(b Tottori Prefect., 28 Oct 1910; d Kyoto, 18 Aug 1981). Japanese sculptor. He went to Tokyo in 1931. At first he wanted to be a painter and studied at a private art school. In 1933 he was accepted for the first time into the 20th In Ten (Japan Art Institute Exhibition) with his statue of Motomaro Senke, which marked the start of his woodcarving period. In 1939 he exhibited Seated Woman (wood, h. 1.28 m, 1939; Kyoto, Mun. Mus. A.) at the 26th In Ten. In 1942 he became a member of the Japan Art Institute. In 1949 he moved to Kyoto, becoming a lecturer at the Kyoto City College of Art, retaining the post until 1976. With sculptor Masakazu Horiuchi, who had become a member of staff in 1950, he trained many students. In 1953 he exhibited Neck of a Man at the Kindai no Choso—Seiyo to Nihon (Modern carving and sculpture—The West and Japan) exhibition at the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo. Having shown ceramic works at a one-man exhibition in 1956, he began to produce abstract works, showing six ceramic pieces at the 29th Venice Biennale in 1958, including Horse and Figure (ceramic, h. 1.015 m, 1958; Kyoto, Mun. Mus. A.). He also exhibited in New York, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Paris. In 1977 he was selected as Kyoto’s Person of Cultural Merit.