Sidewalk Stories

A cat in the background curiously gazes at koi (carp) and flowers in the foreground. Vividly drawn with ballpoint pens and colored pencils, this is a prime example of Mirikitani’s cat drawings—his signature motif. Mirikitani loved cats and created a large number of such works. While it is known that he used cats, along with other “cute” motifs such as flowers, vegetables, and animals, to attract pedestrians, what these motifs meant to the artist remains a topic of debate. They may represent an homage to a cat-loving friend who died in an incarceration camp, his admiration for the Japanese French artist Foujita Tsuguharu (Léonard Foujita) who was known for his cat paintings, or specific individuals familiar to Mirikitani himself.

His signature appears in the lower right, a hand-drawn seal of his Japanese painter’s name Setsuzan (“Snow Mountain”), and an inscription naming the acclaimed Nihonga artists Kawai Gyokudō (1873–1957) and Kimura Buzan (1876–1942) as his teachers. This combination of signature, seal, and inscription appears in nearly all of the works in this exhibition, reflecting Mirikitani’s profound pride in his artistic heritage. 

These two works are what Mirikitani called his “education papers.” They trace his life from his birth in Sacramento and art training in Tokyo to his incarceration at Tule Lake during World War II and his later career as a New York–based artist. While unhoused from the late 1980s to 2001, Mirikitani carried these papers as his self-made identification—documents he showed to police or curious passersby when asked about his life and art. Containing more components, untitled (“education paper” with owl) is a later, updated version, presumably made from a photocopy of untitled (“education paper” with owl 2). 

Beyond serving as biography and self-made ID, the papers also function as collages. The typed narrative, likely prepared by someone who helped organize his story, is layered with Mirikitani’s additions: his photograph, handwritten notes, a photocopy of an owl by the ukiyo-e artist Kitagawa Utamaro, and even the Japanese imperial chrysanthemum seal. Along the margins, signatures and comments from neighbors appear in English, Japanese, Chinese, and Korean—traces of the multiethnic New York community that sustained his art and survival on the streets. 

While living and working on the streets of New York City, Mirikitani often created art from found materials. This drawing of a smiling black-and-white cat, content amid a bounty of food, was drawn with a ballpoint pen—a medium he favored for its waterproof ink, able to withstand rain and exposure to the elements. Such practical choices were essential to his practice while unhoused. Mirikitani drew on a discarded piece of foam board, visible in the frayed upper edge, embodying his resourceful use of whatever materials were available. Along the top and bottom, small “x” marks reveal where he intended to trim the piece. Like many works made on the streets, this drawing required conservation for exhibition display. Through modest tools and salvaged supports, Mirikitani transformed the discarded materials of daily life into enduring works of art, merging creativity and survival.