David Stanley Hewett

Hewett was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1967.[3][11] He was introduced to painting at a young age, as his mother and eldest brother were also painters.[2][3] He began making pottery and ceramics at the age of 5 after watching a potter whom his mother had lent space in her garage to.[2][3]

Hewett first became interested in Japanese culture after studying Japanese karate at the age of 14.[7][12][13] Hewett went on to study Japanese art and history at the University of Massachusetts, before graduating in 1990.[7][14][13] He also spent time as an exchange student at Hokkaido University in 1988.[3][15][12] After graduating, he moved to Tokyo to study ceramics with sculptor and ceramicist Sachiko Kawamura for two years.[2][3][7][8]

At the end of his two-year study, Hewett returned to the United States and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, in which he served for four years.[2][9] After his time in the Marine Corps, Hewett published a Japanese-language magazine in the Boston area called Takara.[2]

In 1991, Hewett's work was included as part of a joint exhibition between several international artists at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum.[16]

Hewett's first major solo art exhibition was at the Libest Gallery in Kichijoji in 1992.[2][12][17][18] An interior designer who saw the exhibition entered Hewett's work in an art competition for the Imperial Hotel, leading to the Imperial Hotel commissioning Hewett to create 108 paintings for its walls.[2][3][17][18]

Hewett had an art exhibition at Inokashira Park in 1993, which consisted of a wall of Japanese paper 200 meters long integrated into the park's surroundings.[3][16][19] In the same year, Hewett also designed a CD cover for pop singer Kohmi Hirose.[16][19]

In 2005, Hewett was commissioned to provide ceramic pieces and paintings for the spa gallery of Hotel Okura in Tokyo.[20][3][19][21] He would go on to provide art pieces for a number of other luxury hotels, such as the Peninsula Hotel and the Oakwood Premier Tokyo.[7][17][21]

In 2008, Hewett was commissioned to design a men's obi for department store chain Takashimaya. The design went on to become the best-selling obi in Japan that year.[2][15][17] He also collaborated with Takashimaya by designing men's and women's yukata for the company.[2][17][22]

Hewett also designed glasses and decanters inspired by his paintings for the Austrian glassware company Riedel.[17][23]

In 2017, Hewett's painting Majime was presented as a gift to U.S. First Lady Melania Trump by Akie Abe, the wife of then-Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.[10][24][25] The painting was transferred into the National Archives Collection of the United States.[8][10] Hewett's painting Magnificent was also showcased at the 11th Asia Contemporary Art Show in 2017.[26]

Hewett was a featured guest in a 2018 episode of NHK World-Japan's program Japanology Plus.[27]

Hewett's art has been displayed in various galleries and venues, including:

• Libest Gallery in Kichijoji[2][12]
• Fabrik Gallery in Hong Kong[26][28]
• Gallery Fukazawa in Karuizawa[29]
• Tokyo Gallery in Singapore[30]
• Brenda Taylor Gallery in Boston[31]
• Hotel Okura in Tokyo (permanent display)[3][19]
• Ginza Six (permanent display)[32][33]
• Four Seasons Hotel in Marunouchi, Tokyo (permanent display)[34]
• Peninsula Hotel, Tokyo (permanent display)[7][17]
• Oakwood Premier, Tokyo (permanent display)[7][17]

Hewett's personal art studio and gallery is located in Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture.[24][35][36]