Aki Kano is an oil painter who was born in 1974 in Bronxville, New York to a Japanese family. She is bilingual and identifies herself as culturally both Japanese and American.

Her painting style is very much influenced by European art. She admires the paintings of the Modern Masters, such as Matisse, Derain, Cezanne, Degas, and the German Fauvists called, “The Blue Riders.” The color palettes, vivid emotions, and open brushwork employed in these works are visible in Kano's paintings.

In her work, she expresses her ideas about color, composition and their interplay with today’s fashion imagery, contemporary standards of beauty, pop culture, as well as ordinary people and objects. Some images are slightly exaggerated as Kano sees each subject's distinct personalities in her paintings and portraits. Today, she still is influenced by the colors and expressive qualities of the Modern Masters. This is exhibited in her use of visceral brush strokes, bright, saturated color and her intuitive and spontaneous approach. She sees the world through her own unique eyes and continues to paint portraits of friends and nudes from life with this quality. Kano believes painting is a celebration of life and people.

Kano received her B.F.A from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She spent several months painting and drawing at the Slade School of Art in London as well as some time at Kyoto Seika University studying traditional Japanese graphics and book art.

After graduating in 1997, she moved back to New York and received her fashion design degree, graduating in 2000 from the Fashion Institute of Technology. She has worked as a designer at Ralph Lauren, DKNY Jeans, and numerous other houses for the last 8 years.

Kano has lived in New York City for the last 10 years and is pursuing her dreams of making art.