Artistic road to utopia may break down regional barriers

AUSTRALIA and Japan are developing together a Utopia Project that would present an arts Olympics every two years in an Asia-Pacific centre. They have enlisted the potential support of eight other countries in planning to stage non-competitive arts shows that would include artists, works and performances from across the region. The project would involve exhibitions, workshops and educational presentations, and would move to a different city each time in order to share the costs and the impact.

Alison Carroll, the arts director at Asialink, which is promoting the project, says: "The problem with art biennales, which are popping up everywhere, is to sustain them for the second or third time, in the same location. Our concept would require only a very small secretariat, and tiny administrative costs."

Arts Minister Peter Garrett is being asked to come to this party. If the Australian government offers its support, then Australia and Japan would invite the eight others to join the process formally.

Carroll says: "This trend of collaboration in our region is accelerating now. The structures are growing stronger all the time, in education and the arts. Unless we're proactive, we'll miss the boat because even now, we are not always viewed as part of the region. So we have to demonstrate our commitment."

The East Asia Summit process, in which Australia participates, involves meetings of environment ministers - including Garrett - and Carroll says that arts ministers should meet regularly too.

"Arts are a great way for countries to scrape away preconceptions and present what's really happening today. And we too in Australia tend to have an old-fashioned view of Asia and culture.
"We seem to think that contemporary art only happens in New York or Venice, but it's happening all around us. That's a shame, because in some respects we know more about Asia than any other Western country does. If we don't take advantage of that, it's our loss."

This bold Utopia Project seeks to follow up an extraordinarily successful three-year arts collaboration between Australia and Japan, which has involved four pairings of leading artists. The final exhibition to emerge from a series of exchanges involving artists, curators and other art professionals of the two countries will be shown at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Sydney from July 28. It brings together the works of Australian Louisa Bufardeci and Japanese Zon Ito, whose collaboration began at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Tokyo. The curators of the museums found parallels "in their symbolic use of colour and ordered forms, along with their interpretation and unconventional use of space."

Asialink has co-ordinated the exchanges, with support from agencies such as the Australia Japan Foundation. Its arts director Carroll says: "Japan can have anything it wants. It has the resources to go to the Americans and Europeans. And in the past, Australia has been overlooked or dismissed as second best. That Japan's top artists, galleries and hot young curators are today eager for this exchange at this level shows a really significant shift in thinking.

"They are seeing something here with which they keenly wish to engage."

This shift coincides, says Carroll, with a growing comprehension within Asia-Pacific countries that in the realm of contemporary culture "this is a region unto itself. And Australia, like Japan, wants to take a leadership role and be a key player. "We can now do this together, involving our funding and philanthropic organisations. That wouldn't have happened five years ago."

The exhibitions have attracted extensive public interest in Japan, with for instance 51 newspaper and magazine articles written about the most recent show that closed there last October.

Akira Tatehata, director of the National Museum of Art in Osaka, says: "Currently, Australia enjoys an important presence in the Japanese contemporary art scene and is attracting attention from the general public as well as from the art world.

"As the Australia-Japan arts relationship has reached a certain maturity, I believe that it is important for future projects to have a specific focus, to introduce areas that have not been exposed previously to each other."

Shihoko Iida, a curator at the Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery, says: "The number of mutual projects that are held in both countries and initiated by young artists and art professionals has been increasing remarkably in recent years. It is important to continue and deepen our dialogue."

"The Japanese don't want our money" to persuade them to participate, says Carroll. "They want a good show. You can't buy your way into Japan. They want some support, but they mainly want (a show) to enhance their reputations.

"They want a mature relationship" with intelligent contemporary thinkers, she says. "Works that happen to be produced by Australians, that are interesting beyond the limits of boundaries, not items that comprise national descriptors, not works that are patently 'Australian'."

It is impossible to be artistically present in Japan without Japanese support, she says. The initial three-year program - which preceded the program now being concluded - cost the federal government $500,000 and other Australian organisations $800,000. The Japanese partners contributed $1.2 million towards showing Australian art there.

The Patricia Piccinini show proved especially popular, being the subject of more than 100 Japanese newspaper articles. "We couldn't do that for her," says Carroll. "That's what a partner is about. It would be fantastic if we could develop that kind of relationship with other countries in our region, such as China."

