Sao Tanaka

Sao Tanaka was born in Tokyo and based in New York, She earned her BFA in Japanese
Painting from Tama Art University in 2014, an MA in Sociology from Hitotsubashi University in
2017, and studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York in 2021. Selected solo exhibitions
include Tsutaya Gallery (Tokyo, 2025) and Mizuma & Kips Gallery (New York, 2022). Her work
has been featured in group exhibitions at The Drawing Center (New York, 2025), Tama Art
University Museum (2021), and the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art (2018). She is
a recipient of the 2024–2025 Pola Art Foundation Fellowships and Research Grants, and has
participated in residency programs at the NARS Foundation (2024) and the Vermont Studio
Center (2025).
CV
2021 MPS, digital photography, School of Visual Arts, New York, USA (Transfer from MFA studio fine art)
2017 MA Sociology, Graduate school of Social Sciences, Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo, Japan
2014 BFA Painting, Department of Painting Japanese Painting course, Tama Art University, Tokyo, Japan
AWARD
2024-2025 Pola Art Fundation Fellowships and Research Grants
2019 Hiraizumi curator Jury Prize, SHIBUYA ART AWARDS 2019
2018 Winning Selection Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art
“Open Call for Art Project Ideas” (Hosted by Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art)
2005 Grand Prize The 5th 21 Century Asia Design Competition
(Hosted by Kyoto University of Art)
ARTIST IN RESIDENCY
2025 Vermont Studio Center residency, Vermont, USA
2024 The New York Residency & Studio (NARS) Foundation
Season III&IV 2024, New York, USA
2023 Sakia Art Residency, Awaji island Hyogo, Japan
SOLO EXHIBITION
2025 “Imitation of Nature” Tsutaya Galley, Tokyo, Japan
2022 “MELD GOLD” Mizuma& Kips Gallery, New York, USA
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITION
2025 “Beyond the Archetype” Goca Gallery, New York, USA
2025 “Welcome to the Multiscape” The Drawing Center, New York, USA
2025 “City Gazes: Artistic Perspectives on Place” Kyungsung
University Art Exhibition Hall, Busan, South Korea
2025 “City Gazes: Artistic Perspectives on Place” A Space Gallery,
New York, USA
2025 “Collective Marks and Strokes of Imagination” The BLANC, New York
2024 “Maybe - map (ping) dissonance”, Season IV International
Residency Exhibition, NARS Foundation, New York, USA
2024 “Island Luminaria 2” Flux Factory, Governors Island, New York, USA
2024 “Allure of the Land” Season III 2024 International Residency
Exhibition, NARS Foundation, New York,USA