Sculptor Tomohiro Inaba crafts iron and stainless steel pieces that leave space for the viewer’s imagination. His path began with childhood clay play, leading to sculptural studies in high school, a doctorate in metalwork, and the launch of his professional career in 2011. While his early work focused on technical skill, he found that fully finished forms created distance with the audience. This is what prompted a shift toward sculptures that function through ongoing engagement.
His approach centers on three ideas: temporality, the potential of the blank, and the viewer’s imagination. By leaving his animal sculptures intentionally incomplete, he uses “nothingness” as a tool to invite viewers into the narrative. Inspired by excavated fragments of ancient pottery, fossils, and the transformation sequences of childhood animated films, his technique relies on deliberate gaps to trigger thought.
Below, you’ll find a selection of our favorite artworks. Scroll down and see which one sparks your imagination the most.
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#1 Innocent Star
size: h1215×w580×275mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
Tomohiro’s philosophy directly shapes how his works exist within a room or public space. As he explains in his website statement, “I would like my creations to be sculptures which engage with the viewer’s imagination. I believe art has a role of bringing viewers a ‘fruitful time’, to fantasize about something the eyes cannot see.” For the artist, a successful piece is not a self-contained statement, but a conversation starter. By leaving portions of the form open-ended, he gives the viewer an active role in completing the visual narrative.
#2 Hearing Footsteps Left By A Star
size: h960×w1000×400mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2021
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#3 Choice Of The Story
size: h1540×w500×400mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
This interactive element stems directly from his reflection on how art functions in everyday environments: “I envisioned a form of existence where a static sculpture could ‘function’ in the world by continuously engaging with those who view it,” he shared with Bored Panda. He points to common human experiences, like looking at excavated pottery fragments, ancient ruins, or watching animation transformation sequences, to show how missing details naturally spark curiosity. By intentionally building “nothingness” into solid stainless steel, his work transforms passive observation into an active act of imagining.
#4 Memory Of Kindness
size: h1430×w2800×650mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#5 When The World Strains Its Ears
size: h1265×w700×785mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#6 Continue
size: h1420×w2190×570mm
material: stainless steel
year: 2025
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#7 Memories Of The Beginning
size: h1870×w2000×550mm
material: stainless steel
year: 2026
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#8 The Praying Stars
size: h1430×w870×320mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#9 The Night Your Voice Is Heard
size: h1125×w700×630mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#10 I’m Here No.1
size: h345×w550×190mm
material: iron, acrylic paint
year: 2025
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#11 I’m Here No.3
size: h280×w540×180mm
material: iron, acrylic paint
year: 2025
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#12 Stars Following Memories
size: h2170×w2540×1180mm
material:stainless steel
year: 2026
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#13 Memory Of The Comet No.17
size: h1280×w290×760mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#14 Empathy
size: h1100×w1260×290mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#15 A Night Of Connecting Stories
size: h885×w660×670mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#16 Memory Of The Comet No.19
size: h960×w620×485mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2025
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#17 I’m Here No.2
size: h520×w780×260mm
material: iron, acrylic paint
year: 2025
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#18 I’m Here No.4
size: h350×w660×250mm
material: iron, acrylic paint
year: 2025
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#19 Landing Moon
size: h3200×w1880×3100mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2021
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#20 Memory Of The Comet No.13
size: h300×w500×935mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2022
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#21 Memory Of The Comet No.14
size: h790×w380×900mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2023
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#22 Memory Of The Stars
size: h2530×w3400×1230mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
place: JA Lake View Hotel
location: Dubai/ UAE
year: 2020
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#23 If You Make It Tonight
size: 1200×w480×1830mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2021
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#24 Freed Stars
size: h840×w1380×300mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2021
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#25 Memory Of The Comet No.15
size: h960×w745×285mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2023
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#26 A Gaze From The Moon
size: h1300×w400×700mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#27 Daydream No.3
size: h690×w740×630mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#28 To The Promised Land
size: h1490×w2080×550mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#29 Uncounted Stars No.15
size: h1030×w1070×400mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint, stainless steel paint
year: 2021
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#30 When The World Gazes
size: h3230×w2700×1800mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2021
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#31 Good Night No.3
size: h1355×w430×400mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2022
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#32 The Sound Of The Wind Blowing Through The World
size: h1340×w620×700mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2023
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#33 Memory Of The Comet No.16
size: h1145×w410×640mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#34 Memory Of The Comet No.18
size: h1120×w450×940mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#35 River Of Primitive Age
size: h535×w920×340mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2024
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
#36 Memory Of The Comet No.20
size: h785×w490×480mm
material: iron, urethan paint, acrylic paint
year: 2025
Image source: tomohiro.inaba
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