mountain where there are godsIt's not gone. I guess it depends on how far you look back.

mountain where there are godsEveryone was doing it at the time. I think I originally met Jonio at Laforet in Harajuku. A friend introduced me to Hitomi Okawa, the designer of "MILK," and I went straight to Laforet, and there was Jonio. I think I had just graduated from Bunka Gakuin at the time. Well, as a result, it became a daily routine for me to visit Jonio's house (laughs).

I helped with the printing, and before I knew it, we were doing shows, which we all supported.

mountain where there are godsI was working with Hitomi while also creating my own artwork. Before that, I worked for a graphic design company. I always liked prints and other art forms.

When I saw the graphics printed on paper and projected on clothes in front of my eyes, I thought to myself, "The only difference between silkscreening and printing on paper and printing on clothes is that the silkscreening technique is almost the same. I thought I could do this, and I got more and more into it. That's how I started FAMOUZ. I didn't really think of it as a brand, but more like a name I gave to my activities.

mountain where there are godsYes, I guess it's like a business card. Because with that kind of thing, I could be friends with someone or drink free alcohol at clubs and bars (laughs).

mountain where there are godsThat was a little embarrassing (laughs). (Laughs.) I had the title of designer, but I always wondered what that meant. I always wondered what that meant. I guess designing things is what a designer does, but I was embarrassed to call myself a fashion designer again.

I liked fashion, but I didn't start out with the intention of doing it. I started with the desire to draw or create things, and it just happened to be fashion at the time.

mountain where there are godsIt was completely unconscious. My work became an extension of my play, and I created a company and increased the number of employees, but I don't think anything has changed in my own essence. Harajuku has been my playground since I was a child, and I have always felt that there was something going on there.

Later, after leaving Harajuku, I realized that it was very ephemeral, each moment passing by at great speed. However, the time within that moment was very intense.

mountain where there are godsI thought that moment would never come again. Fashion happened to be booming in Harajuku at the time, and it is no longer the case that people who have passed through different cultures come together in one place. Nowadays, that kind of energy has faded in all fields. We were born out of something that didn't exist, so there is a big difference.

mountain where there are godsIt was a bit of an adult situation, but we were told that the property we were renting was going to be closed due to the landlord's circumstances, and that it would cost a lot of money to continue the project. The Urahara movement was still going on, and we could have made the money, but at that point, I just cooled off.

mountain where there are godsAt that time, I was 29 or 30 years old, and I wondered if I could continue to lead my employees. I wondered if I could continue to lead my employees. Maybe that was the moment I became an adult. Well, there was a break of 10 years, and I also wanted to get out of the fashion business. I wanted to do something I hadn't done yet.

mountain where there are godsI don't think I was out of Harajuku much. Of course, I went abroad as an extension of my work, but it was only as a familial activity. At the time, I wanted a freer perspective. To pursue what I genuinely enjoyed.

mountain where there are godsBy changing myself, things change, and I was happy to meet more new people. Now that I am in my 40s, I am in a fresh phase of my life, and the young people in charge at the manufacturers I do business with have never heard of "Famous. These people approached me purely because they saw my pictures. I enjoy it when they later say to me, "Kamiyama-san, you come from the Urahara area, don't you? (laughs).

mountain where there are godsI first became interested in drawing when I was in elementary school, partly due to the influence of my older brother, who was a little older than me, but also because I had "Treasure Island" and "Akira" manga lying around in my room. I hated studying, but I loved drawing. On the first page of my art textbook, there was a drawing of "Guernica," and I was shocked to see it. That feeling is still with me today.

mountain where there are godsWhat is this? I thought (laughs). At the time, I had no idea about the background of the painting, but it was a world without color, yet it seemed so free. I remember thinking, "What kind of person painted this? I remember thinking, "What kind of person painted this? That made me want to paint pictures too.

mountain where there are godsAlso, my grandmother lived in Yotsuya, and we would meet up in front of the Koma Theater in Shinjuku every week to visit her. She would feed us good food and always show us a movie. We would go through Kabukicho together, and you would see all these scary people walking around. At that time, there were a lot of people with their tops naked and sarashi (sarashi wrapped around their waists). (Laughs) I was impressed by that scene, including the neon lights, and thought it was cool even as a child.

mountain where there are godsYes, that's right. I think that's why I like fluorescent colors.

mountain where there are godsIn the old days, flyers for events were basically in black and white. People didn't have money and made copies. Overseas, they were often printed on fluorescent paper, and I liked the feeling of adding black to such materials. I had painted black-and-white works as well, but at first I tried to add elements to the black-and-white works. If I added too much, I would get tired of it, so I would try taking it out again. In the end, it was a repetition of the same process.

mountain where there are godsYes, I do. And then there are the tools. I also do printing, but it's surprisingly tedious, including the time required to make the colors and wash the prints (laughs). (Laughs) Recently, I've been into sprays. I used to use it as an element, but then I realized that I could complete my work with just one spray. I started doing exhibitions with spray works last year or so.

mountain where there are godsAt the time, I wanted to work not only on canvas, but also on products. I was very surprised to hear that pottery can be re-fired many times, so I went to Kagoshima to do some painting.

