Born in 1997 in Honcho, Biratori Town, Hokkaido. Since childhood, he became familiar with craftsmanship by helping his father with carpentry work. He had not been particularly interested in Ainu culture until his older sister joined Upopoy (Symbolic Space for Ethnic Harmony) as an early staff member, which inspired him to engage in activities related to Ainu culture. In 2020, he joined Biratori Town Ainu Culture Promotion Public Corporation. As a staff member of the Biratori Regional Ior Revitalization Project, he has been involved in transmitting Ainu culture.

During summer, he works on maintaining traditional grain cultivation sites such as millet, barnyard millet, and foxtail millet, and participates in building traditional houses called cise. From December to March in winter, he had opportunities to learn craft production from seniors, which led him to develop a passion for woodcarving. His carpenter father converted their home warehouse into a woodcarving workshop, providing him a focused environment to enjoy carving.

At the BEAMS JAPAN event "Ainu Crafts," he sold his own ita (flat wooden trays) alongside other artists including Tetsu Kaizawa. He also exhibited and sold his works at the "Ainu Art Show" held at Upopoy.

His main works include small accessories modeled on ita and nuyto-saye-p (thread spools), as well as makiri. When making ita, he strives for designs that respect traditional patterns without being overly original. He enjoys designing patterns and often spends a long time on this. He studies tradition by referring to old books and takes care not to overlap with other artists’ designs.

His future goal is to become independent as a woodcarving artist. He aims to create works that attract the interest of people who encounter Ainu culture for the first time.

In 2023, he was responsible for the wrapping design of the Sapporo sightseeing bus "Setapukusa-go" and participated in the collaborative product development project with "Nibutani Ainu Craft" (2023). He is a member of the Nibutani Mingei Association.

Ainu Crafts pewre (in Ainu language, “pewre” means “young” or “youth”)
76-6 Nibutani, Biratori-cho, Saru-gun, Hokkaido 055-0101, Japan

Instagram　 https://www.instagram.com/daiki_hiramura/

オンラインショップを見る