──Your work commences with the development of a worldview, does it not? Apparently you are a fan of "Mother Goose", but have you had any other influences?

As a student I quite liked "Mother Goose" and used to read it. Books like Mother Goose do have actual stories, however this is not what they are really talking about; instead the stories tend to be a metaphor for something, don't they? Things like that, which are old but have a universal appeal, are somehow meaningful, which I like. In Japan it would be the "Tono Monogatari", and in China the "Shan--hai--ching" ("The Classic of Mountains and Seas"). Incredible stories that might or might not be true, but which are more than mere fantasy, that is to say have an instructional aspect useful in the real world. Stories like that are not as dogmatic as those that spell things out directly, and I think one way of saying what you really want to say.

──Overall your work tends to have a nostalgic feel to it; is this because you like old things?

With new things, you don't know for example if they'll still be around in five years time, even if right now they are the rage. But things from long ago that are still around, are because they deserve to be, and there is a reason why they are still with us, something good about them.

──Have you always been an avid reader?

I suppose so. Although not surprisingly, I always preferred shorter works, like fables, than full-length books.

──When did you start painting?

Painting has never been my strong point, and on an everyday basis I don't do much painting, or sketching for that matter. Having been in the fine arts faculty and such as a student, certainly I did used to do my share of painting, but found it quite hard to express individuality as I would have liked within the confines of a square. It was then I thought, in three dimensions I could slightly different things than in two. It was around the time I was graduating from high school that I started working three-dimensionally. At the time I was modeling in clay, and did a lot of big paper works, and yes the general theme was of things like robots.

──Manmade things have always been your theme haven't they, including "Konchu Monogatari Zukan? "

In nature things are clearly there because that is where they belong, however when you create something artificial, the thoughts of the person who made it become part of that thing. For example, I wish the world was like this, or I'd like to be like that. I have a feeling that artificial things, being as they are a crystallization of those thoughts, are more inclined to drama.

──When making "Konchu Monogatari Zukan", did you have in mind works like "Founa Secreta" by Joan Fontcuberta?

When it comes to making insects and other creatures, one way of doing it involves taking the exact specifications of the creature as if it were really there, and telling that story with great seriousness. In contrast, I wanted to take elements of stories like Aesop's Fables and Grimm fairytales and give them my own modern interpretation.

──What do you keep in mind particularly when creating stories and worlds like this?

Making something diverse, I'd have to say. This applies for the "Kaiyo Monogatari Zukan" I'm working on at the moment, for which I'm trying to use material from as many different places as possible, like China, Peru and Africa. Both "Konchu Monogatari Zukan" and "Kaiyo Monogatari Zukan" are the same world, the idea being that in some region there are insects like this, and in the ocean, animals like this. However, old folktales become intertwined with this, even if they are fictitious, so when the story starts to involve religion or something, you can't really just write what you like. This is difficult I think. A keen interest in the religions of different countries is handy when you are writing different stories.

──So have you always had an interest in insects and sea creatures?

I love all picture books, but the old ones are my favorites, for example with old copperplate prints. I find it interesting when animals turn out a particular way because the person drawing them was doing so on hearsay, or when they are altered by human hand due to subjective interpretation by that person. I wanted to be able to create interesting creatures of my own.

──Your Japanese-style works like "Nainenkikan-Sho" have as their backdrop the Edo Period don't they? I hear you were a fan of period dramas as a child, is that correct?

My maternal grandparents live next door, and I used to go over there a lot to play right from when I was elementary school age. At about four o'clock, just as I was coming home from school, the period drama "Mito Komon" would be on, or something similar, so I used to watch it with them. At the same time I was also watching things like "Ultraman" and "Gundam," so it all got mixed up together. "Ultraman" is a far--fetched story, but to a child, the Edo worldview of "Mito Komon" was in the realm of fantasy as well. I suspect that for me they were in the same category, really.

──This thing about robots in the Edo Period, is it because you're interested in windup toys?

The reason I took the Edo Period as my motif is I thought that during the previous Warring States Period, people were preoccupied with just staying alive I suppose you could say. Every day was a battle, so things worked in a pretty commonsense way, however by Edo, life was a bit more peaceful, relatively speaking, and remained so for hundreds of years. In terms of people's belongings, they splashed out on ornamentation, and the era reached a visual maturity. In this sense, if there were robots that rather than killing people existed solely for show, to demonstrate how rich you were, it would be more natural to find these in the Edo rather than the Warring States Period.

──Mention robots and I think most people are strongly influenced by science fiction. What are your thoughts on science fiction?

In terms of worldview I like things with an original feel. There is a film directed by Amemiya Keita called "Zeiram," a Japanese-style work I really like that, and it had a major influence on "Nainenkikan-Sho." In terms of film, while not science fiction, I like 3D stop-motion animation. It has a certain special kind of presence different to that of computer graphics or pictures.

──For example?

Things like "The Street of Crocodiles" by Brothers Quay, and "The Epic of Gilgamesh," which achieve that delicate balance between being a bit creepy, but at the same time cute, are good. Just watch Jiri Barta's "Krysar" set of films made entirely using woodcarvings -the passion of the person who made them leaps off the screen, leaving me feeling privileged to have seen them.

──If I may quiz you a little on a technical aspect of modeling. What is the main material for your work?

Plastic modeling clay.

──I hear you also use everyday objects as materials.

That's right. I do things like make molds of cutter handles, and use Gachapon capsules. Using these has nothing to do with the theme of the work, it's simply that things can be made using everyday objects. Seeing an object and trying to make it look like something brings up unexpected shapes and designs different to those obtained when you design something from zero.

──And for my final question, is there anyone from any time or place you would like to see your work?

Nobody in particular, however I do think it would be great to talk to the people who illustrated those old natural history books, like the ones Aramata Hiroshi talks about, and ask them what they were thinking when they drew those pictures, and what they think of what I'm making now. Oh and, I'd like Mr. Aramata to see my stuff and discuss it with him.