“fields of lupine” is 8x10, made with acrylic paint, washi paper, part of a map, colored pencils and glue on cradled wood. It is part of the 2024 Makino Studios calendar. A card version reads, “love you, mama bear.” © Annette Makino 2023 Today is the 13th anniversary of Makino Studios! A huge thank you to all the customers, store buyers and fans who have made this art business possible for a lucky thirteen years. To celebrate, I’m offering 13% off everything in the store though this Sunday with code 13YEARS. And tomorrow marks the official return of spring! Here in Northern California, it’s b ..read more

“dawn’s early light” is 8x10, made from Japanese washi papers, metallic gold paper, book pages, paint and glue on cradled wood panel. It is the February art for my 2024 calendar. A card version reads, “you light up the room.” © Annette Makino 2023 I must admit I ignored Taylor Swift for years, thinking a pop star with such mainstream popularity, a pretty blonde beloved by teenage girls, would not be my cup of tea. But with the 2020 release of her folk-pop album Folklore, I took another listen—and became a fan. I belatedly discovered she is a gifted songwriter who writes original and interesti ..read more

“dream journal” is 8x10, made from book pages, newsprint, junk mail, vintage Japanese letters, washi papers, acrylic paint, glue, charcoal and white ink on cradled wood. It is also available as a card reading, “happy birthday to an extraordinary being.” When you picture the life of a working artist, do you imagine days filled with sketching ideas or brushing canvasses in a paint-splattered studio? Maybe mixing buckets of paint and experimenting with colors and textures? That was certainly my impression before I became a full-time artist myself! That picture may be true for some artists, but f ..read more

I’m excited to share that this week’s North Coast Journal includes an in-depth article about my creative path! My thanks to Louisa Rogers for the lively and well-researched column—it’s a great holiday gift to be featured. Happy solstice and season’s greetings to all! • Makino’s “Garden rosebush,” a collage of book pages, a letter and envelope from the artist’s grandmother, handmade and Japanese washi papers, painted, torn and glued onto birch wood panel. ART BEAT Annette Makino’s Life in Collage LOUISA ROGERS, NORTH COAST JOURNAL, EUREKA, CA, DECEMBER 21, 2023 Annette Makino has been an artis ..read more

Sometime last winter, on a coastal trail in Trinidad, CA, my husband and I sat on a bench and watched for migrating whales. We didn’t spot any, but there was a spectacular view of the ocean far below. I joked, “We’ll just have to settle for the Pacific.” Later that experience prompted a haiku. A few months later, while at the riverside cabin we rent every summer, I had the urge to make a collage of a whale. Though I prefer to use my own photos, in this case I had to turn to Google. I found several appealing images of gray whales to use for reference and quickly sketched the idea. Next I flip ..read more

“to everything a season” is 8x10, made of washi papers, acrylic paint, and glue on cradled wood panel. This is one of the pages of the 2024 calendar of art and haiku, and is available a holiday card or notecard set reading, “Wishing you joyful holidays”. © Annette Makino 2023. Thanksgiving 1968. My kindergarten classmates and I dress up in pilgrim hats and Indian headbands for a “feast” of snacks at the classroom’s long formica tables. My hat, made from a paper plate and crumpled tissue paper flowers, is awkwardly tied under my chin with yarn. It was the first of many whitewashed lessons abou ..read more

“morning hike” is 11x14, created from handwritten notes, book pages, and Japanese washi papers. These were painted, torn and glued on cradled wood panel. This is one of the pages of the 2024 Makino Studios calendar. The image is also available as a card reading, “the woods may be dark but I’ll walk beside you.” I recently attended the annual Seabeck Haiku Getaway in beautiful Seabeck, Washington. Organized by Haiku Northwest, this is always a magical and fun gathering. As a featured reader there, I chose to share some poems I’ve written over the years inspired by the hikes my husband and I ta ..read more

I've been busy in the studio, and I'm happy to share that my 2024 mini-calendars of art and haiku are now available! There are also a couple of new vinyl dog and cat stickers. And I've brought back two beloved holiday notecard sets, plus there are eight more notecard designs to choose from.  As ever, I also offer single cards for birthdays, holidays and more. You can view all current designs and other products in the Makino Studios shop. Shipping is free for orders of $35 and up; just enter promo code FRE ..read more

“the jingle” is 11x14, painted with Japanese watercolors and sumi ink and watercolor paper. © Annette Makino 2019 Our family had to say goodbye to our beloved rescue dog Misha a few weeks ago. He was at least sixteen and a half years old, and his little body just wore out. Long ago, I became his person and he became my sidekick and muse, inspiring all sorts of art and haiku. He gave me the unconditional love that only a dog can provide, and losing him has been even harder than I expected. But after a month of grieving, the pain of Misha’s difficult last weeks and his passing is giving way to ..read more

“Enchanted Islands” is 11x14, created with oil paint, cold wax medium, rice paper and sumi ink on paper. © Annette Makino 2023 So my husband and I made a once-in-a-lifetime trip to the Galápagos Islands last December. We had a truly magical week seeing blue-footed boobies, Galápagos penguins, land tortoises and sea lions, all unafraid of the gawking humans. We kayaked through a lagoon with sea turtles, marine iguanas and rays. We snorkeled through lava tunnels with whitetip reef sharks and schools of brilliant tropical fish. And we hiked around a volcano crater, meeting a land iguana in the w ..read more