Yuko Nii (born 1942) is an artist and philanthropist. She studied (1961–63) English and American Literature at Aoyama Gakuin University, Tokyo, Japan. In 1963 she transferred to Macalaster College, St. Paul, Minnesota as a scholarship student, and earned her BFA. in 1965. From 1966 she attended Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, New York, as a fellowship student and earned her MFA in painting in 1969. Her creative activities include painting, printmaking, graphic design, stage set, costume and fashion design. She distinguished herself also as a writer in journalism, poetry, fiction, essays and philosophy, publishing a book with Terrance Lindall, entitled BLUE EYED SATORI, and writing for newspapers and magazines.
Nii's work[1] has been shown at numerous museums, art galleries and universities in the U.S.A. and Japan, including one person shows at The Berkshire Museum, Massachusetts, Fairleigh Dickinson University, NJ, International Monetary Fund Washington DC; Ginza Kaiga-kan, Tokyo; and including many group shows in such venues as, the Brooklyn Museum, New York, The Bronx Museum, New York, the Hudson River Museum, New York, the Parish Museum, Southhampton, New York, The World Trade Center, New York, Lincoln Center, New York, and The United Nations General Assembly Building, New York.
Nii's works are in public and private collections including those of the Cincinnati Art Museum, The Berkshire Museum, The Alternative Museum, Equitable Assurance Collection, JP Morgan Chase Bank Collection, Bankers Trust, Security Pacific Bank, N.L. Industries, The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, Bony Corp., Nihon Davis Standard Corp., and many outstanding public and private collections.
Nii's works are included in a number of publications, including Looking at Landscapes (Criterion Press) and she has been reviewed often in publications including the New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, and many newspapers. She has appeared on several television and radio programs here and in Japan.
Nii was an advisory panelist for the 1978 CAPS Grants under the Cultural Council Foundation of New York City and JPMorgan Chase 2007 Regrant Program. And she was twice (in 1981 and 1983) an artist in residence at Yaddo in Saratoga Springs, New York.
Nii’s “Friends and Mentors” belong to an established circle of the international art world, and include Jack Lenor Larsen (Textile Designer), Isamu Noguchi (Sculptor), Toshiko Takaezu (Ceramist), Ansei Uchima (Print Maker and Painter), Toshiko Uchima ( Collagist and Box Assemblage Artist), Esteban Vicente (Painter and Collagist), Siah Armajani (Conceptual Artist), Hillary Harris (Film Maker), Max Newhouse (New Media Artist), Kenneth Noland (Painter), Max Roach (Jazz Percussionist), Leon Kirchner (Composer) and many more.
In 1996, Nii founded the not for profit Williamsburg Art & Historical Center (WAH Center) in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York which is housed in the Kings County Savings Bank Building, which is in the National Register of Historic Places and a New York City Landmark.
In 1998, Howard Golden, then Brooklyn Borough President named Nii Brooklyn’s “Women of the Year” for her “unparalleled devotion to her art and commitment to the artist community of Williamsburg/Greenpoint.” And he said that the WAH Center’s activities have resulted in “tremendous cultural & economic activity throughout the northern Brooklyn area, “ an area recently designated as an “historic district” and “economic development zone.”
In 2001, Governor George Pataki named Nii one of New York State's "women of the year"[2] and called her a “Woman of Excellence with Vision and Courage.” He also congratulated Nii on turning the historic Kings County Savings Bank into a multipurpose art center that serves the needs of artists and art aficionados of diverse backgrounds.
In 2003, Borough President Marty Markowitz gave Nii the Betty Smith Arts Award[3] for her outstanding achievements and contributions to the arts in Brooklyn. And also City Councilwoman Tracy Boylan] gave her the Outstanding Citizen award.
In 2008, Borough President Marty Markowitz named Nii as one of the six Asians who provide dynamic leadership and demonstrate outstanding commitment to the betterment of our community and the Borough of Brooklyn, and gave her the Asian Cultural Award along with Carol Enseki, President of the Brooklyn Children's Museum.
On July 31, 2008, the official Brooklyn Historian, John Manbeck, said in an article in the Brooklyn Eagle: "Art in Williamsburg has made great strides. In fact, all Williamsburg has progressed, undoubtedly because of its attraction to artists. Much of the credit must be placed on the doorstep of the director of the Williamsburg Art & Historical Center, Yuko Nii. The center operates out of the former Kings County Savings Bank Building (1867) and celebrated an infusion of a $500,000 capital funding grant from the city."[1]
I have known her for 20 years as a fine artist, friend & a very lively, active, and committed person who gets things going and gets them done. Esteban Vicente
During 20 years of solid friendship, Yuko and I have worked on several projects together, building a bridge of the arts between Japan and the United States. She is a seriously hardworking, totally committed and great artist. Additionally she is also a free spirited, fun loving person with a great sense of humor! Because she is so well balanced and because of her creativity and energy, I have no doubt that the Williamsburg Art & Historical Center will be a great success! Kenneth Noland
I have known and worked with Yuko on various projects over the years and she is a person of great intelligence and integrity as well as a great artist. Robert Panza, Executive Director, Visual Artists and Galleries Association
A remarkable person, dedicated to the art world and her fellow artists, as well as being a fine artist herself. Curtis Harnack, President, School of American Ballet
A person of great ability and integrity as well as a fine artist. Shoji Sadao, *[2] Honorary Life Trustee, The Isamu Noguchi Foundation
An exceptionally gifted fine artist, a farseeing visionary...sincerely concerned about the well being of the human race. Max Roach, Jazz Percussionist
A clarity of vision and mastery of technique so characteristic of the best Japanese artists. Stuart C, Henry, Director, The Berkshire Museum
The work of Yuko Nii carries a feeling of intensity and personal poetry. Her landscapes are in fact a landscape of her inner self. Tamon Miki, Chief Curator, The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo
Yuko Nii’s giant contributions of energy, vision and generosity transformed almost overnight a disintegrating landmark building into a vital center for the arts in Williamsburg, an historic Brooklyn community that now enjoys the largest concentration of resident artists within the art capital of the world, New York City. Yuko's extraordinary achievement is itself a landmark for Brooklyn and marks her for recognition as a living treasure of Brooklyn and the nation! Robin Radin, Harvard Law School, Program on International Financial Systems, Associate Director
In 2008, Nii created the Yuko Nii Foundation. The purpose of the Foundation is to preserve and maintain the Kings County Savings Bank Building and preserve art and artifacts in her collection for future generations. Her collections includes 19th decorative and fine arts of the French and American empire periods, as well as an extensive collection of Japanese art from the Momoyama through the Meiji periods. A feature of her holdings is the renowned "Milton Collection," which includes first illustrated editions of John Milton's Paradise Lost, and most notably, the original illustrations for Terrance Lindall’s Paradise lost, considered to be the greatest illustrations for this epic of the 20th century.