About us

Art at the center of the Earth

Harnessing the power of art to create a sustainable world

 
We believe that art has the power to help us realize a creative, flourishing society. Over the years as we have continued to deliver our art-based learning program, EGAKU, this belief has become a firm conviction. Our 2007 vision map outlines our vision for a circular model of society powered by art – art which develops the creative potential of all people and the whole of society. We hope to work towards the creation of a sustainable world through our various projects, adopting a systems approach in our work and by sharing our cutting edge art-based learning method with the world.
 

Message from the CEO

 

Towards a 21st century renaissance:
from art - a new vision of society

 

The reason I am here today is because of a life-changing encounter with the book, 'The Turning Point: Science, Society, and the Rising Culture' by Fritjof Capra.
 

As a high school student in the 80s, I was deeply pained by the news about school violence and horrifying domestic violence involving children of my age. “Why do we keep fighting one other?” “Surely human beings are born to pursue our own happiness, so why do we make choices that make us unhappy?” - these were the kinds of questions that constantly troubled me. Reading Capra’s book in my twenties was a revelation, shedding a ray of light on these questions from my teenage years. In this volume, Capra writes about issues related to healthcare, the limits of economic models, environmental pollution and the causes of social unrest from his standpoint as a physicist. Across 700 pages he lays out problematic psychological approaches which neglect the true possibilities of the human spirit, and predicts that we are headed for a paradigm shift – a dramatic shift in values and worldview. I have to confess I no longer remember all the details, however, when I saw a chart showing the process of social transformation – of the old social values gradually decaying, and a new worldview and mindset taking its place - I was stunned by the realisation that this turning point was indeed imminent. In that moment I promised myself that I would be part of this social transformation - that I would embrace this new worldview and live these values.
 
In the 15 years that followed, driven by a desire to understand the world from a systems perspective I sought to understand the external system, the world around me by voraciously reading books on psychology, sociology, religion, economics. I also sought to gain a deeper understanding of my own inner system, my personal history, emotions, and subjective views about the world, and over the years I synthesised what I learned, constantly refining and testing my ideas through my work and research. However, far from finding signs of this social transformation, amidst the turbulent events of the time - the Gulf War, the collapse of Japan’s economic bubble, the Tokyo subway sarin attack – I began to feel a deep sense of despair as I struggled to see a way out of the status quo. The turning point I had eagerly anticipated in the 21st century seemed no where in sight.
 
In the midst of this, it was an encounter with the artist Kunihiko Yazawa which gave me a renewed sense of hope. I was stunned by Yazawa’s boundless stream of ideas and creativity, his ability to bring his ideas to life and the philosophy underlying his art practice. Over the years as I’ve worked on various art projects with Yazawa, my initial intuition that his immense talent and ideas as an artist could make a meaningful contribution to society became a firm conviction. This is the story of White Ship’s founding as told from my perspective.

The 20 years since White Ship’s founding hasn’t always been smooth sailing, but we have been able to build up our practice through countless miracles and inspiring encounters. Starting a business with what sounded to some like a crazy vision of making the world a better place through art, would not have been possible without the support of those who believed in us and our vision. As we mark our 20th anniversary, I would like to take this opportunity to offer my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has accompanied us on this journey.
 
As we head into the next decade, we hope to contribute towards a world of human flourishing by scaling up the work we have nurtured over the past 20 years, and share our work with more people around the world.
 
Over the years we have learned that our art-based learning programs, based on the EGAKU method, can help individuals develop social and emotional skills, systems thinking, critical thinking and creativity – skills which are critical to human flourishing in the 21st century*. We believe that developing these skills require more than an intellectual understanding of these concepts, but also an understanding of developmental psychology to address what psychologist Robert Kegan calls our “immunity maps”**. Going forward we hope to share the experience and knowledge we have accumulated over the past 20 years through our work creating art-based learning experiences for over 20,000 people***, by leveraging digital platforms and technology to reach more people around the world.
 
With the launch of Kunihiko Yazawa’s first monograph to mark our 20th anniversary, we plan to put a renewed focus on our gallery programming as we work towards the realisation of a new kind of museum for the 21st century - a museum and school where people can experience the joy and wonder of art, and the boundless possibilities of art.
 
Over the next 10 years we will continue to pursue even more ambitious challenges, as we work with our passionate friends and supporters towards a new vision of society - a 21st century renaissance.
 

Kimi Hasebe
White Ship
 

 

* Vincent-Lancrin, S., et al. (2019), Fostering Students' Creativity and Critical Thinking: What it Means in School, Educational Research and Innovation, OECD Publishing, Paris
** Robert Kegan, (2009), Immunity to Change: How to Overcome It and Unlock the Potential in Yourself and Your Organization
*** White Ship website, (2021), Corporate Programs | Latest data on EGAKU’s impact and reach released 
 

Message from co-founder and artist

Throughout the ages, till this day artists have lived and continued to create works - in some ages shaping history, in others becoming swept up in the tide of history. While the modes of expression have changed since we began drawing some tens of thousands of years ago, art has never disappeared from human history.
 
