Kenji Aoki’s creative endeavor started from studying drawings with his uncle, craft designer Shigesuke Yoshitake, later enrolling at Kuwasawa Design School and learning the Bauhaus design philosophy, the “NON OBJECTIVE WORLD”  conceived by Kazmir Malevich. Driven by the concept of “Zero,” art such as Zen and spiritual philosophy in the Orient called “no object,” Kenji began to seek “non-object” from tangible things through photography. Since 1991, Kenji has been active as a still-life photographer, and his delicate and robust style with a unique color sense and minimalism was highly regarded in the industry. In 2008, Kenji started working with NY based photographer agent Michel Ash and moved to New York City in 2010. Since then, he has photographed for renowned publications such as “New York Times Magazine” and “TIME.” and awarded  “THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE PHOTOGRAPHS” edited by Kathy Ryan and  “AMERICAN PHOTOGRAPHY.” Books include: 2019 – SPACE. 1997-2017 limited edition 750 Published by KEHRER. Germany. 2011 – The New York Times Magazine Photographs – edited by Kathy Ryan. 2003 – Published a photography book “AGITO” by BALLS Corporation. Awards include:  2013 – Communication Arts – Award of Excellence – Editorial. 2012 – Art Directors Club – 91st Annual Awards – Silver Award. Editorial 2012 – Art Directors Club – 91st Annual Awards – Silver Award. 2008 – Communication Arts – Award of Excellence – 49th Annual Photography Exhibition -Editorial Series. 2008 – Communication Arts – Award of Excellence – 49th Annual Photography Exhibition.