SCRIMSHAW ARTIST

View all Yoko Gaydos scrimshaw pieces

Yoko Gaydos was born in Hiroshima, Japan. Her artistic talents were first discovered in 5th grade when she was selected as illustrator for the school’s collection of Haiku poetry. Her talent with watercolors led to her selection as the designer of posters for high school functions. After mastering the traditional Japanese brushwork (sumi-e), her father, a nautical artist, encouraged her to study Western art, leading to her enrollment at the University of Hawaii. After graduating with a BA in Art, she fell in love with scrimshaw, where she could marry her twin passions for fine detail and oil color. Her scrimshaw received immediate acclaim, and she was ranked by Whalebone magazine as one of the 27 most prized scrimshanders in the country. She was one of four featured artists in the distinguished female artist exhibition at the Mystic Seaport Gallery in November 1995, in which all her paintings sold. She was also awarded a Certificate of Excellence in the 1997 Mystic International, for her scrimshaw depiction of ‘Kuro Fune’, the Black Ships of Admiral Perry, opening Japan.