A Visit with Ken Matsumoto: Stone, Spirit, and Story at Art Object Gallery

On a lovely late morning in Japantown, San Jose, on October 29, 2025, ten LLAA docents,

joined by teacher and ceramicist Diane Levinson, gathered for a special visit to Art Object

Gallery, the studio and gallery of renowned sculptor Ken Matsumoto. What awaited us was

more than an art tour—it was an intimate encounter with an artist whose humility, depth,

and devotion to his art and the artistic world filled our souls and left us inspired.

LLAA docent Tony Misch, a longtime friend of the artist, set up this incredible visit for all of

us. As suggested by him, before our visit, some of us picked up sushi lunches from

nearby Nijiya Market on Jackson Street and walked over to the gallery on North 5th Street.

From the outside, Art Object Gallery looks inviting with a large, gorgeous, rock sculpture,

part organic, part polished and concave, reminding one of an oversized pointe ballet shoe,

or an undersized racing car, managing to be both natural and man-made all at once. Large

windows and the glass entrance door hint at more beauty within.

We, however, entered through the side, walking through the backyard which doubles as a

stunning sculpture garden and picnic spot, the art works all the more beautiful, juxtaposed

as they are in those surroundings. We barely had enough time to gawk at the beauty

around us before walking right inside to meet sculptor Ken Matsumoto.

Ken greeted us with an unaffected warmth that instantly put everyone at ease. He

graciously answered our many questions we had, starting with his entire personal history

and artistic trajectory. It was a privilege to hear his story of a life shaped as much by

circumstance as by an unrelenting love of art. Born and raised in Oxnard, one of seven

siblings, Ken discovered his artistic inclinations early, encouraged by the nuns at his

Catholic school. He started out in two-dimensional art, he said, recalling his early painting

days.

That path, however, took a sharp turn when he was drafted during the Vietnam War. In

1969, he found himself stationed in North Carolina, working not with weapons but with

pens, inks, and transparencies—creating mechanical drawings, illustrations, and visual

materials, some of which he said he still cannot discuss, conceding— with the

understated humor that marked our entire visit—that there’d been a lot of “hush-hush

stuff.” Surrounded by colleagues with advanced degrees in psychology and the social

sciences, he found his worldview expanding far beyond his Oxnard roots.

Ken’s father had requested that he not be sent into combat—a request granted because

several of his brothers were already serving in dangerous assignments. Ken admitted that

he was lucky, but with characteristic humility, he made light of all his hard work in the early

years. That experience—the blend of precision, structure, and survival—would later inform

his practice as a sculptor.

After leaving the military, Ken returned to California and studied art at San Jose State

University, where he eventually earned his Master of Fine Arts degree. He stayed in the

area, building not just a career, but a community.

Ken worked with many materials. However, his art took on a new direction when, in 1994,

he received the commission for the Arizona State University Tempe project “3 Benches,”

where his craftsmanship extended beyond the art itself, to designing and building his own

equipment, a skill he traces back to his army days. It enabled him to work with 30 tons of

Arizona sandstone and translate it into exquisite art. Ken showed us the scale model for

the project, explaining how his trademark carved and polished concave shapes derive from

the seats cut into the stone for “3 Benches” almost 30 years ago.

In time, he traded his smaller 7th Street space with the San Jose Redevelopment

Agency for the property that now houses Art Object Gallery. He opened the gallery not just

as a studio for his own work, but as a place to support other artists, showing and

promoting their work to help sustain the creative ecosystem he loves. It was born both out

of necessity and love for art and artists.

Designing and constructing his own stone-shaping tools is what he does to this day, and

we looked in awe at all the machinery in his studio. This mastery of both concept and

construction allows him to bridge the technical and the spiritual, creating works that feel

timeless yet deeply personal, part found, part fashioned.

His sculptures—primarily in stone—are at once visceral and ethereal. Standing before

them, one senses a dialogue between raw material and refined vision. The contrast

of rough, weathered texture and smooth polish in a single piece feels both deliberate and

meditative—a balance between chaos and serenity. “There’s something so Zen about his

work,” one of our group remarked (might have been me). His work is stunning in

photographs, yes—but in person, it truly breathes.

As we toured the gallery and adjoining studio, which displayed both his art and that of

other artists, Ken graciously fielded questions about materials, process, philosophy, and

the unpredictable path of an artist’s life. His responses were thoughtful, often selfeffacing,

and tinged with humor. He spoke not as a distant expert, but as a fellow traveler

still in love with the journey. We ended our visit sharing lunch and conversation, surrounded by Ken’s art. The space

buzzed with curiosity and admiration — a happy hum of creativity and community colliding

(gently).

We left the Art Object Gallery that afternoon both humbled and uplifted. Ken Matsumoto’s

sculptures embody balanced stone and spirit, discipline and freedom, simplicity, and

mystery. In his presence, those same qualities come to life.

Docents, Elisabeth Bonnet, Joseph Coha, Lisa Dearborn, Suman Ganapathy, Julia Hartman, Amy Mears, Tony Misch, Char Nagayama and Kim Worrall attended the field trip.

To view more of Ken's art, visit his website at: https://www.artobjectgallery.com/ken-matsumoto

Text submitted by Suman Ganapathy and Tony Misch

Photos provided by Suman Ganapath, Tony Misch and Amy Mears

SJMA'S NOVEMBER FIRST FRIDAY EVENT

2023-24