Takeshi Yamada: The Sculptor of Strange Beauty Takeshi Yamada, born in Osaka, Japan in 1960, is an artist whose singular vision blends meticulous craftsmanship with unsettling fascination—a preoccupation with taxidermy and the creation of fantastical creatures that defy conventional notions of art and nature. His journey began early, picking up a paintbrush at age twelve, fueled by a lifelong passion for observation and experimentation that would ultimately define his artistic trajectory. Moving to the United States in 1983 as an exchange student, Yamada honed his skills at California Colleg…