Noriko Shinohara facts for kids

Noriko Shinohara was born in 1953 in Takaoka, Japan. She is a talented Japanese-American artist who works with many different art forms. Today, she lives and creates art in Brooklyn, New York.

Noriko is especially famous for her drawing and printmaking series called "Cutie & Bullie." This series tells stories from her own life in a fun, cartoon-like way. Her art has been shown in many places around the world, including Tokyo, New York City, Dallas, Kraków, and Ottawa.

Noriko and her husband, Ushio, are the main characters in a documentary film. It's called Cutie and the Boxer (2013) and was directed by Zachary Heinzerling.

Noriko Shinohara: An Artist's Journey

Moving to New York City

Noriko Shinohara moved to New York City when she was 19 years old. This was in the early 1970s. She came to study art at the famous Art Students League of New York.

Just a few months after arriving, she met another artist named Ushio. He was 21 years older than her. They soon got married and had a son, Alexander Kūkai Shinohara, in 1974.

The Story of Cutie and Bullie

The nickname "Cutie" started for Noriko in 2002. She was 49 years old at the time and wearing her hair in two braids. A young man on the street called out, "hey cutie!" The name stuck with her after that day.

In 2003-2004, Noriko started drawing funny pictures. They showed "Cutie" punishing "Bullie." She sent these drawings to a friend who had made a joke about the nickname. At first, only Cutie was named in the drawings. These were short, six-frame comics. By 2007, she named the other character "Bullie." Slowly, it became a story about both Cutie and Bullie.

Art Exhibitions and Recognition

Noriko Shinohara had her first solo art show in 1986. It was held at the Cat Club in New York City. Later, in 2016, she had another solo exhibition. This show was at the Carleton University Art Gallery in Ottawa, Canada.

Her life and art with her husband Ushio were featured in the 2013 documentary Cutie and the Boxer. Their son Alexander also appeared in the film. It showed their life as artists and their family journey.