Shimizu Toshi

He originally planned to have a career in the military, but failed the qualifying exam at the Imperial Japanese Army Academy.

It took him five years of working odd jobs in Seattle before he met the Dutch painter, Fokko Tadama, who took him on as a student and was able to gain him admission to a local art school.

While there, he made contact with his fellow Japanese emigrant painters, Kuniyoshi Yasuo and Ishigaki Eitarō, who had also studied in Seattle.

Later, he was awarded a prize at the Salon of the Société des Artistes Indépendants for his portrayal of soldiers and monks in Toledo, Spain.

He became a staunch supporter of the Japanese military forces and, during the Pacific War, he created a series of propagandistic battle paintings, apparently done from photographs.