I heard that there were a lot of discarded vessels, and that you could pick them up for free. I heard that there were a lot of discarded vessels, so I went to Kagoshima to pick up such vessels, which I could get for free and which were thrown away in the city.

mountain where there are godsYes, it is. With one canvas, I thought I could do this as well.

mountain where there are godsIt all started when I came across a large amount of B pottery. I heard that even mass-produced items are almost always disposed of if they are not good enough, so I thought it would be a good idea to give them new value and revive them. I had plenty of clothes, and I had done remakes before, so I thought I could always do it.

mountain where there are godsThat is not the case at all (laughs). I originally came up with the name "blanks" when I was thinking of starting my own label, and I just released the ceramics as part of that process.

mountain where there are godsI was asked by an acquaintance last year if I would do a little clothing. I was being asked by an acquaintance if I could do it, but I told him I couldn't do it because I didn't have time. The same person said, "Then we can do everything from sales to shipping," and I just changed the name to my own at that time.

mountain where there are godsThat's right. I had customers who bought my artwork ask me, "Where can I buy your clothes? I decided to integrate everything under my name.

mountain where there are godsPerhaps the idea of giving something a name was a kind of remnant from the backwoods days. Everyone liked to make logos and give them names back then. I just have that habit left (laughs).

mountain where there are godsIt all started with Mr. Ishikawa and Mr. Ukai. Originally, Mr. Ishikawa was working with Mr. Tatezawa of Banzai Paint under that name. From there, the movement became more irregular.

Once, we were going to hold an event at the Curator's Cube in Toranomon. It is now in Nishi-Shinbashi, but at the time it was still in Toranomon. It was originally a paint factory with a ceiling height of more than 10 meters, so it was a place where cars and other vehicles could be housed.

When we first opened, I was asked by a gallery owner, "Would you like to do something?" But it was a large space and there were other floors, so I wasn't sure what to do. At that time, I was with Mr. Ishikawa and asked him, "I have a proposal. I asked him about it, and naturally the direction turned to having an ultra-heavy exhibition. We decided to put in the W123 Mercedes Benz that I was driving at the time, and we decided to follow Ultra Heavy's belief that "when in doubt, go with the heavier one. I guess that's how the three of us came to work together.

mountain where there are godsLike Mr. Ishikawa and Mr. Ukai, no one is that free (laughs). (Laughs) Ultra Heavy is neutralized in a very good way, or rather, it is not interpreted as work in the first place. I am grateful to be able to express myself in that free space, and it is always fun. Even we don't know what we are doing (laughs).

mountain where there are godsI will be 47 this year, and you are about 10 years older than me. When I see my seniors moving freely like that, I realize that I have a long way to go, too (laughs). (laughs). I really enjoy being with them.

mountain where there are godsI had been asked by Zhou, "Why don't we do something together? I had in mind the fact that he has always had pottery in his store, so I asked him for a pot. If we were going to do something, it had to be something big!
(laughs). Then he looked for Arita-yaki porcelain, and last month I went into Arita and started production. I definitely wanted to go into the field and do it.

mountain where there are godsIt is interesting to be able to work in their environment. Whenever I go to a site, there are always tools and other things to be found. I had worked with ceramics before at Blanx, but this was the first time for me to work with unglazed pots.

mountain where there are godsI used a sprayer this time, but more than half of it was a brush. I had bought two brushes at a home improvement center when I went to Paris in January of this year, and I wanted to try them out. They were ordinary thick round brushes for paint, and they worked very well with Arita-yaki porcelain.

mountain where there are godsI think the first time I do something for the first time, I am always excited. Especially this time, because it is three-dimensional, you can't see it from the surface, and everything is curved. I had to turn it around and look at it from various angles to develop the image. That was a lot of fun. Arita-yaki pots were originally presented to the government, and it seems that they are rarely sold on the market. Even if they were sold, they would cost close to 5 million yen (laughs).

mountain where there are godsIt seems that the one I was going to give somewhere got cancelled and there was a surplus. The old man at the site was talking about how they were getting in the way, and he said there are still about 20 left over besides the ones I drew this time, so I'm thinking of buying all of them.

mountain where there are godsBecause anything can become art if you draw and layer it. It is fun to paint without choosing the subject matter. Even in my studio, I sometimes create a work after drawing on the wall, but there are people who want the wall as it is, so you never know (laughs).

mountain where there are godsNothing in particular. I don't think anything has changed.

mountain where there are godsI wouldn't go so far as to say that I am conscious of it, but I am sure my mind is working somewhere. I started out as a one-man operation, and even though the company was incorporated and staff was brought in, I still wanted to do things within my own control.

mountain where there are godsNot at all (laughs). If I thought about that, I wouldn't be here (in Setagaya). Life here is so easy.

mountain where there are godsI have been wanting to paint on vases for a long time, and this time I was able to do it, and I think I will continue to do so in the future since I am told that there is still stock. I also have a friend who blows glass, so I went to stay with him to see the process of glass making, and I would like to try my hand at glass someday.