Ryo Sehata is that often- mentioned but seldom- encountered individual, a truly unique artist. His art is so uncommon that his fame has now assumed viral form, spreading through the Internet via blogs, vlogs, Twitters, links, Diggs and other clickable whatchamacallits. The young artist and his unusual creations are seemingly worth a few minutes of anyone's online time.
But the attention that he has been enjoying since his solo exhibition opened in December may well be a double-edged sword, because the 34-year-old artist has chosen to make his name in the art world with works created out of something as mundane and patently unglamorous as everyday, ordinary household adhesive tape.
Compromising the principles of high art even further, he has even cheerfully accepted sponsorship by the country's leading commercial maker of adhesive tape, the Nichiban Company. Called cellotape, Nichiban's product is similar to the UK's Sellotape brand and America's Scotch Tape.