Hasaqui Yamanobe

Hasaqui Yamanobe, born in 1982 and based in Tokyo, combines a deep philosophical foundation with a forward-thinking approach to art. He graduated in 2009 from the Graduate School of Fine Arts at Tokyo University of the Arts, where he focused on aesthetics and the work of 18th-century philosopher G.E. Lessing, especially Laocoon. This foundational study continues to drive his work today, centered around his ongoing project, “Towards a Newest Laocoön,” which reexamines and challenges the legacy of Laocoon in contemporary art.

As both artist and researcher, Yamanobe works with traditional drawing alongside coding tools like p5.js. He began with drawing and painting before expanding into AI-generated imagery in 2019 and later generative art. His practice explores the idea of the “Artist as a Generative Machine,” where human creativity and machine learning intersect. At the same time, he critically engages with the NFT space through research and writing, exploring the evolving landscape of digital art and pushing past conventional boundaries

Yamanobe’s work has taken shape across both digital and physical spaces. In 2024, he presented Dark Eternities as a solo show through Seven Eleven’s net print service, inviting viewers to print the work themselves in convenience stores across Japan. He also helped organize Proof of X, an exhibition exploring blockchain as a new medium, held at 3331 in 2022 and Face Daikanyama in 2023. His work has appeared in numerous other exhibitions in Japan and beyond, reflecting a practice that continues to expand across platforms, contexts, and modes of engagement.  Since 2024, he has been writing a series of articles for MASSAGE MAGAZINE titled “Re-thinking Japan’s Dawn of Computer Art,” exploring the state of computer art in Japan during the 1960s and 1970s.