The Kyoto Archive of Art by People with Disabilities

MITSUSHIMA Takayuki lost his eyesight when he was 10 years old. After graduating from Otani University (Faculty of Letters Departments of Philosophy), he opened an acupuncture clinic. He began working with clay art in 1992 and has started “sawaru kaiga”, touching art, since 1995, utilizing some drafting tapes and cutting sheets. He was awarded Silver for the Art Paralympic Nagano ‘98 in 1998. Mitsushima looks for new expressions in his art, such as tactile sequel art, and there are many works that collaborated with other artists and tactile collages that he has explored since 2012.A tactile collage involves materials such as cloths or metallic items which you can directly feel as the works are mean to be touchable. Since 2018, he has selected nails as his main material and continues to explore his works. They are simple yet evolving as he discovers additional elements that can be sensed by touching nails at a tilt, and with height differences. In January 2020, he opened his gallery / his own atelier, called “Atelier Mitsushima”. He moves forwards to broaden his activities in the hope that the atelier can become the place for him to improve accessibility within art by practicing new approaches.