Yu Araki received a B.F.A. in Sculpture from Washington University in St. Louis and an M.A. in Film and New Media Studies from Tokyo University of the Arts. After a frustrating career as an English/Japanese interpreter, he began creating works focusing on the idea of mistranslation.

Taking the fact that the English term “casting” can be used in both a theatrical, cinematic, and sculptural sense, Araki has been exploring the disparities that arise in the process of copying from an original by means of reproduction, reenactment, and reanimation. In 2023, he won the Special Prize in the Yebisu International Festival for Art & Alternative Visions 2023 Commission Project for Unmasked (Bootleg). In the same year, this work was exhibited again in the group exhibition “Memory Palace in Ruins” at the Taiwan Contemporary Culture Lab (C-LAB) in Taipei.