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Biography
Hideaki Honma (b. 1959) is a Japanese bamboo artist whose practice bridges traditional craftsmanship and contemporary sculptural expression. Born in 1959 on Sado Island, Niigata, Honma apprenticed under his father, master bamboo artist Kazuo Honma, beginning in 1987. He has since developed a distinctive body of work characterized by dynamic forms and refined structural balance.
Honma began exhibiting in major juried exhibitions in the early 1990s, including the Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition (first selected in 1991) and the Nitten Exhibition (first selected in 1992, with continuous selections thereafter). He has received numerous awards, including the Contemporary Craft Award (1994), Niigata Prefectural Exhibition Grand Prize (1996), Honorable Mentions from multiple regional exhibitions, the Main Member Award at the 50th Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition (2011), the Chairman’s Prize at the 50th Niigata Contemporary Craft Exhibition (2012), the Tokyo Governor’s Award at the 53rd Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition (2014), and Special Selection prizes at the restructured Nitten Exhibition in both 2014 and 2018.
Internationally, Honma has exhibited in Santa Fe, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco. His work was featured at the Japan Society in New York in New Bamboo: Contemporary Japanese Masters (2008), and in the “Celebration of the Next Generation” exhibition at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco (2007). He has held multiple solo exhibitions at TAI Modern in Santa Fe, marking his 20th, 25th, 30th, and 35th career anniversaries.
Honma’s sculpture Shoyo was displayed at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in 2013, and in 2017 his work Ryumon (2014) entered The Met’s Abbey Collection. The piece later toured Japan as part of the Abbey Collection exhibition in 2019. His work has also been presented at institutions including MOA Museum of Art, Tochigi Prefectural Museum of Fine Arts, Tokyo National Museum (Craft 2020, Japan Cultural Expo), LIXIL Gallery, and Portland Japanese Garden.
In addition to his exhibition practice, Honma is actively involved in arts education and institutional leadership. He has served as a juror for numerous national and regional exhibitions, including the Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition, Nitten Exhibition, National Bamboo Art Exhibition, and Niigata Prefectural Art Exhibition. He is currently a member of Nitten and continues to serve on juried panels, including the 63rd Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition in 2025.
Honma’s work reflects a lifelong dedication to bamboo as both material and medium, combining inherited tradition with contemporary vision, and positioning him as one of Japan’s leading figures in modern bamboo sculpture.Biography
1959 Born in Sado City, Niigata Prefecture, Japan
1987 Studied under his father, Kazuo Honma
1990 First selected for the Niigata Prefectural Exhibition (selected four times total)
1991 First selected for the Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition Governor’s Award, Niigata Contemporary Craft Exhibition. Subsequent awards include Niigata Nippo Award, Niigata Nippo Art Promotion Award, Niigata Mayor’s Award, BSN Award, Niigata Chamber of Commerce Chairman’s Award, TeNY Television Niigata Award (three times), among others
1992 First selected for the Nitten Exhibition (selected continuously thereafter)
1994 Contemporary Craft Award, 33rd Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition
1996 Grand Prize, Niigata Prefectural Exhibition (became non juried exhibitor thereafter)
2003 Participated in Chicago Art Fair
2004 Participated in New York Art Fair, TeNY Television Niigata Award, 42nd Niigata Contemporary Craft Exhibition
2007 20th Anniversary Bamboo Art Exhibition, Hideaki Homma, TAI Modern, Santa Fe, New Mexico, Selected participant, “Celebration of the Next Generation,” Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, 85th Anniversary Three Person Exhibition, Homma Kogei, Daimaru Niigata, BSN Niigata Broadcasting Award, 45th Niigata Contemporary Craft Exhibition
2008 Participated in “New Bamboo: The New World of Bamboo,” Japan Society, New York
2010 Hideaki Homma Bamboo Art Exhibition, Tsubame City Industrial History Museum
Selected Nitten work toured nationally2011 Main Member Award, 50th Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition, Juror, Mitsuke City Exhibition
2012 Chairman’s Award, 50th Niigata Contemporary Craft Exhibition, 25th Anniversary Bamboo Art Exhibition, Hideaki Homma, TAI Modern, Santa Fe, New Mexico
2013 Soyo exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (February to July)
2014 Tokyo Governor’s Award, 53rd Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition2016 Juror, 55th Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition
Annual Committee Member, Niigata Prefectural Art Exhibition2017 Work Ryumon (2014) acquired by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Abbey Collection
Participated in Peter Collection Exhibition, Portland Japanese Garden (lecture)
Lecture and workshop, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
2018 Annual Committee Member, Niigata Prefectural Art Exhibition
30th Anniversary Bamboo Art Exhibition, Hideaki Homma, TAI Modern, Santa Fe, New Mexico
Special Selection Award, Reorganized 5th Nitten Exhibition2019 Abbey Collection Japan Touring Exhibition, The Metropolitan Museum of Art New York (Ryumon, 2014)
2020 Hideaki Homma Bamboo Art Exhibition, Gallery Bandaijima
Exhibited in “Craft 2020,” Japan Cultural Expo, Tokyo National Museum
Participated in “Breath of Bamboo” Exhibition, Tochigi Prefectural Museum of Fine Arts2021 Juror, 59th Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition
2022 Juror, 9th Nitten Exhibition
35th Anniversary Bamboo Art Exhibition, Hideaki Homma, TAI Modern, Santa Fe, New Mexico2023 Artwork loaned and exhibited at the Prime Minister’s Official Residence, Yu Hideaki Homma and Koichi Homma Bamboo Art Father and Son Exhibition, Art Gallery Bandaijima
2024 Participated in “Hana + Kougei +” Exhibition, Niigata Isetan
Dispatched to Leiden University, Netherlands, Japanese Art Program2025 Juror, 63rd Japan Contemporary Craft Exhibition
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WorksNo works available.
