Yoshino Ryoko, born in 1976 in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan, currently lives and works in Tokyo. She graduated from Joshibi University of Art and Design with a BFA in Western Painting in 1999—her graduation work was collected by the Joshibi University Art Museum—and obtained her MFA in Western Painting in 2001 from the same institution. Yoshino was honored with the Omura Fumiko Foundation Encouragement Award for Work and Research.

Rooted in painting, Yoshino’s practice centers on motifs of girls, small animals, plants, and dolls—symbols of fragility and tenderness. Set against monochromatic backgrounds, her subjects appear suspended in silence, evoking solitude, melancholy, and emotional distance tinged with quiet resilience. Her delicate brushwork and restrained compositions embody the introspective sensitivity and subtle emotional tone characteristic of Japanese contemporary art.

Her works have been exhibited in galleries and museums across Japan as well as at art fairs throughout Asia. Recent major solo exhibitions include Ephemeral (Tsubaki Gallery, 2024) and ドローイングを中心に (Focusing on Drawing, Blue Gallery, 2024). Both exhibitions, centered on animals and nature, highlight her distinctive interpretation of the perception of life and emotional distance.