紀陽銀行 presents UNKNOWN ASIA 2025

JUDGES

We are pleased to announce the judges and reviewers of this year's UNKNOWN ASIA. Specialists who are active in the forefront of art and creative industry come to this art fair this year from inside and outside of the country. The judges will vote for the Grand Prix. In addition, each judge will prepare personal prizes and supplementary prizes and will support the winners.

  • Takeshi Ishikawa

    Skeleton Crew Studio / UNKNOWN ASIA / 404 Not Found Producer

    PROFILE

    Born in Osaka in 1977, he was a faculty member at Osaka Designer College from 1999 to 2017, where he was involved in department and school management, the establishment of new departments, student guidance, and industry-academia collaboration. While his primary expertise lies in illustration, he has been actively involved in cross-disciplinary activities, such as managing the Department of Special Makeup and establishing the Department of Figure Modeling in 2015. He has been involved in the development of XR, apps, interactive content, web, etc., since 2017. In 2015, he co-founded the art event UNKNOWNASIA, which continues to this day. As a company-sponsored business, he manages the indie game event BitSummit, and plans and manages student game jams from an educational perspective as a special project within the event. Recently, he has also been involved in planning, producing, and operating physical events. As his life's work, he is also active as an artist, creating paintings and murals.

  • COMMENT

    I look forward to wonderful encounters.

    AWARD

    Opportunities (jobs, events, and referrals to key individuals)

  • Takanobu Kawazoe

    WALL SHARE inc founder・CEO

    PROFILE

    After graduating from Osaka University of Health and Sport Sciences, he began his career in new car sales at Volkswagen, where he won the National Sales Award three times. He later joined CrowdWorks and went on to co-found a venture company. In April 2020, he founded WALL SHARE with the aim of spreading mural culture, a passion rooted in his teenage years. In the five years since its founding, the company has completed over 200 mural projects.

  • COMMENT

    suuupeeer exciteeeed!

    AWARD

  • HIRO SUGIYAMA 

    Enlightenment  ARTIST ARTDIRECTOR

    PROFILE

    Hiro Sugiyama – Artist Born in Tokyo, Hiro Sugiyama studied under Teruhiko Yumura. In 1989, he co-founded the "Neo-Art Group" with Ichiro Tanida, and in 1997, he established the creative unit Enlightenment. In 2000, he participated in Takashi Murakami’s renowned Superflat exhibition. Since then, Sugiyama has exhibited widely in Japan and abroad, establishing a strong presence in the contemporary art world. His creative work spans multiple genres, including graphic design and advertising. He is also highly regarded in the music industry, having produced live visual content for leading artists such as TOWA TEI, m-flo, Namie Amuro, BoA, Girls' Generation, and J SOUL BROTHERS III. Since 2018, Sugiyama has co-curated the WAVE exhibition with Kintarō Takahashi, showcasing it both domestically and internationally. He currently serves as a professor at Kyoto University of the Arts.

  • Patamon Nisabodee

    Saratta (Unplan Co.,Ltd.) Director

    PROFILE

    Patamon Nisabodee is a curator, a designer and the founder of Saratta, a Bangkok-based gallery and curatorial platform focused on artisanal innovation and process-driven contemporary art. With a deep interest in poetic materiality, her work explores the intersection of narrative, contemporary craft, and intimate artistic experience. Through Saratta, she develops capsule collections, exhibitions, and is currently engaged in cross-cultural projects across the global art community.

