"Art for Life" is Tomiko Takeda's journey, not her destination. After twenty-five plus years of giving to the non-profit world, it was time for Timoko to let go and place her trust in a new direction. About the mask: Tomiko explains, "The mask represents the complexities within us; we are filled with contrasts and opposites. Night and day, cool and warm, open and closed, simple and busy. As beings, we're a complex composite of good and bad, hope and despair, love and hate. It is part of our nature. Opposites and contrasts are not necessarily negative. They compliment and balance our lives, e.g. 'we will know joy when we have experienced pain.'"