Kamiyama was born in 1972 in Tokyo. When he was in grade school, the black and white composition and expression of Picasso’s Guernica wielded a tremendous impact on him.
His frequent use of neon colors comes from his own childhood experience of feeling the sensual mood of Kabukicho in Shinjuku in the 1980s, and perceiving it as fluorescent hues. He began to listen to punk and hard core music when he was a grade schooler because of his brother, and found out about skateboarding as he saw it on a record jacket during junior high school. After that, he got engrossed in the activity and started to go out for skating every night.
Friends he met at that time has become a valuable asset to him and his career.
In 1991, Kamiyama began to silk screen print T-shirts as a means of artistic expression.
The activity was then developed into a nationwide brand, FAMOUZ, in 1993. He created all the graphics on the products of the brand which attainedhuge popularity as a part of the “Ura-Harajuku” movement happened in the 1990s in Tokyo.
When the brand marked its 10th anniversary in 2003, Kamiyama put an end to it to focus more on his career as an artist. In the same year, his first solo show “NEWARD” was held at depot in Nakameguro, Tokyo, followed by another solo exhibition “TURD” at FIFTY 24SF GALLERY in California, U.S., and a group exhibition in Los Angeles in 2004. Since then, he has been active globally, holding a group show in Stockholm, Sweden, in 2005 along with some solo shows in Japan. He uses an extensive set of tools to generate his work, from spray paint and brushes to silk screens, optimizing his open mindset. A wall in his atelier is regarded as his source of inspiration because he usually gets ideas by drawing preliminary sketches on the wall.
Kamiyama offers works in collaboration with various companies. UNITED ARROWS, BEAMS, FREAKS STORE, JOURNAL STANDARDS, adidas, bern, STRIDER, lesque skatebords, NIXON, etc. In addition, while he is a member of the outdoor theme that himself goes to nature, He formed an art group “ULTRA HEAVY” with a fashion stylist.
Akira Ishikawa and illustrator/art director Jerry Ukai. He now operates a clothing brand bearing his name.