Miki Lowe, from the everyday to the transcendental

Today we speak with Miki Lowe, an Anglo-Japanese multidisciplinary artist currently based in London. With a nomadic spirit, he uses new places and experiences as sources of inspiration to transform everyday aspects of life into something truly transcendent.

Hello Mike, who are you? How would you define yourself?

I'm Miki, an Anglo-Japanese and French visual artist. My work is torn between illustration, fine arts and design. It's kind of a hybrid.

Where were you born? Do you still live there?

I was born in Kyoto (Japan) although I was raised in the south of France and now I live in London.

When did you decide to become an artist?

Early. As a child I wanted to be an artist. And then, at the age of 16, I chose the branch of applied arts for the Baccalaureate. Which means that from a very early age my studies have been focused on the fields of arts and design.

How would you define your style in one sentence?

Eclectic but personal, sometimes surreal, sometimes figurative, everyday but transcendent.

Your weaknesses? Your strengths?

I am very impatient, even restless by nature. On the other hand, I am also very curious and I think it is a positive thing.

What would you say makes you different?

My multidisciplinary approach to graphic arts.

What do you find most fascinating about creativity?

It seems to have a life of its own. Sometimes it can jump out of nowhere and blossom when it's totally unexpected, and yet it's incredibly connected to our underlying feeling, our moods, and what's going on in our lives.

Which of your works do you have a special affection for?

I like my engravings and etchings. There is a lot of work in the process, which itself has many steps, and that type of engraving requires a certain amount of thoroughness and care, you have to accept that it is a slow process. It is very different from direct painting and drawing. I guess it makes me brave my own impatience, and I find the final pieces very rewarding when done successfully.

Who inspires or influences you when creating?

More than who, I prefer to say where, what and how. More than from a particular individual, my inspiration comes from experiences (a lot from my travels) the things I see, the insights I get from people and the way they live. I am also creatively inspired by reading, it doesn't have to be fiction, it can also be essays, biographies, poetry, theory... Sometimes a single sentence or paragraph comes up with a visual idea or a story to develop from it.

Do you have a new project or idea in hand?

I will continue to work on commissioned illustration work, but would like to do some self-directed projects. I would also like to spend some time in a foreign country.

2025 Where do you see yourself?

I have a very changeable mind, so it's very hard to say. I like to think that life happens within oneself, so I would like to be doing and learning something new, learning to live and adapting to a very different place.

Finish the sentence: When things get tough…

Take a step back or seek support from someone you love and trust.

A favorite place .

One of the places that impressed me was the northern coast of Croatia, around the areas of Pula and Cape Kamenjak up to Zadar. I think when I left tourism hadn't really exploded in that part of the country and it felt very under-discovered.

What would you do if you could change the world?

At the risk of sounding like "Miss America," it would redistribute wealth and resources more equitably. It is profoundly absurd to me that a very small portion of the world's population has more money than they can spend in a lifetime just because they were lucky enough to be born in a certain place, time, and family, while countless other people, because of those For the same reasons, they do not have access to the most basic things such as drinking water, food, freedom, health care and education.

Penultimate question… Favorite song?

That is very difficult. "In the death car" by Iggy Pop and Goran Bregovic.
The lyrics are twisted, but it's a beautiful song.

Movie?

My favorite since childhood is Hayao Mikazaki's Princess Mononoke.
Besides being an artist, my dream was to wear war paint and ride wolves in wild forests. (I still want to be honest)