I am a member of:
I was born and bred in Tokyo, so I have been
influenced and surrounded by the Tokyo style
of kite since childhood. We have many different
types of kites in Japan but I make the Edo-Kaku-Dako,
which is the Tokyo style of kite. When I
was young kite flying was a popular pastime
for children in Japan. Now there are very
few places to fly a kite in Tokyo! I use
to fly kites that were bought at a toy store.
When I was about ten I made my first kite,
it was rectangular kite using traditional
Japanese paper and bamboo rods. I got the
bamboo by splitting a bamboo broom handle.
The kite would not fly, but looking back
now, it was probably too heavy. When I was
25 I had the opportunity to meet the late
Mr. Katsuhisa Ota, my kite master and founder
of the Edo-kite Preservation Association,
which I too am a member of. It was at that
time, in 1975 that I began to seriously make
the traditional Edo-kites.
The kites I am currently making are Edo-Kaku-Dako's,
it is a rectangular kite with many long bridle
lines and a hummer, it is made using handmade
Japanese paper and bamboo. The pictures are
drawn by using Sumi, a black ink, and dyes,
to create a stained glass effect when the
kite is flown in the sky. I have been fond
of drawing since I was a child and I studied
graphic design as a student. I like to draw
and compose new kite pictures very much.
So I will continue to draw and make the Edo-kaku-Dako
in the future. I believe that drawing the
pictures of the traditional Edo-kite, which
are drawn from old storybooks, Kabuki, and
Ukiyoe etc. is an assignment for me and my
lifework.
1950
I was born on September 17, 1950 at Nakano
in Tokyo, Japan.
1969
I entered Tokyo Designer School for studying
a graphic design and an illustration.
1973
I joined Japan Kite Association.
I started making assembly Edo-Kite under
the guidance of Mr. Katsuhisa Ota who is
an expert at making Edo-Kite. I also started
studying Japanese traditional Kite-pictures
by myself.
1975
My kite friends and I made Edogawa Kite Club.
I start work at Minami-Shinozaki-Jidokan
in Tokyo, which is an educational institution
for after school children. I made the Kite
Club for children at the institution, and
guided them to be the kids champion of a
Train-Kite in Japan, and made a new Japanese
record.
1980
I joined Edo-Kite Preservation Association.
1988
I attended Kelantan International Kite Festival
in Malaysia as a guest flier at the invitation
of the festival.
After that, I have been attending many big
kite festivals in the world, 4 or 5 places
a year, at the invitation of each festivals,
U.S.A., New Zealand, Australia, Canada, U.K.,
France, Italy, Russia, and others. I have
been making effort introduce Japanese kites
and cultural exchange. I had many kite-picture-demonstrations
and exhibitions in Japan and in the world,
including three weeks at Disney World in
Florida, U.S.A., three months at Haifa Museum
in Israel, The Smithsonian Museum in Washington
DC, U.S.A., at Mitsukoshi Department store
in the every New Year, in Tokyo, Japan and
so on. I also have been giving many kitemaking
workshops for children and adults in Japan
and in the world.
My kites have preserved at following museums;
The Kite Museum of Japan Kite Association
in Tokyo.
Shio-to-Tobacco Museum in Tokyo.
Uchinada Kite Museum in Ishikawa prefecture.
Yokaichi Odako Kaikan Museum in Shiga prefecture.
The Smithsonian Museum in Washington DC,
U.S.A.
My kites are also on display at shopping
centers, hotels, at the premises of large
companies, and in public gardens as one of
the New Year's decorations in Japan, every
year.
Address: 3-52-14 Matsugaoka, Funabashi Chiba,
274-0064 JAPAN
PHONE/FAX: 81-47-465-8739
E-mail: tokikite@nifty.com
URL: http://homepage1.nifty.com/mikiotoki/index.htm
NEXT