Originally trained as a Manufacturing Jeweller and designer, Damian (or Hippy, as he is known to his friends), has spent the past two and a half decades continuously retraining himself in a wide variety of creative trades.
From an underwater film maker, to a carpenter and plasterer in both Japan and Australia, to having spent the last seven years at sea as a Merchant Sailor in the oil and gas industry, before finally settling down in Hokkaido to develop his own multi discipline studio to bring all of talents together in one place.
Located on the Hanazono side of Mt Niseko Annupuri, with views of the iconic Mt Yotei and surrounding forests and farms, Yoshitomo Design's studio is a multi discipline space with woodworking, metal fabrication and cast concrete facilities.
Yoshitomo (善友) is a very old name written with the two Japanese kanji 善 (good, virtue) & 友 (friend).
Our philosophy is to reuse materials such as reclaimed timber and steel, along with other repurposed items, to bring life back to them in the form of new furniture and household items - letting them be reborn, and live for another lifetime.