Emu

Emu, who signs his works EMU, is a Japanese artist from Okayama Prefecture, based in Tokyo. He first worked as a graphic designer, then devoted himself entirely to his work as an artist from 2016.

His raw material comes from shipyards. Emu collects the offcuts of wood they discard and transforms them instead of letting them go to waste. From them he makes sculptures and cut-out paintings whose outline follows the shape of the subject. His acrylic works on wood range from a piece 12.5 cm in diameter to panels more than a metre wide.

Emu has exhibited in Japan and abroad since 2018. In Tokyo, he held solo exhibitions at BEAMS JAPAN B GALLERY in 2023, at LOVUS gallery in 2024 and at MU Gallery in 2025. In France, Gallery Jo Yana gave him solo shows in Paris in October 2022, then in Marseille in May 2024. He also took part in ART TAIPEI 2023 and the Hawai'i Walls Invitational 2024, and exhibited at LUMINE Singapore in January 2026.

Alongside this, Emu works for brands such as NIKE, CONVERSE, Pokémon and Netflix. In July 2025, Zojirushi released an insulated mug decorated with his characters, rendered as grey and silver silhouettes on one of the colourways. Emu himself describes his style as a graphic touch, which allows him to show the same subject from several points of view.