Matsusaburo George Hibi

Born in Ii Village, Sakata District (now Ii in Maibara City), Shiga Prefecture. Hibi studied law at the Kyoto Hōsei Gakko, the predecessor of Ritsumeikan University. In 1906 at the age of 20, he moved to Seattle and learned English first. Then, he moved to San Francisco and started to work on illustrations for newspapers such as Nichibei Shimbun. In 1919, he enrolled in the California School of Fine Arts, where he studied and worked until 1930. During this period, Hisako Hibi was a student, and the two tied the knot in 1930. He played a central role in the establishment of the East West Art Society with Chiura Obata and Teikichi Hikoyama. He also posted articles and critical commentaries on Sangenshoku Ga Kai (Three Primary Colors Art Group) and Teikichi Hikoyama in Japanese-language newspapers. In 1933, he and Hisako moved to Hayward, where he started a Japanese language school for Nisei generations.
During the war, the Hibis were interned at Tanforan Assembly Center and later transferred to Topaz camp. He supported the art school opened by Chiura Obata and took over the classes when Obata left the camp. After the war, they moved to New York, and he exhibited at the exhibition of Associated American Artists, but he died in 1947.