Art Specialist: Tomoko Murakami
Tomoko is a San Francisco Bay Area art specialist born and raised in Japan. As a young artist studying Japanese painting in Tokyo, she developed a passion for a variety of Asian art forms. She brings a keen eye for detail, passion and creativity to all her restoration work. Tomoko has spent 20 years developing skills and techniques to restore the beauty and integrity of Asian paintings.
During her 9 years of working under the tutelage of a Japanese-trained master mounter, she has restored prestigious paintings from notable museums in the US such as the Asian Museum of Art in San Francisco, the Los Angeles County Museum, the Honolulu Academy of Art and the Cleveland Museum of Art.
An additional 5 years of working at a conservation studio in south San Francisco further expanded her art conservation skills. Since she established her own studio in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2000, she has done conservation and restoration work for Bonhams & Butterfields, Crocker Museum, art dealers, galleries, and private collectors. Tomoko is a professional artist enthusiastic about exploring the infinite potential of Japanese paper (washi), silk and wood. Many of the skills she uses in her own artwork are also important for her restoration work, most notably the “urauchi” backing used for mounting scrolls, the most integral part of the Hyogu techniques. As an artist, she brings great sensitivity to any piece of art she restores.
Education:
- BFA in Japanese Painting - Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music
- MFA in Printmaking - San Francisco Art Institute
- MA in Transformative Arts - John F. Kennedy University