Oral history interview with George Tsutakawa
odd: label: General
content: Originally recorded on 7 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 14 digital wav files. Duration is 6 hr., 43 min.
name: label: Interviewee
content: Tsutakawa, George
label: Interviewer
content: Kingsbury, Martha, 1941-
label: Names
content: Archipenko, Alexander, 1887-1964
topic: label: Occupation
content: Educators -- Washington (State) -- Seattle
label: Occupation
content: Sculptors -- Washington (State) -- Seattle
label: Topic
content: Asian American art
label: Topic
content: Asian American artists
label: Topic
content: Japanese American art
label: Topic
content: Japanese American artists
label: Topic
content: Asian American sculptors
label: Topic
content: Asian American painters
label: Topic
content: Asian American educators
label: Topic
content: Fountains -- Washington (State) -- Seattle
acqinfo: label: Provenance
content: This interview is part of the Archives' Northwest Oral History Project, begun in 1982 to document the Northwest artistic community through interviews with painters, sculptors, craftsmen, educators, curators, and others, in Oregon, Washington and Montana.
creator: label: Interviewee
content: Tsutakawa, George
label: Interviewer
content: Kingsbury, Martha, 1941-
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: George Tsutakawa (1910-1997) was a Japanese American painter and sculptor based in Seattle, Washington. Born in Seattle in 1910, he moved with his mother to Fukuyama, Japan, at the age of seven. While there, he took an interest in art, and was influenced by traditional Japanese practices. Returning to Seattle at age 16, he continued his education in art at the University of Washington. His interest in sculpture led to numerous commissions for fountians worldwide, a form that combined his experiences in both the Pacific Northwest and Japan. During his career, Tsutakawa designed, built, and installed over 70 fountains.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 119 Pages (Transcript)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 1983 September 8-19
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Archives of American Art
identifier: label: Identifier
content: AAA.tsutak83
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
label: Type
content: Pages
label: Type
content: Sound recordings
label: Type
content: Interviews
altformavail: label: Existence and Location of Copies
content: Transcript available on line.
genre_format: label: Genre/Form
content: Sound recordings
label: Genre/Form
content: Interviews
originalsloc: label: Existence and Location of Originals
content: Transcript also available at the University of Washington, Manuscripts Collection, and at the Oregon Historical Society.
scopecontent: label: Scope and Contents
content: An interview of George Tsutakawa conducted 1983 September 8-19, by Martha Kingsbury, for the Archives of American Art's Northwest Oral History Project, in Seattle, Washington.
label: Scope and Contents
content: Tsutakawa speaks of his youth in Japan and Seattle, and the importance of a bicultural family and education on his development; the influence of European art magazines and American movies in Japan; family members who were influential; his early sculpture; Alexander Archipenko; the Asian art community in Seattle; teaching at the University of Washington School of Architecture; Bauhaus philosophy; the Seattle Public Library fountain; his World War II experiences; art and World's Fairs; fountains he has sculpted and his feelings about them; and permanency in art.