Welcome to the World of HELMZ

HELMZ is a character series of oil-painted helmeted robots, each adorned with headwear from around the world.

Born from the imagination of Helmzman, these characters represent a fusion of childhood and adulthood passions.

HELMZ is a journey back to the nostalgic joy and excitement of youth—creativity, fantasy, robots, and adventure—combined with the cultural challenges we have faced and continue to face.

"I wanted to spend the remainder of my life working on something that excites me while being meaningful and significant.

The HELMZ project enables me to create art that enlivens me and express the ideas I hold dear.

I'm not merely painting characters; I'm painting a story—a narrative of my own life."

Helmzman Biography

Me and Diversity

I was born to an English father and a Japanese mother in 1980.

Growing up in both countries, I eventually settled in Japan and attended an international school until high school graduation. Those experiences shaped the foundational concept of my HELMZ project.

Back in the ’80s, when international marriages were still rare, I was often seen as a foreigner wherever I went. School was my refuge, a place where I no longer stood out as the black sheep in the crowd.

This small school, with about 500 students from kindergarten through high school, felt like a big family of outsiders. Students and teachers from various countries, cultures, and religions coexisted harmoniously. Churchgoers and mosque-goers sat together for lunch, discussing their favorite bands. Students from warring nations became science partners due to a shared love of physics. No one found this strange.

Why doesn’t this kind of harmony work on a global scale? This question has lingered with me since childhood.

In HELMZ, there are no villains; heroism and villainy are two sides of the same coin. From one perspective, you could be the hero; from another, the villain. In a world where everyone seeks to protect their identities and communities—be it family, beliefs, businesses, or nations—conflicts arise. But if you put yourself in their shoes, can you blame them?

HELMZ is about embracing diversity. Every generation, country, culture, religion, and occupation has heroes. My mission is to paint them all.

Me and Art

From a young age, I loved art. I created my own characters and toys. Teachers praised my talent and advised my parents to nurture my artistic development. More than anything, I made friends through creativity.

Once people noticed my art, my label changed from “the foreign kid” to “the artistic kid”—an identity built on talent rather than origins—and I loved it. By the age of four, I decided I wanted to be an artist.

My childhood revolved around art inspired by fantasy and robots. I drew, painted, made comics, sculpted, and explored digital art on early computers. As I matured, my style shifted toward realism to enhance the identity I cherished.

After graduating, I studied art in England and specialized in oil painting in Japan, learning from the old masters.

I began my career with pet portraits and teaching art. I founded an artist group, hosted exhibitions, and was interviewed by magazines and radio. I was featured in a national newspaper, shortlisted in competitions, and won awards.

Yet, art never paid the bills.

So I took on various roles—English teacher, translator, designer, illustrator, coder, programmer, marketer, data analyst, content creator, game planner, and project manager—eventually becoming a chief product officer at a gaming company.

Then, burnout hit. Soon after, my father passed away.

This experience taught me the impermanence of life and forced introspection.

Determined to make my remaining years count, I revisited my childhood—a time when passion and excitement drove my creativity. I remembered my love for fantasy, robots, and the interest I had in cultural diversity. I realized how I spent most of my life trying to become a painter when painting was just one of my many passions. I love to plan, create characters, tell stories, invent games, sculpt, design, and program.

This reflection gave birth to the HELMZ project.

The HELMZ project allows me to do it all. I embraced the name Helmzman as a reminder—I am now at the helm of my own ship, steering in my chosen direction.

HELMZ isn’t just about painting helmeted characters; it’s about transforming childhood dreams into reality using the skills acquired over adulthood. It’s about staying true to my passions and living life without regrets.

Join me in this new chapter as I turn childhood fantasies into heartfelt realities.