Ayumi Takahashi’s life was infused with art and travel. Born in China, raised in Japan, and studying art in the United States, she currently shares her time between New York and Tokyo, working in the field of painting, drawing, digital, and textile design.
“I was born in China and lived there until I was about 12 and I moved to Japan and then I came to America after high school,” explained the artist in an interview with Duplex Gallery. “I was in San Francisco first and just trying to figure out what I wanted to do. Because both my parents are artists, and I was a rebellious kid, so I’m kind of not trying to be an artist.”
“But I think it’s just in your blood and it just start to come out. So I got in Art Center College of Design in California, majored in Illustration Design. When I was at the Art Center, I also went to London for study abroad for half a year for graphic design and I did a lot of editorial illustration for the New York Times, and other magazines.”
Her career skyrocketed pretty quickly soon after, with clients that include the Washington Post, NPR, Buzzfeed, Paramount Pictures, Coca Cola, Uber, Zappos, and others.
“I want to show the younger generation the good side of life,” she stressed. “I feel like that’s part of my duty as an artist. Not to sound very formal but that’s really my honest feeling. We have too many artists now, anybody can be one and it’s really easy to call yourself an artist. But you have to remember why you want to make art. I am not a self-expressive artist. Everything about me and my life. I’m not into that. But I do want to promote a positive message behind everything and for myself as a person too.”
Take a look at some of her uplifting illustrations in the gallery below.
