Gen Ken is the founder and representative of SOMSOC GALLERY, as well as the founder of the creative label XL-Universe.

Since 2012, he has worked at animation studios in Tokyo, serving as a background art director and art director. In 2016, he established the creative label XL-Universe.

Since then, he has been consistently involved in a wide range of art and commercial projects both in Japan and internationally, overseeing processes from concept development to visual direction.

Selected works include design projects for Togo Design Planning in Hokkaido, commercial mascot design in Fukuoka, the main visual for actor and artist Dean Fujioka’s 2019 Asia Tour, and music, visual, and product design for Bandai Namco’s PAC-MAN 40th Anniversary Project.

In 2022, he co-founded SOMSOC GALLERY, a contemporary art gallery and art unit based in Harajuku, Tokyo.

Through SOMSOC, he focuses on presenting and nurturing artists who reflect the spirit of the times, as well as interdisciplinary creative projects that transcend genre boundaries.