Kazuhito Takadoi

Multimedia sculptor

©Courtesy jaggedart London and Kazuhito Takadoi

Learning from the land

Kazuhito trained in Agriculture and Horticulture
His creations are inspired by natural forms
He was awarded a Special Mention at the Loewe Craft Prize 2019

Nature is his biggest inspiration and horticulture is his passion. From a very young age, Kazuhito Takadoi loved helping his grandfather in the garden but his real interest in plants, started when his aunt bought him a book on herbs for his 12th birthday. Hooked on the beauty of nature, he trained at the Hokkaido Agriculture and Horticulture College in Sapporo, Japan, the Royal Horticultural Society in Wisley, England, and the Leeds Metropolitan University. While his first creations were greeting cards decorated with leaves, he now forms delicate structures harvesting grass, leaves and twigs from what he cultivates in his garden. Each element is dried in his studio and then sown onto the paper. As the grasses dry and mature, they embark on a subtle colour shift, comparable to seasonal change.

Interview

©Courtesy jaggedart London and Kazuhito Takadoi

©Courtesy jaggedart London and Kazuhito Takadoi

Who was your master?: I haven’t learnt from a master, but I use nature as my inspiration and teacher. My work is based on what I observe in nature, growing plants and working in gardens and this is also how I have created my own vocabulary, my own process and my own way of making artworks.
How does nature influence your craft?: My work is made from grasses, hawthorn twigs and branches. It is also inspired by natural forms: an unusual rock formation, a twisted tree branch, clouds in the sky. It is then a matter of matching the material to an idea.
Does your artwork reflect both Eastern and Western cultures?: My Western horticultural expertise and the place where I live, the plants that I grow and which surround me, influence the materials I use. However, my Japanese heritage very much influences the ethos and aesthetics behind my work.
What is the proudest moment of your career?: To be awarded a Special Mention at the Loewe Craft Prize 2019, especially as the ceremony took place at the Isamu Noguchi stone garden Heaven, inside the Sogetsu Kaikan building in Tokyo, a truly stunning and special venue.

Kazuhito Takadoi is an expert artisan: he began his career in 2003