the collector's folio

Miné Okubo Most Popular Paintings

The 25 artworks by Miné Okubo our visitors ask for most, ranked by popularity and presented one by one, with the specification and the price of each hand-painted reproduction.

Edition 2026 · 25 artworks Each artwork painted to order
Linen canvas · Certificate of authenticity · Delivered worldwide Miné Okubo · 1912 – 2001

[Untitled]

1974 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Miné Okubo's poignant 'Untitled' abstract painting from 1974, reflecting resilience during WWII internment through vibrant colors and symbolic floral forms. A powerful testament to artistic expression.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 1 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17525 × 40 cm Commission this artwork

(3 Women Going to Church)

1948 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Mine Okubo’s ‘(3 Women Going to Church)’ – a poignant Expressionist drawing depicting wartime displacement & faith. Discover its somber beauty & historical significance.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 2 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$22538 × 27 cm Commission this artwork

[Untitled]

1969 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Miné Okubo's poignant abstract painting 'Untitled,' created during WWII incarceration and reflecting resilience through bold colors and symbolic figures—a powerful testament to artistic expression amidst adversity.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 3 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17529 × 34 cm Commission this artwork

[Untitled]

1978 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Miné Okubo's poignant 'Untitled' painting from 1974, reflecting resilience during WWII internment through vibrant colors and symbolic floral forms. A powerful testament to artistic expression.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 4 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17536 × 27 cm Commission this artwork

[Untitled]

1978 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

[Untitled] This untitled oil painting by Miné Okubo captures the essence of quiet contemplation with a woman and her feline companion. Employing a loose, abstract approach using bold strokes and vibrant purple hues, it conveys a dreamlike atmosphere. The artist’s meticulous attention to detail—from the woman's serene blue face to the yellow pendant adorning her necklace—creates a rich visual expe

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 5 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17538 × 26 cm Commission this artwork

[Untitled]

1978 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 6 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17535 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Medical exam in laundry building, Central Utah Relocation Project, Topaz, Utah, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Witness 'Medical exam...', Mine Okubo’s poignant 1942 illustration from Topaz Relocation Center. A powerful WWII memory, hand-painted reproduction available.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 7 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$32536 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Arrival at Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Miné Okubo's poignant illustration depicting the arrival at Tanforan Assembly Center during WWII, capturing the anxieties and realities faced by Japanese Americans unjustly detained. Witness history through art.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 8 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17535 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Teaching art classes, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Mine Okubo’s ‘Teaching Art Classes’ captures WWII internment camp life through poignant black & white illustration. Explore this powerful artwork's realism & social commentary.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 9 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$45037 × 27 cm Commission this artwork

Waiting in line for supper, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Mine Okubo’s ‘Waiting in Line for Supper,’ created during her incarceration at Tanforan Assembly Center (1942-1944), portrays a scene of quiet dignity amidst wartime hardship. This detailed ink drawing captures the essence of Japanese American experience, showcasing familial bonds and reflecting on the simple act of sharing a meal—a symbol of hope and perseverance.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 10 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17536 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Bus ride to Central Utah Relocation Project, Topaz, Utah, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Experience Miné Okubo's haunting watercolor depiction of Japanese American resilience during the 1942 Utah relocation; discover this powerful historical art piece today.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 11 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17535 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

[Untitled]

1977 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 12 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17527 × 37 cm Commission this artwork

[Untitled]

1970 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Miné Okubo's poignant drawings documenting WWII Japanese American incarceration. Witness resilience & injustice through her powerful graphic novel, 'Citizen 13660,' a vital historical record.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 13 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17529 × 35 cm Commission this artwork

Medical exam at Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

A somber black and white illustration by Miné Okubo captures the poignant reality of a 1942 medical exam during Japanese American internment through bold cartoon-style lines, inviting you to explore this historical masterpiece.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 14 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17536 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Listening to radio announcement of bombing of Pearl Harbor, with brother Toku, Berkeley, California, 1941

View the most popular artwork of Miné Okubo ranked #15: Listening to radio announcement of bombing of Pearl Harbor, with brother Toku, Berkeley, California, 1941

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Witness history through Mine Okubo’s poignant 1941 illustration. ‘Listening…Pearl Harbor’ captures a family's shock during wartime. A powerful Japanese American art piece.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 15 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$20037 × 27 cm Commission this artwork

Mine and Toku standing with their luggage, Berkeley, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Witness Mine Okubo’s poignant illustrations of Japanese American life during WWII. 'Mine and Toku' captures a moment of resilience & displacement. Explore this powerful artwork now!

