Due to the small size of this collection the papers are arranged as one series. Series 1: Tokio Ueyama Papers, 1908-circa 1954, bulk 1914-1945 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 1-2, OVs 3-4)
Access Note / Rights:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Summary:
The papers of California-based painter Tokio Ueyama (1889-1954) measure 0.8 linear feet and date from 1908-circa 1954, bulk 1914-1945. This small but rich collection includes biographical material in the form of a family tree, travel documents, identification cards, records related to the World War II Japanese American incarceration camp, Amache Relocation Center, and other materials; correspondence with friends and family, most of which is written in Japanese; writings such as a diary and a notebook from his time as a student at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art; printed materials including news clippings and exhibition announcements; a sketchbook; and photographs of friends and family during a trip to Japan. Also included are printouts of an item-level inventory created by Grace Nozaki, Ueyama's niece, and translations of select entries from the diaries produced by Noriko Okada.
Citation:
Tokio Ueyama papers, 1908-circa 1954, bulk 1914-1945. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Additional Forms:
This collection was digitized in 2024 and is available on the Archives of American Art website.
Funding:
Funding for the processing and digitization of this collection was provided by the Terra Foundation for American Art and the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation.
Use Note:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Biography Note:
Tokio Ueyama (1889-1954) was a painter of still lifes, portraits, and landscapes who was primarily based in Los Angeles and San Francisco, California. Ueyama was born in Wakayama, Japan, in 1889 and immigrated to the United States after high school around 1908. He studied at the San Francisco Institute of Art, University of Southern California (B.A. in 1914), and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia, where he received the Cresson travel scholarship which allowed him to travel to Europe from 1920 to 1922. During his time abroad, Ueyama studied painting in France, Germany, Italy and Spain.
In 1922, Ueyama returned to Los Angeles and founded a painting association with three other Japanese American artists. He exhibited his paintings around Southern California and in Mexico City, where he travelled in 1924 and met and exchanged paintings with Diego Rivera. Sometime around 1928, he met and married a woman named Suye (née Tsukada).
In 1942, Ueyama and wife were forcibly removed from their homes and sent to World War II Japanese American incarceration camps: Santa Anita Assembly Center in California and then the Amache Relocation Center (also referred to as Granada Relocation Center) in Colorado. Ueyama taught art to fellow incarcerees at Amache. In late 1945, the Ueyamas returned to Los Angeles and opened Bunkado, a gift shop selling a variety of Japanese goods that is open to this day. He continued to paint and be active in the art world and remained in Los Angeles until his death in 1954.
Language Note:
English , Japanese .
Provenance:
The Tokio Ueyama papers were donated to the Archives of American Art in 2023 by Grace Nozaki, Ueyama's niece.
Digitization Note:
This site provides access to the papers of Tokio Ueyama in the Archives of American Art that were digitized in 2024, and total 870 images.
Location Note:
Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, 750 9th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20001
