Early on, Davey extended an invitation to meet if I ever found myself in NYC. As COVID vaccines arrived and pandemic precautions eased a bit, I finally planned a trip for the summer of 2022….

According to Miyoko Davey, Inukai most likely wrote his memoir, Confessions of a Heathen, around 1949, three years after WWII had come to an end and when he would have been 63 years-old….

Upon arrival in Chicago, Inukai stayed briefly with a friend from Mark Hopkins and quickly got a job as a janitor, then as a “bellboy” at a hotel, with the goal of affording tuition at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC). He enrolled in 1906, initially receiving “free” tuition in exchange for cleaning classrooms. A short time later….

Following this initial connection, Ms. Davey and I stayed in touch. Over numerous email exchanges, I learned about Inukai and how Davey, and her late husband, John, became interested in his life and work (I will share more on this in a subsequent post). Davey asked me questions about the painting and encouraged me to try and trace its provenance- how did it end up at an antique store in Maine?….

I own a vintage home goods store in Portland, Maine. One day, during the heart of the pandemic, I asked my sister if she wanted to go sourcing….