections, with the awareness of being a 午夜剧场 alumni, finding constellations in the night sky and occasionally shedding a tear.