Maruyama, Ritsu

I was born in 1998 the second son of a furniture artist. At the age of 14, I came across Knife Magazine and was instantly fascinated by the world of custom knives. I started knifemaking in earnest after graduating from high school and then went to work as an apprentice at a time-honored knife factory in Seki, Japan. I won the Art Knife Award at the 37th JKG Knife Show (Japan’s premier custom knife show) in 2022 and was the Grand Award Winner at the 2024 JKG Knife Contest for the “Far Eastern” Fighter and became a full-time knife maker in the spring of 2023. I first learned about custom knives when I read the Japanese Knife Magazine. For me, it was a very natural progression to start making high quality knives in my own style. In recent years I have been focusing on take-down knives, which is a very interesting theme. I am particularly fond of the Fighter and Bowie knives made by John White and Fred Carter, as well as the more elaborate art knives. I was especially shocked by the knives of Yoshihiko Mutoh. Nowadays, it is easy to gather information through Youtube and blogs, and I deeply respect the many makers and predecessors who generously share their methods with us today. And I will devote myself to catch up with the world's top makers every day.