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My Other Life: Yasue Nakao, artist

Whether she’s creating nail art for salon clients or murals for homeowners, her incredible eye for detail ensures remarkable work.

by Staff
July 1, 2003
My Other Life: Yasue Nakao, artist

Nakao captured this cute 2-year-old and her dog at the request of her doting grandmother.

1 min to read


Nakao captured this cute 2-year-old and her dog at the request of her doting grandmother.

A nail tech at Awilda Salon in Beverly Hills, Calif., Yasue Nakao is quite simply a master with the paintbrush. Whether she’s creating nail art for salon clients or murals for homeowners, her incredible eye for detail ensures remarkable work.

A nail tech for 15 years, Nakao trained both in California and her native Japan, where she also studied fine art, including oil painting and graphic design. “I knew it would be hard to make a living as an artist,” says Nakao. “That’s why I chose nails — because it would allow me to paint.”

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In 1994, an artist client offered her a job as an assistant painter, taking Nakao to France for several months to paint murals in her home. When other clients heard about her new skill, she received invitations to adorn their walls as well.
“Now I’m getting work mostly through word-of-mouth,” she says.

She also decorates furniture as well as walls.

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