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 16 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$20036 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Walking with guide to Barrack 16, Room 50, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

View the most popular artwork of Miné Okubo ranked #17: Walking with guide to Barrack 16, Room 50, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Miné Okubo's poignant sketch of Tanforan Assembly Center during WWII—a powerful visual record of resilience and the challenges faced by Japanese Americans enduring internment amidst wartime anxieties.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 17 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17535 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Mine reads newspaper announcing war declaration against Japan, Berkeley, California, 1941

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Miné Okubo's poignant illustration depicting Berkeley residents reacting to the declaration of war against Japan in 1941—a testament to resilience and artistic observation amidst historical upheaval.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 18 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$30037 × 27 cm Commission this artwork

Waiting to disembark from the bus at Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Witness history through Miné Okubo's poignant illustration of Tanforan Assembly Center during WWII. A powerful depiction of resilience, displacement, and the human spirit amidst wartime adversity.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 19 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17536 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Mine and Toku preparing for departure, Berkeley, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Witness Miné Okubo's poignant depiction of wartime displacement during the internment era. "Mine and Toku preparing for departure" captures resilience amidst fear, a powerful testament to American history.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 20 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17536 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Inspection of evacuees for contraband, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

View the most popular artwork of Miné Okubo ranked #21: Inspection of evacuees for contraband, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Miné Okubo's poignant illustration depicting the inspection of evacuees at Tanforan Assembly Center during WWII, capturing the anxieties and realities of Japanese American incarceration with meticulous detail.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 21 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17536 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Luggage delivery truck, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Witness history through Miné Okubo's poignant drawing, "Luggage Delivery Truck," capturing the stark reality of Japanese American incarceration at Tanforan during WWII. A powerful testament to resilience and observation.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 22 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$17535 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Observing camp activities from a rooftop, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

View the most popular artwork of Miné Okubo ranked #23: Observing camp activities from a rooftop, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Witness the poignant scene of life within Tanforan Assembly Center during WWII through Miné Okubo's powerful black & white drawing, capturing resilience and confinement with striking detail.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 23 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$35036 × 28 cm Commission this artwork

Induction at Central Utah Relocation Project, Topaz, Utah, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Explore Miné Okubo's poignant illustration depicting the arrival and registration process at Topaz Relocation Center during WWII—a testament to resilience, observation, and artistic witness.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 24 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$45037 × 27 cm Commission this artwork

Community toilets, Tanforan Assembly Center, San Bruno, California, 1942

1944 · Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles

Witness the poignant reality of wartime life at Tanforan Assembly Center through Miné Okubo's evocative ink drawings. This powerful illustration captures resilience and isolation during WWII internment.

Technique: Hand-painted oil on linen canvas
Made: To order, by a trained painter
Popularity: No. 25 of 72 artworks by Miné Okubo
Delivery: Worldwide, about 5 weeks

from$22537 × 27 cm Commission this artwork

The artist

Miné Okubo

1912 – 2001

Quick facts

Topics exploredresilience, observation, japanese american, wwii, japanese internment
Art periodModern
Room fitliving room
Copyright statusUnder copyright
Also known as大久保ミネ (Ōkubo Mine)
Works on APS72
Museums on APSJapanese American National Museum
Emotional tonereflective, melancholic

Biography

A Life Etched in Resilience: The Art of Miné Okubo

Miné Okubo, born in Riverside, California, in 1912, was an artist whose life became inextricably linked to a pivotal and painful chapter in American history. Her story is not simply one of artistic talent, but of profound courage, unwavering observation, and the power of art as witness. From her early encouragement within a family that valued creativity – her mother a skilled calligrapher, her father a scholar – Okubo embarked on a path toward formal training, studying at the University of California, Berkeley, and later venturing to Europe in 1938 to broaden her artistic horizons. This period of study was abruptly curtailed by the looming shadow of World War II, forcing her return to America just as global tensions reached a boiling point. Little could she have known that this homecoming would lead not to continued artistic exploration, but to forced incarceration and an experience that would define both her life and her art.

