Tatsu Aoki

Tatsu Aoki is a Chicago-based artist, educator, avant-garde filmmaker and musician, working in various capacities as artistic creator, community leader and cultural facilitator for over 45 years. Born in Tokyo to a traditional artisan performing family, Aoki started performing at the age of four as a part of his family’s performance crew. His family, known as Toyoakimoto, was a classified as an okiya, which refers to a booking and training agent for Geisha ladies in Tokyo’s designated downtown area. Aoki was also exposed to cinema culture through his biological father, who was a movie producer at Shin Toho Studio; and was experimenting with small gauge films from an early age. By the early 1970s, a teenage Aoki was active in Tokyo’s underground arts movement as a member of an experimental ensemble that combined traditional music and new Western forms, blending music, theater and visual arts. These formative years provided the foundational aesthetics and artistic philosophy that would guide his interdisciplinary and cross-cultural practice spanning traditional Japanese, jazz, experimental, and creative music genres.

In the late ‘70s, Aoki emigrated to Chicago where he pursued studies in experimental filmmaking at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago under Stan Brakhage, P. Adam Sitney, Peter Kubelka and Sharon Couzin; and began his musical career playing double bass in the jazz and creative music scene. He is most noted for being the long-standing bassist for the legendary Fred Anderson, generating eight albums with the late saxophonist. Eventually, Aoki returned to the traditions that he grew up with, integrating the shamisen (Japanese lute) and taiko sounds back into his contemporary music. In 1984, Aoki founded Innocent Eyes and Lenses (IEL) in response to the need for an organization that was dedicated to presenting Asian and Asian American artists and programs that were relevant to the community. In 2004 IEL changed its name to Asian Improv aRts Midwest (AIRMW) and has continued under Aoki’s leadership and vision with core programming in traditional Japanese music and performing arts; alongside contemporary applications of these art forms in the broader arts landscape. In his capacity as Executive Director of AIRMW, Tatsu Aoki has initiated and managed a variety of programs aimed at promoting a deeper understanding of Asian American culture and community through the arts. Notable among these initiatives are the Annual Chicago Asian American Jazz Festival and the Tsukasa Taiko Legacy arts residency project. Through his roles as an artist, educator, and community leader, Aoki continues to address and define critical issues facing the Asian American community—most notably, the need for high-quality artistic programming that authentically reflects the Asian American experience

Sustaining a tireless work ethic, he has released over 100 recording projects and dozens of experimental films in the last 45 years. He has been recognized for both his professional endeavors and community contributions: In 2001 Aoki was named as one of the "Chicagoans of the year" by the Chicago Tribune for his cross-cultural music; and is a recipient of the Milestone Award from The Asian American Institute awarded Aoki for his contribution to Chicago-area arts in 2007;  the Jazz Heroes’ Award by the National Jazz Journalist Association in 2015; the Illinois Secretary of State Community Service Award from the Asian American Coalition of Chicago in 2019; and a United States Artist Fellowship in 2020 for his work as a traditional / ethnic folk music artist and composer; among others. Aoki is also a recipient of the Commendation for Promotion of Japanese Culture by the Foreign Ministry of Japan. In 2016, his The MIYUMI Project ensemble was the official musical presenter for the groundbreaking and unveiling of Yoko Ono's "SKYLANDING" installation in Chicago's own Jackson Park. This resulted in the group recording the "SKYLANDING" album produced by Yoko Ono, which was performed as a special presentation at the Museum of Contemporary Art in 2025 as part of Ono's retrospective (Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind) at the MCA. Aoki currently holds the position of Adjunct Full Professor in the Department of Film, Video, New Media and Animation at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, continuing to teach courses dedicated to analogue filmmaking processes. In 2024, four of Aoki’s films were selected to be preserved by the Chicago Film Society through the Avant Garde Masters Grant from the National Film Preservation Foundation and the Film Foundation; and in 2026 screened a solo program of his early film works at the Film Studies Center at the University of Chicago.