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25736386-16947,00.html

Art Complex Museum to host tea ceremonies starting June 28

DUXBURY, MA - The first in a series of four public Japanese tea ceremonies will be offered by the Art Complex Museum at 2 p.m., on Sunday, June 28. Aiko Somi Rogers, who was trained by the Urasenke School of Tea in Japan, will conduct the ceremony. Rogers will explain the ceremony and answer questions. Utensils used for the tea span four centuries, and the ceremony itself is a quiet, simple ritual based on hospitality.

Additional tea ceremony presentations are scheduled for 2 p.m., on July 26, which will be a family event, Aug. 30 and Sept. 27.Admission is free but seating is limited and available on a first-come basis. Guests are advised to dress for the weather. In case of rain, the presentation will take place inside the museum at 189 Alden St., Duxbury The program is supported primarily by the Carl A. Weyerhaeuser Family Charitable Trusts, and by gifts from friends of the museum.

http://www.wickedlocal.com/duxbury/homepage/x2085758246/Art-Complex-Museum-to-host-tea-ceremonies-starting-June-28

Master of emotions

AT the opening ceremony of Louis Vuitton: A Passion for Creation, the artist most sought-after by guests for autographs and photographs was Takashi Murakami (pic).

One of Japan’s leading contemporary artists, Murakami – the only visual artist to make Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” last year – proved to be a crowd-pleaser. Always smiling and accommodating, he granted the Asian media a brief interview.

Asked how the current art scene is driven by financial motives, Murakami, 46, says it is money that allows creativity to thrive. “At the end of the day, art needs a rich ground like Paris, New York and London.”

He is surprised by Hong Kong’s rise in the art world, and feels the city is headed in the right direction. For example, he points out, the recent Hong Kong International Art Fair (May 14-17) drew a record attendance and robust sales.

Asked what inspires him, Murakami says, “As artists, we need to feel emotions all the time. For instance, I attended a funeral last week and there were a lot of people crying. Although I was sad, I was inspired by all the emotions surrounding me.”

Another emotion that inspires him is anger. “That’s why I am always asking my colleagues to make me angry,” he says, drawing laughter from the crowded room.

His art pieces may be colourful and bright but Murakami explains that “I always emphasise that the dark side exists even in cuteness and in the thoughts of peace-addicted people.”

A graduate of the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music, this prolific contemporary artist gained fame for his art style, called Superflat, which is characterised by flat planes of colour and graphic images involving a character derived from anime and manga. It is an artistic style that comments on otaku lifestyle and subculture, as well as consumerism and sexual fetishism, he explains.

In past media interviews, he was asked about straddling the fine line between art and merchandising. His reply: “I don’t think of it as straddling. I think of it as changing the line. What I’ve been talking about for years is how in Japan, that line is less defined, both by the culture and by the post-War economic situation.

“Japanese people accept that art and commerce will be blended; in fact, they are surprised by the rigid and pretentious Western hierarchy of ‘high art.’ In the West, it certainly is dangerous to blend the two because people will throw all sorts of stones. But that’s okay – I’m ready with my hard hat.”

According to the Wikipedia, Murakami – like the legendary Andy Warhol – takes low culture, repackages it, and sells it to the highest bidder in the “high-art” market. But unlike Warhol, he makes his repacked low culture available to other markets in the form of paintings, sculptures, videos, T-shirts, key chains, mouse pads, plush dolls and limited-edition Louis Vuitton handbags.

In November 2003, ArtNews had it that Murakami’s work was among the most desired in the world. At Christie’s last May, Chicago collector Stefan Edis reportedly paid US$567,500 (RM1.9mil) for his 1996 Miss ko-2, a life-size fiberglass cartoon figure. In May 2008, Murakami’s sculpture of a naked boy, My Lonesome Cowboy, sold for US$15mil (RM52mil) at a Sotheby’s auction.

Wow! Natural Art in the Ocean

This photo, taken from a NASA satellite, reveals the life embedded in two ocean currents that are converging in the Pacific Ocean.

In the northwest Pacific, the Oyashio Current flows down out of the Arctic, past Siberia and the Kamchatka Peninsula. Around the latitude of Hokkaido, Japan, it begins to veer eastward and converges with the warmer Kuroshio Current, flowing into the area from the south.

