Born in 1944 in Japan, Takenobu Igarashi graduated from Tama Art University in 1968 and began his career as a graphic designer in the 1970s. His work captured the attention of global clients and designers, and in the 1980s he collaborated with design titans Massimo Vignelli and Alan Fletcher. Later in his career, as he pursued less commercial activities, he has found deep engagement with Japanese crafts, and – coinciding with a period living in Los Angeles – produced sculpture and artworks for public spaces based on letterforms, in a variety of materials and scales, across Japan and internationally. Today, his works are in the permanent collections of over 30 museums, including The Museum of Modern Art, New York. He has been emeritus professor of Tama Art University since 2015.