Edi Matsumoto was born and raised in Japan. Her maternal great-grandfather was a traditional Japanese artist who painted birds, flowers, and snow-capped mountains using an ink brush technique. She grew up in an environment where art was valued. Her interest in art was cultivated at an early age.
Matsumoto holds a bachelor's degree in anthropology from Tsukuba University in Japan. After traveling around Southeast Asia exploring cultures and volunteering at the Mother Theresa’s Home for the Dying Destitutes in Calcutta, India, she came to the U.S. She earned a Master's degree in Nursing, and she has been working in the healthcare field for over 25 years.
Encouraged by her family, Matsumoto began taking art classes at a community college. In 2018, she earned her second Master's degree in Fine Art from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.
Her most recent body of work "Goddesses and Warriors" features women from diverse backgrounds such as the U.S., Japan, South Pacific, Indonesia. They are the reminders of our inner goodness, beauty, strength, wisdom, and life force. Her solo show by the same name was dedicated to all women (and the men who support them).
Matsumoto’s work has won numerous awards and has been shown at galleries and museums locally, nationally and internationally including the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, the Triton Museum of Arts in Santa Clara, and Pacific Grove Art Center among others.
* This statement has been provided directly by the artist in association to their 15th International ARC Salon entries. This content has not been edited for typos or grammatical errors and has not been vetted for accuracy.
