In 1993, brothers Nobumichi and Masamichi Tosa reopened their father’s failed company, Maywa Denki, as an “art unit.” They acted as “parallel-world electricians” and built a following as artists and musicians using extraordinary instruments of their own design. In 2001, when his brother retired, Nobumichi became president and took the operation to new heights, creating a series of Nonsense Machines called Naki that “takes fish as its motif and ‘Who am I? (search for self)’ as it’s theme.” Instruments like the Eidelweiss series and toys like Knockman helped define Maywa Denki’s uncategorizable appeal.
