Akiko Kuwahata graduated with a degree in Living Space Design from Nihon University, College of Art in Japan in 1999 and was a guest student at the Aarhus School of Architecture from 2004 till 2005. She took part in the exhibition MY PRECIOUS at Designmuseum Danmark in 2010, Women Work in Wood at Walford Mill Crafts in England in 2011 and Danish Crafts Collection CC15 in 2011. In 2011, Kuwahata was awarded a grant from Danmarks Nationalbank’s Anniversary Foundation and from Grosserer L.F Foghts Fond, also in 2011, in connection with her participation in the exhibition Women Work in Wood.

Akiko Kuwahata designs and produces high-quality utilitarian objects in wood with a goal of promoting the interest in using well-made wooden products in our everyday lives. She wants to promote the many facets of wood.

Kuwahata mainly works in wood, and when she is creating something new and striving to find the right shape, it is essential for her to explore the potentials of the material. Therefore she has to engage hands-on with the wood. She strives to make all her products irresistible and pleasant to touch. She finds inspiration in old Japanese crafts and Scandinavian design