Aiko Tanaka: A bundle of laughs in America
From dancing in clubs to stand-up comedy, Aiko Tanaka's experience in the U.S. has helped realize her dream of making it in the entertainment industry.
Takehiko Nakamura: Kicking around the U.S. for a career in soccer
A U.S. education, says sports fan Nakamura, helped him score a goal in life.
Akira Satake: From handmade banjos to vases
When the music industry became too stressful to bear in the U.S., Akira Satake found a new vocation in pottery.
Gohei Nishikawa: Music as a salve for the challenges of life
Nothing, not even dystonia, could make Gohei Nishikawa turn his back on the piano.
Machiko Yamashita: A Japanese breadwinner in Berlin
Former art historian and butoh dancer Machiko Yamashita brings Japanese bread buns to Berliners.
Developing a coffee break for the Philippines
Katuhisa Ota's drive for social development led to a grassroots coffee venture in Mindanao that aims to help locals and promote fair trade.
Aya Tasaki: Empowering women abroad
Aya Tasaki was 5 when she first moved from Tokyo to Illinois. The details of that departure are still etched in her mind. Her father had already gone ahead of the family to take up a job in the United States, and Tasaki's grandparents ...
Motomi Morii: Japanese roots, Nordic aesthetic
Since 2009, Motomi Morii has lived and worked in New York. There, she indulges in her love of experimental and improvised music, and takes part in various Japanese cultural events around the city. Most importantly, New York provides her with constant inspiration and opportunity ...
Daichi Nakamura: In pursuit of perfection
This year marks 25 years of violin study for Daichi Nakamura. His practice has earned him a host of international accolades and the position of guest soloist at renowned symphony orchestras in Europe such as the St. Petersburg Symphony Orchestra. Yet the 28-year-old is far ...
Building a career in toy design, brick by brick
When The Lego Group announced that it was shutting down its design operations in Japan, it offered a new opportunitity for designer Junya Suzuki — relocation to Billund in Denmark, the birthplace of Lego and the company's global headquarters.
In art, there are no rules, only new challenges
For the director of the Japan Society in New York, it was a teenage encounter with a Shoichi Ida print that led to her love of art and its international influence
Hitomi Hosono: Seeing it all in blue and white
With her unusual approach to traditional sprig designs, Japanese ceramicist Hosono is helping change the face of Wedgwood.
