Lunch with Hideyuki Mori and Ryu Takeuchi

We had a wonderful lunch earlier this month with two young illustrators from Japan, Hideyuki Mori and Ryu Takeuchi who were in town for their traveling Sakura exhibit that landed at ISHI Gallery on St Marks and at the About Glamour Gallery in Brooklyn. The exhibit featured the prize winners from a recent competition sponsored by HYACCA, an organization consisting of groups and individuals whose purpose is introducing Japanese artists to the world. HYACCA literally means “one hundred flowers” in Japanese. The two artists were accompanied by their translator, a young design student who after meeting the illustrators gained a new appreciation for illustration. Hideyuki and Ryu work together; Ryu is responsible for a number of exhibits in Japan and the production of LABO Books. We had to apologize to our guests as we had only prepared enough food for just one guest so they were treated to a 3x3 Lite Lunch. We applaud their work in trying to increase awareness for young Japanese illustrators and we look forward to working with them in the future in some cross-cultural exhibits. Left to right: Translator, Hideyuki Mori, Charles Hively, Ryu Takeuchi.