Tomoyuki Shimadate, a 33-year-old Japanese sculptor based in Tokyo, has won the Meyer Oppenheim Prize offered by the Royal Scottish Academy to promote the work of young artists.
In a press release Tuesday, the academy said Shimadate's work, "The Love Seat," was unanimously selected by a 20-member panel for the prize.
The 20-kg bronze sculpture, Shimadate's first work to be shown overseas, will be exhibited at Edinburgh's City Art Center until June 2.
The RSA -- founded in 1826 -- holds annual exhibitions for artists aged under 35. Shimadate is the first Japanese to win the award.
Speaking in an interview from Tokyo, Shimadate said "The Love Seat" was inspired by an attempt to "bind people together across national boundaries."
Shimadate said he was honored to receive the RSA award and would continue to create works that express human ties.
A graduate of Kuwazawa Design Institute, Shimadate has produced many pieces of environmental sculpture, with works displayed in Tokyo, Sapporo, Kumamoto and Fukuoka.