The new image illustrates how the convergence of these two currents affects phytoplankton, the microscopic plant-like creatures that form the base of the marine food web, scientists explained.
When two currents with different temperatures and densities — cold, Arctic water is saltier and denser than subtropical waters — collide, they create eddies. Phytoplankton growing in the surface waters become concentrated along the boundaries of these eddies, tracing out the motions of the water. The swirls of color visible in the waters southeast of Hokkaido (upper left), show where different kinds of phytoplankton are using chlorophyll and other pigments to capture sunlight and produce food. The bright blues just offshore of Hokkaido may be churned up sediment, rather than phytoplankton.

During the spring bloom season, nutrients are abundant in the surface waters. The water has been "resting" all winter, when light levels were too low — and storms were too frequent — to support phytoplankton growth.

But as the phytoplankton deplete the available nutrients, the bloom will taper off. At this stage, the eddies in the convergence zone can give a boost of nutrients at the surface because they don't just circulate the surface water; they also produce upwelling. The upwelling can draw nutrient-rich water up from deeper in the ocean, allowing smaller blooms to occur later in the growing season.

The washed out appearance of the image at lower left is from sunglint—the (blurred) mirror-like reflection of the sun off the water. At upper right, a plume of haze, perhaps smoke from fires in Mongolia and Russia, cuts across the scene.

The image, from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua satellite, was taken May 21 and released this week.

http://www.livescience.com/environment/090613-ocean-art.html

Asian Art Museum brings way of the Samurai to SF

SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco Asian Art Museum curator Yoko Woodson has organized many important exhibits — including the memorable two-part show of works by Hokusai and Hiroshige a decade ago — but the museum’s upcoming “Lords of the Samurai” may well become her biggest, most spectacular accomplishment.

Woodson brought the Hokusai/Hiroshige drawings from the Honolulu Academy of Arts’ James Michener collection to The City, making their public viewing possible for the first time, although individual pieces had been around.

With the Samurai exhibit, which opens Friday, Woodson is unlocking the key for hidden treasure none of which has been available outside Japan.

In fact, some of the 160 objects — armor, weaponry, paintings, lacquer ware, ceramics, costumes and more — are not readily available to the public even in Japan. The reason: Contents of the exhibit coming to Larkin Street are the private possessions of one family.

Woodson and former museum director Emily Sano began work on the show four years ago when former Japanese Prime Minister Morihiro Hosokawa (in office 1993-94) came to San Francisco on a business trip and visited the museum.

Hosokawa’s family is one of the most prominent Samurai clans, going back more than a half a millennia, between the 14th and 19th centuries, which were dominated by warriors who formed the country’s military aristocracy.

“This is the first time that the family’s heirloom arms and armor, paintings and decorative and applied art objects are to be shown in a comprehensive way in the United States,” says Hosokawa.

“Through the stories of the Hosokawa family, illustrated through their superb collection, we can understand the nature of the upper echelon of the warrior elite in early modern Japan,” according to museum director Jay Xu.

The Hosokawa collection in Japan is housed in the Eisei-Bunko Museum and in the family’s former home, Kumamoto Castle on Kyushu island. Ten of the artworks carry the designation of “important cultural properties” or “important art objects” due to their artistic and historical significance to the nation.

Because of their importance and fragility, some of the works will be rotated Aug. 3, replaced by others.

Besides their primary fame as elite warriors, the Samurai have also excelled in artistic, cultural and spiritual pursuits, all reflected in the exhibit.

“The Legacy of a Daimyo Family,” the show’s subtitle, refers to “great name,” meaning the standing of the Hosokawa family. Throughout 18 generations, the lords practiced and promoted the arts, even more prominently than did ancient European royal families.

Hosokawa, 71, himself is a celebrated tea practitioner, who has won acclaim for his skill as a ceramist and calligrapher. Some of his tea bowls and other tea ceramics are among the many on view in the exhibition.

From an earlier time, Sumimoto Hosokawa (1489—1520) is described as a great archer and horseman, “far above other humans ... also versed in waka [a form of Japanese poetry] and appreciates the moon and the wind.

“Outside the citadel, he takes bows and arrows; in meditation and reading of sacred books he protects Buddhism. Inside and outside, pledging to the mountains and rivers for the sake of the rulers and vassals, always with propriety and benevolence, he attains saintly wisdom.”

