Born in 1967 in Nibutani, Biratori Town, Hokkaido. As the daughter of attus(※1) weaving artist Kaizawa Yukiko, she helped with the family craft shop, Kaizawa Mingei, from childhood and worked at folk craft shops in Sapporo. Later, she returned to Nibutani and began seriously producing crafts. She started with making ita (※2), then expanded to embroidery, attus weaving, and knitting. In recent years, while designing various products using Ainu patterns, she also produces her own lines, further broadening her activities.

Her designs, born from extensive experience in traditional Ainu crafts across a wide range of genres, are attractive for their fusion of traditional Nibutani-based Ainu patterns with modern items, and have many fans nationwide. Examples include collaborations with other traditional crafts such as Koshu Inden, Yuki Tsumugi, Imabari towels; product development with actor Iura Arata; goods for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters baseball team; designs for Coca-Cola bottle cans and vending machines; pick designs for TAKURO of the Japanese rock band GLAY; bus designs for the Upopoy (National Ainu Museum and Park) park shuttle and "Setapukusa-go", sightseeing bus in 2020; and participation in the collaborative product development project of "Nibutani Ainu Craft" (2020), among other ways expressing Ainu patterns.

At the same time, she continues to maintain her role as a traditional craft artist by, for example, embroidering on attus woven by her mother Kaizawa Yukiko. Through various opportunities and media, she disseminates information not only about traditional Ainu crafts but also about Ainu culture. In the past, she taught at the Nibutani Children's Ainu Language Class (now run by her husband Sekine Kenji ) and has been involved in Ainu cultural promotion activities at schools inside and outside Biratori Town. In 2023, together with her daughter Sekine Maya, she founded Katak LLC, which also handles works by young artists and focuses on fostering the next generation.

She is the representative partner of Katak LLC and a member of the Nibutani Craft Association.

She also serves on committees of various museums throughout Hokkaido.

Note:
※1 Attus is a traditional Ainu textile, plain-woven from fibers extracted from the inner bark of trees such as the Japanese elm (Ulmus laciniata, also known as lobed elm), as well as the garments made from it. Nibutani Attus, woven using traditional techniques handed down in the Nibutani region of Biratori, is a designated Traditional Craft Product of Japan. Nibutani Attus is a special brand that can only be called as such when created only by specially recognized weavers.

※2　Ita Ita are traditional wooden trays carved with Ainu patterns, representing part of the inherited Ainu culture. Nibutani Ita, the style particular to the Saru River basin where Nibutani, Biratori stands, is an officially designated Traditional Craft Product. Nibutani Ita is a special brand that can only be called as such when made by specific craftspeople in Nibutani.

Contact Information

katak×bee Crafts Shop
76-1 Nibutani, Biratori-cho, Saru-gun, Hokkaido 055-0101, Japan
TEL (International): +81-90-6217-8449

Online Store https://katakaynu.official.ec/
Instagram　@katak_aynu_official

Sekine Maki
Instagram @maki8477
X @nonno43899406
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/maki.sekine.737

Visit online shop (Japanese)