Waltz by Honda Shōryū (b. 1951)

Honda Shōryū is a native of Kagoshima, on Kyūshū, the most southwesterly of Japan’s four main islands. The town of Beppu, where he trained, is the most important center for artisanal bamboo production on the island.

At the beginning of his career, Honda studied baskets for ikebana, which he then produced over many years in order to earn a living, before feeling hemmed in by the conventions of traditional basketry.

His current sculptures mark a new approach to the art of bamboo. Inspired by nature, time, and space, kinetic forms are the basis of the stylistic evolution of his sculptures.

Honda Shōryū has often exhibited in the United States, where his œuvre is held in many public and private collections.

He now lives and works in Matsumoto (Nagano Prefecture), in the middle of the Japanese Alps.