IF YOU GO

Lords of the Samurai

Where: Asian Art Museum, 200 Larkin St., San Francisco

When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, except closed Mondays and until 9 p.m. Thursdays; show runs Friday through Sept. 20

Tickets: $17 general; $13 senior; $12 college students; $7 youths; discounts after 5 p.m. Thursdays; $5 first Sunday of each monthContact: (415) 581-3500, www.asianart.org

http://www.sfexaminer.com/entertainment/Asian-Art-Museum-brings-Way-47280542.html

Japanese Film, Fashion and Art Center to Open in San Francisco

San Francisco already features one of America's oldest and largest Japantown, but come August 2009, it'll get a fresh infusion of modern J-Pop culture with the opening of New People, a spanking new three-story building that will feature the latest, greatest and coolest films, fashions, art and design straight from Japan. From the movie theater in the basement screening new and classic films to the fashion boutiques featuring top labels straight from Tokyo and an art gallery on the top floor, New People promises to make Japanese pop culture even more exciting and accessible to Americans than ever.

Located at 1746 Post Street (across from the Japantown Center), the 20,000 square foot New People building is currently under construction, and is scheduled to open to the public on Saturday, August 15, 2009. You can follow the progress of this project by visiting the New People website, NewPeopleWorld.com and clicking on the "News" section for the latest photos and updates straight from the site. You can also sign up to receive updates via email, so you can be one of the first to find out about events scheduled to celebrate New People's arrival in the City by the Bay.

So what can you expect to find at New People when it opens? Here's a floor by floor breakdown:
Basement: VIZ Cinema - a 143-seat theater with "high-definition digital projection and THX®-certified sound" that promises to show a mix of current and classic films from Japan, anime and live action movies and documentaries.

1st Floor: Cafe & Restaurant - New People wasted no time in getting two dining establishments that would please even the most picky gourmand to anchor their building. Blue Bottle Coffee Company is a Bay Area coffee roaster and cafe that specializes in absolutely addictive "this ain't your auntie's Starbucks" coffee and espresso drinks. There are already several Blue Bottle cafes and kiosks around town and they always attract a crowd of hardcore caffeine devotees.

Meanwhile, Delica rf-1 (one of my favorite places to eat in the San Francisco Ferry Building) offers gourmet Japanese bentos, salads and snacks that are light, healthy and tasty.
Mezzanine: NEW PEOPLE: The Store - The New People aesthetic comes together in their signature shop, which promises to offer "all that is kawaii (cute), fun, fabulous and bizarre," in apparel, books, toys, DVDs, music, design items, with "exclusive product designs and limited edition goods" to make it extra worth your while to check out items you won't be able to find any where else.

2nd floor: Fashion Boutiques, featuring Baby the Stars Shine Bright, 6% DokiDoki and Black Peace Now - You know all those fabulous fashions you've seen in movies like Kamikaze Girls or in the pages of Gothic & Lolita Bible? Now you can get the hottest styles straight from the streets of Tokyo at these three leading fashion houses. Lolita fashion house Baby, the Stars Shine Bright is opening their first flagship shop in New People. If you're into this fabulously frilly style, you like to know that Baby is looking for a General Manager to run their first US flagship shop. Also on the 2nd floor will be Black Peace Now, a label known for "mixing Japanese gothic and punk details into powerful, exquisite silhouettes." And on a lighter note there's 6% DOKIDOKI, which embodies "girl culture from the center of Harajuku!" Look for "crazy fun, crazy colors and crazy love" in their line of accessories, clothes and "objects that will stir your imagination."

3rd Floor: Superfrog Gallery - Look for modern, fun and thought-provoking exhibits to show up here. Stay tuned for announcements on the artist (or artists) who will be featured in the debut exhibit at this venue.

New People is the brainchild of Seiji Horibuchi, the founder and CEO of VIZ Media, and is fueled by a $15 million investment from Shogakukan, one of Japan's leading publishers, and part-owner of VIZ Media.

"New People is a truly unique space devoted to creativity and self expression, and will become a cultural destination unlike any other in the United States,” says Horibuchi. "New People will help nurture Japanese pop culture and also connect the public with its diverse creators. As North America continues to embrace a variety of hip trends from Japan, we look forward to expanding the vision of New People globally through film, art and other multimedia and forging innovative cross-cultural creative partnerships."

