Yufu Shōhaku (b. 1941)

Born in Beppu, Oita Prefecture, Yufu Shōhaku studied under his father, the bamboo master Yufu Chikuryū. He has exhibited and received awards at various exhibitions including at the Japan Traditional Art Crafts Exhibition, the Oita Prefecture Art Exhibition and the Oita Craft Exhibition. In 2018, he was designated a ‘Special Person of Cultural Merits’ by Beppu City and in 2021, he was designated a ‘Person of Cultural Merits’ for the Traditional Crafts Industry by the Kyushu Ministry of Economics, Trade and Industry. He has also been certified as a ‘First-class Skilled Technician’ and a ‘Traditional Craftsman’ by the Association for the Promotion of Traditional Craft Industries. Yufu’s work is distinguished by his technique of yatara-ami (freestyle plaiting) incorporating large pieces of bamboo culm and rhizome. An important part of his practice currently includes training the younger generation of bamboo artists in this technique.