Toshiko Kitano Groner

Toshiko Kitano Groner’s public emergence as an artist arose by accident. “I was trying to arrange New York exhibitions for my brother, an abstract expressionist painter, who is an established artist in the area where he lives in Japan”. When Toshiko came to New York City by herself from Japan, she promised herself that she would help her brother find places to exhibit his work in New York City. So one day, she asked a curator and long time artist and teacher in her local community, to take a look at her brother’s work in hopes that his work could be shown in a window display on Main Street.

During this time, Toshiko had been painting herself from time to time, strictly for enjoyment, with no thought of exhibiting her own work. As the curator was looking at Toshiko’s brother’s work, she noticed a painting by Toshiko and asked “Whose work is this?” Toshiko said “Oh, It’s mine.” The curator was so impressed with her work, that she encouraged Toshiko to participate in an upcoming art show. Not only did my brother have a place to show his works, but Toshiko also participated in the art show by the artists from Roosevelt Island and Queens, titled “Art Frenzy” and which ultimately became the impetus for Toshiko’s emergence as an exhibiting artist.

When Toshiko came to New York City, new vistas opened to her. She began doing what she liked to do --- doing it seriously. She threw herself passionately into writing songs and performing them at clubs and successfully joined New York City’s music scene. Several years after becoming a singer/songwriter, she was awarded a membership in ASCAP. She met many known and unknown musicians and learned that it was possible to do what she loved and to be recognized for it.

After years of involvement with music as a singer/songwriter, Toshiko started her new creative life as a visual artist in 2001. She began traveling and painting landscapes in the places she visited, such as France, Italy and japan. She began to exhibit her oils, pastels and watercolors, which were at the time painted in a representational style.

She earned a “Certificate of Completion in Fine Arts Painting” from The Art Students League of New York and has been exhibiting her works at various galleries in New York City, other locations and at Art Fairs. For the last 8 years, she has been working on abstraction in oil and mixed media. Her works has been privately collected in New York, New Jersey, California, Texas and other locations.