In 1975, Yuji Ueda was born in Shiga Prefecture, where his family cultivates Shigaraki’s famous Asamiya tea. Shigaraki is home to one of the Six Ancient Kiln sites of Japan, where he studied under the guidance of the great local ceramist Kohyama Yasuhisa. Since meeting Takashi Murakami around a decade ago, he has primarily exhibited at influential galleries such as Kaikai Kiki.