misaki hanazuka
1982 Born in Gifu, Japan
2005 Graduated from Tokyo Gakugei University, Department of Arts and Culture,Major in Japanese Painting
2020 Studied under sumi-e artist ShuKo Tsuchiya
2023 Awarded the Grand Prize at Bokusenkai 2023 Exhibition
2024 First solo exhibition “Kyōkai (Boundaries)”
2025 Exhibited in “BLOOM! 2025” at the R.W. Norton Art Gallery, USA
For me, ink-painting is a rare and profound means of expression—a way to continually explore my relationship with the world through the body.
Sumi-e reflects the exact state of its creator. Having spent over a decade observing the human body as a yoga instructor, I’ve come to view the body as a vessel of memory that transcends the individual. Brushstrokes, born from the coordinated motion of the whole body, are both intentional lines and traces that, through the nature of ink, go beyond the boundaries of the self, carrying the pulse of life within stillness.
Through the kinetic chain of tracing layered memories, I attempt to depict, in ink, the subtle shifts that emerge at the boundaries between human and nature, tradition and modernity, inner and outer worlds.
In each painting, I attempt to embody a fleeting moment of awakening. I draw upon the concept of kū (emptiness), not as void, but as the potential from which all things arise—a central compass for my creative process.
Residency History
2012-2013 Yangon, Myanmar
2018-2019 Barcelona, Spain
Teaching & Workshops
• Instructor, Seijo Gakuen Junior High School, Asuka Mirai High School (Kannai Campus）
• Meet the Creators sumi-e workshop at Daikanyama Teens Creative
• Host of Morning Flow online yoga class
Qualifications
• Certified Color Coordinator (1st Grade, Encouragement Award)
• RYT 200 Certified Yoga Instructor (Flow Style Yoga, Yin Yoga, and more)
By “awakening,” I do not mean reaching some lofty state, but rather being fully present—liberated from the narratives of past and future. Kū, as expressed in “form is emptiness, emptiness is form,” refers to the idea that all phenomena lack inherent substance and exist only through relationships. Fixed notions of self quietly dissolve through the embodiment of awakening and the understanding of kū, becoming pure potential in constant flux.
The memories of my childhood in the mountains and rivers of Gifu still carry the texture of earth, water, and wind. What I felt then was a sense of unity in which “I” could simply exist as part of the whole. That immeasurable emptiness embodied by nature still guides me today. When I seek direction, I return to deep forests or places with beautiful water.
Through my own sense of presence, I depict the world’s potential.
Creation, for me, is the highest form of love.