An interview with contemporary artist and educator Shima Iuchi, exploring the “cultural and linguistic gaps” she encountered while studying abroad, her experiences with ESL for international students and language education for native speakers, her time at a university in Canada and a graduate school in New York, and the ways in which English shapes her artistic practice.
井内 詩麻 Shima Iuchi
Shima Iuchi, originally from Kyoto and now residing in New York State, is a contemporary artist and art educator. She holds a master’s degree from the School of Visual Arts and works with a wide range of age groups—from young children to seniors—teaching ways to engage with art, fostering empathy, and promoting enjoyment in artistic experiences.
After graduating from the Art Produce Department at Seian University of Art and Design, she initially worked at a trading company. Seeking broader perspectives and further artistic education, she moved to Canada in 1997. Following a language study program in British Columbia, she earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts at Thompson Rivers University’s School of Visual Arts. After graduation, she worked for two years as a university research assistant while continuing her artistic practice, presenting her largest installation across North America. She has held solo exhibitions and participated in shows across North America, Asia, and Europe, receiving multiple awards for her work.
She later worked as a technical assistant at the Banff Centre in Alberta and then joined the faculty at the University of Lethbridge and Thompson Rivers University, formally beginning her career as an art educator.
She is currently married and a mother of two, continuing her art education and creative practice alongside parenting.
Shima Iuchi, a contemporary artist and art educator from Kyoto, studied art production in Canada and later attended graduate school in New York City. After graduation, she has continued to live and work in New York, balancing her work as both a practicing artist and an educator.
Shima first encountered English in middle school. Prior to that, she attended English classes as a child, but mainly for fun rather than serious study, and mostly because her parents enrolled her. These classes involved songs, simple vocabulary games, and playful activities rather than formal learning. She vividly recalls observing her teachers, particularly a Japanese teacher married to an American, whose personality and openness left a strong impression on her.
In middle and high school, Shima’s interest in English was shaped more by her teachers than by the subject itself. Young, engaging teachers encouraged her participation, and the feedback they provided—often with illustrations and personalized comments—made the learning experience enjoyable.
From a young age, Shima admired North America for its perceived freedom of expression and self-expression opportunities. Although she recognized these impressions might be stereotypical, she wanted to experience it firsthand. During high school, she focused on exam-oriented English, but her awareness shifted in university when she encountered foreign teachers and traveled to the U.S. for a study trip. This live exposure revealed the limitations of purely academic English and highlighted the importance of speaking and listening skills.
After university, Shima worked for four years to save money, continuing informal English practice through conversation classes and interactions with English speakers in Kyoto. However, she found that classroom practice alone was insufficient since everyday life remained in Japanese. She realized that immersion—living in an English-speaking environment 24/7—would accelerate her learning, leading her to finally pursue study abroad.
Upon arriving in Canada, Shima enrolled in ESL (English as a Second Language) classes and consciously avoided speaking Japanese to maximize exposure. She noticed significant differences in teacher engagement and peer motivation between general ESL classes and TOEFL preparation courses. Observing more committed students in TOEFL classes motivated her to retake entrance tests and join the TOEFL class, where she saw rapid improvement.
Key learning points included:
– Linking grammar, vocabulary, and idioms to practical use in writing and speaking.
– Receiving immediate, personalized feedback from attentive teachers.
– Feeling motivated by a structured goal: achieving TOEFL scores sufficient for university admission.
After raising her TOEFL score, Shima entered a Canadian university and initially combined her studies with ESL. Although she was told she could move directly into regular classes after finishing the top ESL level, she felt that doing so would be overwhelming. Instead, she chose to take a College Preparation English course designed for Canadian students who were not confident in their own language arts. This proved to be the perfect bridge between ESL and first-year literature classes.
She recalls that it was intimidating to be the only non-native speaker in a room full of Canadians, but the experience gave her a realistic sense of the pace and style of native students. Unlike ESL learners who rarely complained, her Canadian classmates openly resisted heavy reading assignments, which showed her that even native speakers struggled with English literacy. That realization helped her feel less isolated in her challenges.
Once she had adjusted, Shima began to take a very proactive role in shaping her own education. She studied the university calendar in detail, asked approachable professors about their courses, and sought out information from other students who had already taken the classes she was considering. Even when her English was still halting, she found that her determination to learn drew people to help her. Looking back, she believes she gave off an aura of urgency that made others think, “We have to help her.”
By gathering information and making careful choices, she avoided unnecessary repetition and was able to structure a curriculum that matched her strengths and weaknesses. This process of self-directed planning gave her a sense of control and created a learning environment where she could succeed.
As her studies progressed, Shima began to develop a clearer vision of herself as an artist. At first she had often remained silent out of insecurity about her English, but her growing artistic ambitions pushed her to speak, even if imperfectly. She remembers thinking, “I can’t stay silent anymore.” Advice from her former host family also made a difference: they told her to slow down her speech so that people could follow her more easily.
Over time, her professors and peers began to understand her even through her accent, sometimes stepping in to interpret her words for others. Rather than seeing these moments as discouraging, she chose to treat them as signs of acceptance and progress. Living in an immigrant-rich society also reassured her that Canadians were used to diverse English styles, which helped her let go of the fear of not being understood.
During her time in Canada, Shima also discovered the joy of teaching. She had always been drawn to the idea, and in Banff she taught a community art class in English. Despite her strong accent, her students understood her and responded warmly. She realized that if genuine feeling is behind the words, communication becomes possible even when the language is imperfect.
That class became one of her most treasured memories, showing her that her artistic skills and her developing teaching philosophy could merge successfully. It strengthened her motivation to pursue teaching as a meaningful part of her career.
When she later moved to the United States for graduate school, Shima experienced a sharp contrast. Her classmates were highly academic, and some had little experience interacting with foreigners. For the first time in years, she found that her English often did not get through. After feeling relatively successful in Canada, the experience was a heavy blow.
To adapt, she returned to her host family’s old advice and made a conscious effort to speak more slowly. She also supported her presentations with written notes and visual aids to ensure her ideas were conveyed. Although it was a painful adjustment, she came to see it as a sign that she was no longer treated as a “guest” but as an equal participant in an academic community.
Among her most significant achievements was Illuminations of Kamloops, a large-scale installation that combined her Japanese background with research and community engagement in Canada. She considers it the most representative of her work and a turning point in her artistic development.
Reflecting on her bilingual and bicultural experiences, Shima acknowledges that they profoundly shape her art. The differences in culture, language, and lived experience are not obstacles but rather the very sources of her creative energy.
