He doesn’t construct buildings, yet he’s an architect. He writes, sings, photographs, and paints. Kyohei Sakaguchi has continued creating in all these forms—effortlessly, like breathing. This Weeks features one of his pastel paintings.

Living in Kumamoto Prefecture, Sakaguchi began growing vegetables on a plot he rented in a community garden in 2020. On his way to the garden and while tending his plot, he captures the scenery with his smartphone. He uses these photos as references for his pastel artwork.

This pastel painting, titled En Route to Kumamoto Port at Dawn, was created on March 22, 2024. According to Sakaguchi, it depicts “the crisp, cool morning sky before heading out to fish.” Clouds stretch across the dawn sky—those touched by light are painted in white and pale orange, while those in shadow are a soft gray. From a distance, the artwork may resemble a photograph, but it’s actually created using pastel—a chalk-like medium that Sakaguchi dabs and layers onto white paper, then blends with his fingers. To capture this warm, handcrafted texture, the cover material was chosen to mimic the look and feel of canvas.

Sakaguchi explains that the color of the clouds reflects not only the real scenery he observed, but also his own inner state—making the colors feel even more vivid.

The book uses thin and light yet durable Tomoe River paper. It's characterized by its ability to hold ink well and provide a smooth writing experience. The Weeks book has space for writing in plans or journal entries, and it also has 71 pages of grid paper memo pages in the back (75 pages in the English edition). The back of the book contains bonus pages, including Memories 2026 and 12 Switches to Help You Focus.

English Language type

January Start

188 H x 94 W x 10 mm thickness/ H: 7.4" x W: 3.7" x T: 0.4"

weighs approx 134 g