Elizabeth Akamatsu’s work is often inspired by the intersection of nature with technology. She says, “My interest in forms found in nature—combined with an awareness that I am dependent on technology—has inspired the creation of this sculpture. Its spherical form, made of two different hexagon shapes, is combined with orange conduit bent to refer to the petals of a flower. This conduit is often seen on the side of the road—used to protect underground communications wire. ‘Sattie’ represents nature’s natural seed dispersement similar to the way the internet spreads information around the world.”

Akamatsu was born in Yokosuka, Japan, and grew up in California. She earned a BA in painting from California State University, Fullerton, and an MFA from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. She ran the sculpture and metals program at Midwestern State University, Wichita Falls, and headed the sculpture program at Sam Houston State University, Huntsville. Now living and working in Nacogdoches as a full-time artist, her work has been shown extensively throughout the United States and internationally, including Art League Houston; Baytown Sculpture Trail; Center for Contemporary Arts, Abilene; Centro per l'arte Contemporanea Luigi Pecci, Prato, Tuscany, Italy; Redbud Arts Center, Houston, for Texas Sculpture Group; San Angelo Museum of Fine Art; San Benito Cultural Heritage Museum; and Site Gallery, The Silos at Sawyer Yards, Houston. Akamatsu’s works are in the permanent collections of Art in Public Places, Santa Fe, New Mexico; Bonnie Brae Roundabout, Denton; Diamond Hill Community Center, Fort Worth; Eldridge Park, Sugar Land; The Waterway, The Woodlands; and True North featured her dreamy cloud sculpture, “Cumulus,” in 2022.