Pretty exciting stuff, right? Makes me extra glad that I call the Bay Area home that I'll be able to experience and enjoy New People often after its debut in August. Stay tuned for more updates as VIZ and New People trickle out announcements about special events that are sure to be scheduled to commemorate the opening of this new J-Pop center.

http://manga.about.com/b/2009/05/28/japanese-film-fashion-and-art-center-to-open-in-san-francisco.htm

Japanese art: Manhole covers

When you walk down the streets in Japan, you may find yourself stepping on a piece of art. Where is that art? On manhole covers! This may seem like a very bizarre place to find it, but in Japan it is very common.

Japanese manhole cover designs are unique to the locality and utility of the community. The designs may depict famous historical buildings, plants, animals, story scenes, and even cartoon characters. Whatever is famous in that area is likely going to be featured on the manhole covers.
There is a cult interest in taking pictures of these covers, and some online galleries have hundreds of photos.

So when you are walking around Japan admiring all the sights, take a minute to look down at your feet and see what hidden treasure may be there.

An extensive and well organized Japanese manhole cover gallery (Mainly in Japanese)
A flickr group pool of manhole cover photographs
Another manhole cover gallery
One more manhole cover gallery

http://www.examiner.com/x-10430-Japan-Travel-Examiner~y2009m5d24-Japanese-art-Manhole-covers

Momoyama Period (1573 - 1615)

With the decline of Ashikaga power in the 1560s, the feudal barons, or daimyos, began their struggle for control of Japan. The ensuing four decades of constant warfare are known as the Momoyama (Peach Hill) period. The name derives from the site, in a Kyoto suburb, on which Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536–1598) built his Fushimi Castle. Unity was gradually restored through the efforts of three warlords. The first, Oda Nobunaga (1534–1582), took control of Kyoto and deposed the last Ashikaga shogun through military might and political acuity. He was followed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who continued the campaign to reunite Japan. Peace was finally restored by one of Hideyoshi's generals, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542–1616).

The decorative style that is the hallmark of Momoyama art had its inception in the early sixteenth century and lasted well into the seventeenth. On the one hand, the art of this period was characterized by a robust, opulent, and dynamic style, with gold lavishly applied to architecture, furnishings, paintings, and garments. The ostentatiously decorated fortresses built by the daimyo for protection and to flaunt their newly acquired power exemplified this grandeur. On the other hand, the military elite also supported a counter-aesthetic of rustic simplicity, most fully expressed in the form of the tea ceremony that favored weathered, unpretentious, and imperfect settings and utensils.

During this era, the attention of the Japanese was more than usually drawn beyond its shores. In addition to the continued trade with and travel to and from China and Korea, Toyotomi Hideyoshi instigated two devastating invasions of the Korean peninsula with the ultimate goal of invading China. The arrival of Portuguese and Dutch merchants and Catholic missionaries brought an awareness of different religions, new technologies, and previously unknown markets and goods to Japanese society. Over time, these foreign influences blended with native Japanese culture in myriad and long-lasting ways.

Department of Asian Art, The Metropolitan Museum of Art

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/momo/hd_momo.htm

Furoshiki--the Japanese art of folding cloth

When it comes to wrapping a package, especially for a gift, most everyone hopes to create something pleasing to the eye. A wrapping tells a lot about how special the receiver is and even more about the giver.

Bright-colored paper and handmade bows conceal each surprise. So painstakingly wrapped and so hurriedly torn open, wrappings can rarely be used a second time.

In recent years, recycling or "green" alternatives have become more of a daily routine all around the U.S. And many Old World traditions such as decorative cloth gift sacks and squares of cloth wrappings, closed with a knot, are again taking hold.

For centuries, men and women in Japan carried clothing, books, gifts and other belongings in cloth-wrapped parcels. Artsy wraps even enclosed lunch boxes and spread as a placemat during the meal. Japanese furoshiki, as it's known, is a traditional wrapping cloth ranging from hand sized to that of a bed sheet.

With renewed interest in reducing waste and protecting our environment, furoshiki adds a fun and practicality to gifts as it encourages the wrapping's reuse.

Featuring this creative style for residents of the South Hills, Mt. Lebanon Public Library plans a program at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 23.

Furoshiki: The Art, Tradition and History of Folding Cloth and Wrapping Gifts and Treasures will be presented by Rosaly Roffman, poet and professor emeritus of Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Participants hoping to learn more about this Japanese tradition should bring a box or bottle and a square of lightweight cloth. Tablecloths or fabric remnants large enough to cover their items are good choices. Silk or polyester is recommended since both are thin and easy to knot.

