Access to this collection is generously supported by Arcadia funds. Benji Okubo, born in Riverside, was a renowned painter of Japanese ancestry. A graduate of Otis Art Institute (1929), he was active in Los Angeles from the 20's through the 40's. Incarcerated in 1942 in Heart Mountain for the duration of the war, Okubo continued to paint and to teach art classes to fellow inmates. After the war, Okubo returned to Los Angeles with his wife, Chisato, and supported his family as a successful landscape architect. While Okubo continued to paint, his professional career in art did not resume its pre-war level of activity and recognition. This photograph appears with the article "Winners in Garden Poster Contest: Student at Otis Art Institute Awarded First Prize." Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 1928: A1. Photograph of J. Y. Blaikie presenting Benji Okubo with the first prize award ($75) for his poster designed to promote attendance at the California Botanic Garden. His poster has an illustration of palm trees and plants with the caption "Visit The California Botanic Garden." They are standing on a lawn in front of a stand of palm and other trees at the Otis Art Institute, then located at 2401 Wilshire Blvd. Text from negative sleeve: Otis Art Institute, Show, 1933. Text from newspaper caption: J. Y. Blaikie of the California Botanic Garden presenting first prize to Benji Okubo.
Type
image
Format
b&w nitrate negative
Identifier
uclamss_1429_2683 ark:/21198/zz002dch28
Language
No linguistic content
Subject
Art students--California--Los Angeles Posters Botanical gardens--California--Los Angeles Otis Art Institute Blaikie, J. A. (James Yuill), 1885-1953 California Botanic Garden (Los Angeles, Calif.) Okubo, Benji, 1904 - 1975
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