Artist

Yasuo Kuniyoshi

born Okayama, Japan 1889-died New York City 1953
Media - J0001791_1b.jpg - 89295
Yasuo Kuniyoshi, © Peter A. Juley & Son Collection, Smithsonian American Art Museum J0001791
Born
Okayama, Japan
Died
New York, New York, United States
Active in
  • Ogunquit, Maine, United States
  • Woodstock, New York, United States
  • Los Angeles, California, United States
Biography

Painter and photographer of art. His languid women in repose from the 1930s are significant, but he also painted still lifes and landscapes. He was the first president of Artists Equity and cofounder of the American Artists Congress.

Joan Stahl American Artists in Photographic Portraits from the Peter A. Juley & Son Collection (Washington, D.C. and Mineola, New York: National Museum of American Art and Dover Publications, Inc., 1995)

Works by this artist (8 items)

Beatrice S. Levy, The Beach, n.d., color aquatint, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chicago Society of Etchers, 1935.13.188
The Beach
Daten.d.
color aquatint
Not on view
Beatrice S. Levy, The Derelict, 1914, color aquatint on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chicago Society of Etchers, 1935.13.187
The Derelict
Date1914
color aquatint on paper
Not on view
Beatrice S. Levy, In Orchestra Hall, n.d., drypoint, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chicago Society of Etchers, 1935.13.189
In Orchestra Hall
Daten.d.
drypoint
Not on view
Beatrice S. Levy, Rain in the Hills, 1935, etching on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chicago Society of Etchers, 1935.13.605
Rain in the Hills
Date1935
etching on paper
Not on view

Videos

Exhibitions

Media - 1986.6.50 - SAAM-1986.6.50_3 - 135165
The Artistic Journey of Yasuo Kuniyoshi
April 3, 2015August 30, 2015
Kuniyoshi emigrated to America from Japan as a teenager, rising to prominence in the New York art world during the 1920s to become one of the most esteemed artists in America between the two world wars.
Media - 1986.6.92 - SAAM-1986.6.92_3 - 135150
Modern American Realism: The Sara Roby Foundation Collection
February 28, 2014August 16, 2014
Modern American Realism: The Sara Roby Foundation Collection presents some of the most treasured artworks from the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s permanent collection, including works by Will Barnet, Isabel Bishop, Paul Cadmus, Arthur Dove, Na
Media - 1986.6.100 - SAAM-1986.6.100_2 - 135134
Modern American Realism: Highlights from the Sara Roby Foundation Collection
This exhibition presents some of the most treasured paintings and sculpture from SAAM’s permanent collection, including artworks by Will Barnet, Isabel Bishop, Paul Cadmus, Edward Hopper, Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Jacob Lawrence, George Tooker, among others.

Related Books

KuniyoshiCover_500.jpg
The Artistic Journey of Yasuo Kuniyoshi
Painter, photographer, and printmaker Yasuo Kuniyoshi immigrated to the United States from Japan in 1906 and began a journey through New York City, Europe, and Japan that forged his unique painting style. In The Artistic Journey of Yasuo Kuniyoshi, Tom Wolf charts the artist's life and career through sixty-six of the artist's best paintings and drawings. What emerges is a richly complex portrait of an artist navigating the social, cultural, and political challenges of his adopted homeland.

Related Posts

Kuniyoshi teaching at Art Student League
06/09/2015
This is the second in a series of guest blog posts by the Archives of American Art's Mary Savig and Jason Stieber focused on the life of the artist Yasuo Kuniyoshi.
SAAM Staff
Blog Editor
Splash Image - Yasuo Kuniyoshi as Artist
05/26/2015
This is the first in a series of guest blog posts by the Archives of American Art's Mary Savig and Jason Stieber focused on the life of the artist Yasuo Kuniyoshi. The exhibition Artist Teacher Organizer: Yasuo Kuniyoshi in the Archives of American Art is on view in the Lawrence A. Fleischman Gallery, and is organized in conjunction with The Artistic Journey of Yasuo Kuniyoshi on view at at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
SAAM Staff
Blog Editor
Image Not Available
04/03/2015
Opening today, the exhibition, The Artistic Journey of Yasuo Kuniyoshi, looks at the evolution of the artist's work, and is the first comprehensive exhibition about the artist in the U.S. since 1948. It remains on view through August 30, 2015.