Okimoto worked as a graphic designer for a clothing manufacturer in Hawaii before becoming part of the Metcalf Chateau, also known as The Group of Seven – a group of Asian-American artists with ties to Honolulu. The name is derived from a house slated for demolition on Metcalf Street in Honolulu, in which they exhibited in 1954. The members were Saturo Abe (born 1926), Bumpei Akaji (1921-2002), Edmund Chung, Tetsuo Ochikubo (1923-1975), Jerry T. Okimoto (1924-1998), James Park, and Tadashi Sato (1923-2005). After their first show in 1954, the exhibit was moved to what is now the Honolulu Museum of Art.
These artists were held to a difficult standard within broader Abstract Expressionist circles. Even though the New York School of Action Painting drew on Asian brush techniques, Metcalf Chateau were often either accused of copying Western styles or expected to infuse their works with Asian tropes.