Bearing Witness: Art Within the Walls

The attack on Pearl Harbor irrevocably altered the course of Okubo’s life, as it did for countless other Japanese Americans. In 1942, she and her brother Benji were uprooted from their home and unjustly confined to the Tanforan Assembly Center, a converted racetrack that served as a temporary holding facility before transfer to the more permanent Topaz War Relocation Center in Utah. It was within these barbed-wire confines, amidst the dust and despair, that Okubo embarked on her most significant artistic undertaking. Driven by an almost compulsive need to document the reality around her, she began creating a remarkable visual record of camp life – over 2,000 drawings and sketches meticulously rendered in pen and ink, watercolor, and charcoal. These weren’t grand historical paintings or idealized portraits; they were raw, honest depictions of daily existence: crowded living quarters, bureaucratic processes, the faces etched with worry and resignation, moments of quiet dignity amidst profound hardship. She captured the mundane details – laundry hanging on lines, children playing in the dust, meals served in mess halls – transforming them into powerful statements about resilience and the erosion of civil liberties. Okubo’s art wasn't merely a personal response; it was an act of defiance, a refusal to be silenced or erased.

Citizen 13660: A Testament to Dehumanization and Hope

Upon her release from Topaz in 1944, Okubo channeled her experiences into a groundbreaking work of art and literature: Citizen 13660. Published in 1946, the book comprised 198 of her drawings accompanied by poignant text. The title itself is deeply symbolic, referencing the number assigned to her within the internment system – a stark reminder of the dehumanizing process she and so many others endured. Citizen 13660 wasn’t simply a chronicle of suffering; it was a nuanced portrayal of human spirit in the face of adversity. Okubo didn't shy away from depicting the indignities and injustices, but she also captured moments of community, humor, and quiet strength. The drawings are characterized by their directness, emotional depth, and masterful use of line and shadow. The book quickly became a seminal work documenting the Japanese American internment experience, offering an unflinching look at a dark chapter in American history that many preferred to ignore.

A Continuing Legacy: Art as Social Commentary

Following the war, Okubo relocated to New York City and continued her artistic career, working as a freelance illustrator for magazines and books, and undertaking mural projects. While she never fully abandoned the themes of social justice and human dignity that had defined her wartime work, her style evolved over time. She explored different mediums and techniques, but always maintained a commitment to realism and honest observation. Okubo’s artistic influences were diverse, drawing inspiration from the Social Realist movement – which emphasized depicting social issues and everyday life with unflinching accuracy – and artists like Käthe Kollwitz, renowned for her powerful depictions of human suffering. Throughout her career, she received numerous awards and recognitions, including grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, acknowledging the significance of her contributions to American art and culture. Miné Okubo passed away in 2001, leaving behind a legacy that continues to resonate today. Her work serves as a potent reminder of the fragility of civil liberties, the importance of vigilance against prejudice and discrimination, and the enduring power of art to bear witness, challenge injustice, and inspire hope. Her drawings are not just historical documents; they are deeply human stories etched in ink and watercolor, demanding that we remember, learn from, and never repeat the mistakes of the past.

Questions & Answers

How do I find works by Miné Okubo in a specific palette?

To find works by Miné Okubo in a specific palette, use the artist's By Palettes page.

Where can I see Miné Okubo's artworks in chronological order?

A timeline of Miné Okubo's works exists: the artist's Artwork Timeline page orders the artworks by creation date.

Where can I see Miné Okubo's artworks in a 3D gallery?

A virtual visit is possible: the 3D Museum page of Miné Okubo presents the artist's works in a three-dimensional gallery.

By the ArtsDot.com Editorial Team Updated Sept. 1, 2026

Collector's quiz

What is Miné Okubo best known for documenting?
What is the title of Okubo's seminal work documenting her experiences in internment camps?
After her release from internment, where did Okubo relocate to continue her artistic career?
Which art movement significantly influenced Okubo's work?
What was Miné Okubo’s assigned number within the internment system, which became symbolic in her work?

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