Kumi Yamashita was born in Takasaki, Japan. She received her Master of Fine Arts Degree from Glasgow School of Art and her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, Washington.

Her solo shows include the Seattle Art Museum, Boise Art Museum, Roswell Museum, Yerba Buena Center, Taipei’s Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, the Esplanade-Theatres on the Bay in Singapore, Art Front Gallery in Tokyo and Kent Gallery in New York City. 

In 2009, her sculpture “Pathway” commissioned by Seattle City Light was listed as one of the top 40 public works in the nation by the Public Art Network (PAN). Other awards and grants include the Pollock and Krasner Foundation grant, Artist Trust GAP, and China’s Crystal Kirin Award. Residencies include RAIR (Roswell Artist in Residence), the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, and the Millay Colony.

She lives and works in Woodstock, New York.