KEIKO TANABE - BLOG | EMAIL

Keiko was born and grew up in Japan. Though she always enjoyed drawing and painting as a child, it was not the focus of her first career. A Master of Arts in international education at the University of California, Los Angeles led to work in international relations on both sides of the Pacific.

Through all these years, Keiko knew there was in her heart the growing desire to someday devote her time to painting. That, fueled by her love of travel and strong interest in other cultures, eventually found its way out in 2003 when a book, authored by her father and illustrated by Keiko, was published in Japan. After learning basic drawing and watercolor painting skills from local art instructors in San Diego, she intensely taught herself to be fluent in watercolor painting, just as one would do to master a foreign language.

Keiko embarked on a professional art career in 2005 and has been painting non-stop ever since. Her paintings have been juried into more than 100 exhibitions and received over 40 awards. Her work has been collected internationally. Keiko was featured in the summer 2009 issue of American Artist/Watercolor magazine. Her paintings are also published in Splash 10 and 11 (2010). In the summer of 2009, she was chosen to participate in the 4th Biennale de l'Aquarelle in Brioude, France as the first exhibitor from the United States. She sells her work directly from her blog and website, and occasionally at art fairs.

In the last 25 years, she has traveled extensively, mainly in European countries, Asia and North America. Her portfolio includes cityscapes, landscapes, seascapes of California, Japan, Italy, France, Spain and other places she loves. Currently she lives in San Diego, California with her son.