Takenouchi’s art is simple, but multilayered, elegant, yet unreserved. The artwork at Hiro’s Japanese Restaurant represents Japanese authenticity with a twist. Takenouchi fuses his experiences in New York City and India resulting in a combination of modernist expression and Buddhist art. The interior design of Hiro’s Japanese Restaurant breaks away from stereotypical bamboo and rice paper screens and into the artistic vision of a Japanese journeyman. Takenouchi’s dominating centerpiece is a 7’ by 21’ wood block print of an elaborate fish swallowing people, or purging people, depending upon the viewer’s perspective. Adorning the long white walls in the dining room are wire baskets that hold crumpled balls of artwork. Both at the entrance of the restaurant, and in the ladies room, Takenouchi created hand-carved tables out of exotic natural woods. The artist created two large sculptures for the restaurant. The first, located behind the sake bar, is a giant wooden piece that rises out of a martini glass onto the wall overlooking the bar patrons. The second, is a mysterious object made from crumpled Japanese paper that hangs above the back wall of the restaurant.
He currently resides in Kagoshima, Japan.
