［ 12・Final Installment ］
The interchangeable ears are an intriguing feature, and Mr. Oda says he enjoys displaying the piece in his bedroom. (Photo: Noritsugu Oda)
This work is by the sculptor Tomio Miki, who devoted his short life of just forty years to creating sculptures of ears. Like the piece I mentioned in an earlier article, it came from the estate of the architect Mayumi Miyawaki, and it is one that I treasure as well. I do not know how Mr. Miyawaki acquired it, but an acquaintance of mine who imports and sells Italian products saw it and remarked, “This is quite a valuable piece.” I imagine it was produced in very limited numbers to commemorate a particular occasion. It measures about 18 cm square. Larger versions of Miki’s ear sculptures, some as tall as a person, are held in the collections of national art museums and other institutions.
An object is merely an object if its history is unknown. By tracing its origins and researching its provenance, it gains authenticity and becomes something of real value. Knowledge and an appreciation of beauty are cultivated by exposing oneself to truly outstanding things. My own sensibility has been refined through that accumulation of experience, enabling me to recognize what is genuinely good and choose to preserve it for future generations. I believe it is important to have things that you cherish—things that make you feel their beauty or bring back memories each time you see them. Keep close to you the things that enrich your sensibility, and distance yourself from those that unsettle it. Spending time in a beautiful space while listening to pleasant music is pure happiness. Moments like that are what make life worth living.
After moving to Sapporo, I finally stopped feeling that constant pressure of “I have to do this, and I have to do that.” Honestly, I had not felt like this since I was a student. I used to have magazine serials with deadlines every few days, but now I write just one. I work in the mornings and spend the afternoons walking. From the corner of the Hokkaido University Botanical Gardens, I walk via Sapporo Station, Odori, Susukino and Nakajima Park before returning home—a route of about 9,000 steps a day. Making this a daily habit has helped me lose seven kilograms. For so much of my life, I felt as though I was constantly being pursued by work, so I often find myself thinking, “I finally have time like this.” At the final stage of my life, I have been fortunate enough to find such a rewarding environment, and I am deeply grateful to the many people who have supported me. The person I am today is thanks to Takashimaya, Tokai University and the media. None of those opportunities came through a conventional path—they were all the result of fortunate circumstances, almost like slipping in through the back door. (Laughs) But my own skills made those opportunities possible.
(Interviewed on 19 June 2026)
After the Interview
Hearing that Mr. Oda is now enjoying a calm and unhurried life in Sapporo made me genuinely happy. For fourteen years, I was responsible for part of Mr. Oda’s lectures at Tokai University. At that time, he was teaching an astonishing seventeen classes a week. On top of that, he was writing magazine serials, giving lectures, and working with furniture manufacturers in Asahikawa on product development and advertising. He always seemed incredibly busy. He even gave up one of his greatest pleasures—mountain stream fishing—and I often wondered when he ever slept. I still remember him saying, “After dinner, I take a short nap, then get up in the middle of the night to write.” Now, however, he spends his afternoons walking through the city, watching the people passing by. There is something wonderfully fitting about that. At the age of seventy-nine, he dramatically transformed the way he lives. I cannot help wondering whether the reason his major decisions have always led him in the right direction is, after all, thanks to divine providence.
— Copywriter, Kano Nishikawa
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Life at Oda’s Residence