  • COMMENT

    I'm looking forward to discover talents of artisanal innovation and process-driven contemporary artists

  • Hisashi Kawakami

    Universal AD Network CO.,LTD President & CEO

    PROFILE

    In recent years, Hisashi Kawakami has been dedicated to revitalizing the art market and reinterpreting cultural resources through the planning and production of art fairs and exhibitions both in Japan and abroad. Alongside these initiatives, he has placed strong emphasis on nurturing the next generation of creators and producers. His key projects include FAT Collection, a platform that bridges digital and physical art, and CURATION⇄FAIR, a program that connects academic curatorial perspectives with the art market. His work is rooted in cross-sectoral media production, including magazine publishing and the revitalization of regional media. Since founding Universal Ad Network in 2014, he has led numerous projects that integrate art with urban strategy and cultural tourism, such as the management of Art Fair Tokyo and the production of artKYOTO at the UNESCO World Heritage Site Nijō Castle. He has also actively adopted technologies such as NFTs and Web3 to develop new business models with a global outlook, successfully fostering a virtuous cycle between cultural and economic capital. Building on the insights and networks cultivated through these experiences, Kawakami is now focused on developing a talent base capable of communicating the value of Japan’s traditional crafts and classical arts to the world. This represents his next challenge: creating a sustainable framework for transmitting cultural heritage to future generations.

  • Shinpei Okada

    TEZUKAYAMA GALLERY ／ DELTA ／ PoP Gallery Director

    PROFILE

    Originally from Osaka Prefecture. Since 2014, employed at TEZUKAYAMA GALLERY, where responsibilities include planning exhibitions, handling press relations, and editing publications. Additionally, introduces affiliated artists at domestic and international art fairs. Independently plans and manages multiple exhibitions and art fairs. Since 2020, has been a co-director and founder of the art fair “DELTA” in Osaka, actively involved to the present. Also involved in the management of ART OSAKA from the same year. Committed to revitalizing the art industry primarily centered in Osaka.

  • COMMENT

    I look forward to encountering new talents and forms of expression at the venue. Above all, I sincerely hope this will be a meaningful and rewarding experience for everyone participating.

    AWARD

    Through organizing exhibitions, I hope to create opportunities to introduce and showcase the artworks. (*The schedule is undecided.)

  • Masahiko Murakami

    Skeleton Crew Studio CEO

    PROFILE

    Masahiko Murakami CEO, Skeleton Crew Studio Board Member, Japan Independent Games Association (JIGA) Representative Director, Shibuya Asobiba Production Committee Born in 1980, Masahiko Murakami studied at a design college in Japan before moving to the United States, where he earned his degree from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. He began his career as a concept artist in the U.S. entertainment industry, then returned to Japan in 2009. After working as an artist at a game studio in Kyoto, he co-founded BitSummit, one of Japan’s leading indie game events, contributing to the growth of the indie game scene nationwide. In 2016, he founded his own studio, Skeleton Crew Studio, expanding its focus from game, VR/AR, app, and web development into urban development and event production. Based in Kyoto, he works to create and curate spaces that support and empower indie creators. Murakami also bridges the game and contemporary art communities through projects like “art bit – Contemporary Art & Indie Game Culture”, which promotes creative experimentation and cross-disciplinary collaboration. He has frequently served as a speaker and juror at international events in Taiwan, the UK, Brazil, and beyond.

  • COMMENT

    I’ve worked between games and art—as both a creator and a producer. What connects these two worlds, for me, is the joy of offering someone an experience they’ve never had before. UNKNOWN ASIA is not only a place to present your work, but also a stage to show how you engage with the world through your creativity. Don’t be afraid to combine bold experimentation with careful attention to detail—express both with confidence. As a judge, I value the quality of the work itself, of course. But more than that, I care deeply about how creators think. What questions does your work ask? How do you want to engage with society and the world? I’d love to hear your vision. Let’s open up new possibilities for creative expression—together.

    AWARD

    Creative Support: Opportunities for Exhibitions, Production Spaces, and Project Participation Exhibition Opportunities： We offer opportunities to exhibit work at venues and events affiliated with us, including the gallery space at Skeleton Crew Studio in Kyoto and the creative hub "404 Not Found" in Shibuya, Tokyo. Participation in Game Development Projects： We provide opportunities to participate as an artist or co-creator in ongoing or upcoming projects by Skeleton Crew Studio, including games, XR experiences, and media art productions.