Hiromi Sato is the sixth-generation successor of Hayashi Butsudanten, a Buddhist altar workshop in Niigata that has been crafting sacred objects since 1830. She comes from a family of certified traditional craftspeople: her father is a master lacquer artisan, and both she and her mother practice maki-e (a traditional technique of sprinkling metallic powder onto wet lacquer to create decorative designs).

Drawing on techniques honed over generations in Buddhist altar making, Sato created Sora COCORO ("Sky Heart"). Using astronomy references, Sato hand-places each constellation and celestial body with sharpened toothpicks. When filled with sake, the cups reveal shimmering, galaxy-like patterns that evoke the vastness of the cosmos.