I’m glad to say that the shingles that I’ve been suffering from for the past year have finally been cured. In my case, I had red pustules on my face (especially the left side) and cold sores. The chickenpox virus that I had as a child still lies dormant in my nerves, and it seems that the virus is activated by stress and other factors. I bet I’ve always been too hard on myself. I think the reason I’ve recovered is that I now take proper breaks and am careful not to push myself too hard.
Publications
A book of haiku that I translated into Japanese will be released in July. Two of my Japanese paintings, commissioned by the author, will be included in the book. The works represent both his haiku and the music that is written in the haiku. The Japanese translation of this haiku is written in my calligraphy. It is available in Germany as a book and in other countries as an e-book. His book is not the kind of thing that many people read, so I do not expect my Japanese paintings in the book to be seen by many people. However, my activities to spread Japanese painting in Germany have been small and limited to me, but with his cooperation, it has become a publication, and my world will expand greatly. My ultimate goal is to distribute Japanese painting materials in Europe, but to achieve this, I will need the help of large companies and the Japanese government, and it is still a long way off. In order to achieve this goal, I am currently in the phase of getting more people to know about Japanese painting. In the second half of this year, a sound artist’s record will be completed, and an unspecified number of people will know the record cover that I drew. Little by little, that goal is taking shape. Even something that would be difficult to achieve alone can take shape when everyone cooperates in their own areas of expertise. That’s wonderful.