Biography

Born in Georgia, Matsumoto grew up in California. She is a graduate of U.C. Berkeley and received an MFA from New York University Tisch School of the Arts. Before her career as an artist, Matsumoto was the founder and designer of her eponymous line of handbags and fine jewelry. 

In addition to her formal training in drawing, painting, and sculpture at the Art Students League in New York, she studied at Angel Academy of Art in Florence, Italy. She studied privately with Jennifer Gennari 2018-2020 and with Joshua La Rock 2020-2021. 

She has won awards for her work, including Best in Show in the 2019 Art Students League Bronze show for Sphinx. Dove, rendered in white bronze, won an Honorable Mention in 2015. Her work has been featured in LessThanHalf, Georgette Magazine, LINEA: Art Journal, and Classiq.me. 

Mary Jo lives in Laguna Niguel, California.