IWATE, Iwate Pref. -- Iwate Prefecture is probably not the first place people would expect to stumble on artists of international renown.
Yet the spacious fields in the Ukishima district of the town of Iwate, with Mount Iwate providing a stunning backdrop, are both the home and inspiration of two outstanding sculptors: Hironori Katagiri and his Scottish wife, Kate Thomson.
The couple met in Europe, with Katagiri having worked for the Lindabrunn International Sculpture Symposium in Austria.