In addition, the year is drawing to a close, and when I look back on 2011 the first thing that comes to mind is the March disaster in northeastern Japan. My anxiety at not knowing when a disaster could occur caused me to rethink my life, and I felt the importance of the bonds between people.
After the disaster there have been charity exhibitions in Japan and throughout the world, and I was moved by the strength of all the people who acted through art. I wanted to share my overflowing feelings of thanks to people the world over through this little bottle girl.
I will be holding a Sunae workshop in the disaster-affected areas next year. It’s a very small thing, but I hope I can put a smile on at least one person’s face. I’ll keep this feeling of gratitude close to my heart.
Tell us a bit about the design you made for Etsy’s Twitter Artist Series.
I keep my sand in small bottles. They’re cute, but if just one tips over the rest tumble like bowling pins and I’ve got sand everywhere! I took my inspiration for this piece from this not-infrequent event.