This fact suggests that despite the tendency to view art as something special, as the monopoly of artists and the privileged few, art is intimately connected with who we are as humans - our desires, hopes, dreams and evolution. It also implies art has an important role to play in our lives and in the world.
 
What is the meaning of art? What is it for?
What is art?
 
I founded White Ship with Kimi Hasebe in an attempt to find my own answers to these questions. I wanted to understand how art can create meaningful change in the world. White Ship is an attempt to take the world as my canvas to explore new expressions and ideas of what art can be, and is part of my art practice.
 
In the world we live in today we are faced with many challenges, and I believe that art can play a critical role in helping us find solutions or at least offer us clues to finding new ways to confront these challenges. I think that the role of art as a borderless communication tool that transcends race and nationality will also become increasingly important. I believe that our art practice and the art of the future can help us create a beautiful future. This is what I believe. This is my hope.
 

 
Kunihiko Yazawa
Artist / Founder & Director 

Management team

Kimi Hasebe

Kimi Hasebe

CEO (Representative Director)

 

Born in Tokyo, Japan. Kimi aspired to become a social entrepreneur in her 20s and founded White Ship in 2001 with the artist, Kunihiko Yazawa. She has explored the possibilities of art considered from the viewpoints of both artist and audience, and developed the art program, EGAKU®, for a variety of organizational contexts and needs. Kimi set up White Ship’s organizational development practice, designing and implementing creative development and leadership development programs for senior executives, managers and young leaders and supporting organizations through EGAKU and communication design. To date, she has worked with over 200 companies. As director of 9201 Gallery she also curates exhibitions and is also actively involved in ELAB’s work in school education.
 

Kunihiko Yazawa

Kunihiko Yazawa

Director

 

Born in Shizuoka, Japan. Kunihiko Yazawa is an artist based in Tokyo. After graduating from the Bunka College of Fashion, he taught at the college from 1985-1990. He won a number of fashion design competitions in Japan and was awarded the Grand Prix at the International Textile Design Competition for his original textile creation. He taught as a part-time lecturer at the spatial design department of the Musashino Art University (1989-2006) and worked on various spatial design projects including stage set design. He began his art practice in 1994, in addition to painting and his object-making practice he also works on various art projects. In 2022, he published his first monograph - a comprehensive survey of his entire practice - KUNIHIKO YAZAWA Complete Works 1994-2021.

Kimi Hasebe

Ryoko Nakamura

Director / Head of Global Projects

 

Born in London, UK. Ryoko joined White Ship in 2013 and heads global projects and leads our programs for multinationals and global organizations. She is passionate about exploring the role of art in human development in all its dimensions. Prior to joining White Ship, Ryoko worked in various global investment management roles in Hong Kong, New York, London and Tokyo at Goldman Sachs, TPG Axon and Deutsche Asset Management where she focused on sustainable investments in Asia. Ryoko holds a Master of International Affairs degree from Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs and read Politics, Philosophy and Economics at the University of Oxford.

Company profile

Corporate name White Ship, Inc.
Address

6F Terasawa Bld., 1-7-17 Motoakasaka Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan 107-0051
Tel: +81-3-6434-9785 Fax: +81-33-6434-9786 Access >>

Date established January 1, 2001
Directors Kimi Hasebe CEO (Representative Director) 
Kunihiko Yazawa Director
Ryoko Nakamura Director
Affiliate ELAB (spun of White Ship in 2011)
Related websites EGAKU Online >>
Kunihiko Yazawa official website >>
9201 Gallery >>
ELAB >>
Media/speaking enquiries info@whiteship.net

Our work

 

Art Management
 

Connecting the power of art to society
 
 

Creative Learning
 

Creating art-based learning experiences for all
- developing individuals' creative potential through art
 
 

Organizational Development Consulting

Developing the creative potential of people and organizations, transforming and energizing organizations
 

Corporate Responsibility

Through our partnership with ELAB, White Ship supports creative learning experiences for school-age children, university students, youth, as well as educators and local communities. We also support ELAB’s research on creative learning and collaborations and exchanges with institutions and learning practitioners in Japan and around the world.
ELAB is a Japan-based non-profit that was born out of White Ship in 2011.
 
 

 
 
 
Our CSR partners

 

  
 

Access

White Ship, Inc.
-Office & 9201 Gallery-

 
6F Terasawa Bld., 1-7-17 Motoakasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-0051, Japan
Tel : +81-3-6434-9785 Fax : +81-3-6434-9786 E-mail : info@whiteship.net

6 minute walk from Ginza/Marunouchi Line Akasaka-mitsuke Station Exit B
6 minute walk from Yurakucho/Hanzomon/Namboku Line Nagata-cho Station Exit B
15 minute walk from Ginza/Hanzomon/Oedo Line Aoyama Itchome Station Exit 2