Taeko Maezawa Japanese, b. 1977

Taeko Maezawa (b.1977, Shizuoka, Japan) is a mixed media artist whose art is heavily influenced by her childhood memories, nature, and the fairytale "Taketori Monogatari". This fairytale inspired the 2013 Academy Award nominated movie "The Tale of Kaguyahime" and can be seen in Maezawa's artworks, many of which feature ethereal motifs of nature woven intricately into the composition. Maezawa has exhibited across the globe, from Japan and France to Bangladesh, South Korea, China, the Czech Republic, and the USA. She was educated at Kyoto University, Toho Eizo Abe Bijutsu, Tama Art University, Tokyo, and Cité internationale des Arts, Paris, France. Maezawa's artworks transport viewers to a dreamlike, otherworldly realm, and her ability to combine her love for Japanese fairytales and the patterning of Kimono with her own personal memories and experiences help to make her works truly one-of-a-kind.