Kunio Makino

Kunio Makino (27 May 1925 (Taisho 14) – 1 October 1986 (Showa 61)) was a Japanese painter, born in Hatagaya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo.

Early life and education Kunio Makino was born in Hatagaya, Shibuya, Tokyo in 1925 and spent his childhood in Odawara. His parents died early in his life, and he was raised by his sisters who took over parental responsibilities.

His cousin, , a fantasy novelist, advised him to pursue education at Dai-ichi High School and the University of Tokyo. However, Makino chose an artistic path, first studying at the Kawabata Art Academy before advancing to oil painting studies at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. In 1945, his education was interrupted when he was drafted into military service, ending the war stationed in Miyakonojō, Kyushu. After the war, he returned to complete his studies, graduating in 1948.

Career and recognition Makino established himself as a painter through consistent exhibition activity. He was selected for the Yasui Prize Newcomer Exhibition in both 1962 and 1965, and held his first private oil-painting exhibition in 1959, followed by nine more solo shows through 1984. Posthumously, his reserved exhibition was held at Bungei-shunju Gallery in 1988, showcasing his final works. The following year saw publication of his painting collection “PEOPLE”, which led to a major traveling exhibition sponsored by The Asahi Shimbun newspaper from 1990 to 1991. A retrospective exhibition at the Nerima Art Museum in 2013 drew significant attention to his oeuvre. This belated appreciation highlighted Makino's lifelong dedication to his craft - a sixty-one-year artistic journey deeply influenced by his profound admiration for Dutch painter Rembrandt. In recent years, art critics and collectors have increasingly celebrated Makino's high-density works, which demonstrate his complete command of traditional techniques and his unique vision of realism.

Personal life and family background Makino came from a distinguished samurai lineage – the Makino family had served the Odawara clan during the Edo period. His great-grandfather, Sakubei Hidekiyo Makino, was the twelfth master of Karaboko-ryu bar-jutsu for the Odawara clan. He was so devoted to Rembrandt that he wrote a letter to Rembrandt when he was in his twenties and a reply to a scolding from Rembrandt of his own composition. After the war, he returned to Tokyo Art School and commuted to Ueno from his home in Odawara, where he had been evacuated to. After graduation, he moved to "McCall's School of Dressmaking", which his older sisters had started in front of Chigasaki Station, where he spent his early thirties. In Chigasaki, he taught fashion history, color studies, and design to students by making flyers, posters, and signboards for recruiting students, and painted pictures in a room of his house.

Notable works Makino's works have gone up for sale at public auction 176 times, mostly in the painting category. Notable works include:

Armoured Youth (1972) Sea Battle (1975) Imphal (1980) Self-portrait in Armour (1986) Unfinished pagoda (1975-)