"In Japan I've seen small items and even heavy machinery wrapped in furoshiki," said Rosaly.
In addition to her demonstration, Rosaly will read a few of her poems and speak on Japanese history and culture.

To continue the furoshiki trend, register for the program by calling 412-531-1912.

http://www.thealmanac.net/ALM/Story/05-20-Roamin-S-Hills-L-Gregus-1-pix-2-info-box

Japan officials promote hip home

TOKYO (AFP) — Japan's grey-suited bureaucrats have teamed up with a blue cartoon cat and Tokyo fashionistas sporting 'Gothic Lolita' urban chic in an official drive to promote hip Japan around the world.

Long famed for its cars and high-tech goods, the world's number two economy has stepped up an official campaign to promote its cultural offerings, from Tokyo city wear to video games and award-winning animation films.

Prime Minister Taro Aso -- an avowed fan of Japan's manga comics -- has thrown his enthusiastic support behind the drive to earn hearts, minds and hard cash by promoting the soft power of "cool Japan" overseas.

His conservative government has earmarked 11.7 billion yen (118 million dollars) for a museum on Japanese cartoon art and pop culture to be built in Tokyo that one English-language daily has dubbed the "anime shrine".

"It will be a centre that allows visitors to see and collect information on Japan's manga, anime, video games and media art," said Akira Shimizu, who heads the arts division at the government's cultural affairs agency.

The museum, to be built in coming years, pending parliamentary approval, is part of Aso's plan to grow Japan's cultural exports into an industry worth 20 to 30 trillion yen (200 to 300 billion dollars) by 2020.

"The word 'manga' has entered the global lexicon," Aso said as he outlined the plan last month. "Japan has materials that attract consumers around the world such as animation, games, fashion -- so-called 'Japan Cool'."

Much of Japanese pop culture has already won fans across Asia and around the world in recent years -- from classic manga characters like Astroboy and video game figures such as the Mario Brothers and Pokemon to Oscar-winning animation movies like Hayao Miyazaki's 2004 film "Howl's Moving Castle."

Manga comics -- an industry worth 4.6 billion dollars in Japan last year, according to the private Research Institute for Publications -- have long ago gone global and have won a cult following in the West.

Not all of Japan's cultural exports have won praise. Some manga comics are notorious for featuring extreme violence and sexual themes, and a video game in which players stalk and rape women has sparked outrage this year.

The government has picked the far more family friendly cartoon characters to promote Japan, and last year appointed robotic hero cat 'Doraemon' as the nation's first "Anime Ambassador".
The foreign ministry has also supported a world summit of cosplay -- short for "costume play", a subculture with a global cult following where hobbyists dress as 'Gothic Lolitas' and other often manga-inspired characters.

This year, the ministry chose three women to represent the "Lolita", "Harajuku" and "School Uniform" styles of Tokyo fashion and sent them off into the world as so-called New Trend Communicators of Japanese Pop Culture.

Takehiko Yamamoto, a professor of international politics at Waseda University, supported Japan's manga diplomacy.

"Japan has been too quiet... and hardly made itself felt" on the world stage, he said, adding that anime and manga are "one of the few ways in which Japan can exert influence on other countries".

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iqaiD_pxFwVtuHnxnt8GxhitLBfw

Boise Art Museum Announces John S. Takehara Memorial

BOISE, ID.- The life and contributions of John S. Takehara, an internationally recognized ceramic artist and Professor Emeritus of Art, Boise State University, will be celebrated Sunday, May 17, in the New Grand Ballroom of the University’s Student Union Building at 2:00 p.m. Professor Takehara died of natural causes on April 1, 2009.

John Takehara lived and breathed clay, and he dedicated his life to the world of ceramic art. He not only made pots and taught about making pots, but he also promoted ceramic art as a sublime medium. He professed the material connected the maker with heaven and earth. He found an essence that “…resembles the creation of man by our Creator.”

This Sunday, friends, colleagues, patrons, and former students are invited to help remember John Takehara. Boise Art Museum, Boise State, and the Cloverdale Seventh Day Adventist Church will join in sharing a collage of stories to create a portrait of this quiet man’s extraordinary life. A community wants to remember a man like John Takehara, because of what we have become as a result of his efforts.

While Takehara is known for his magnificent clay vessels, he created opportunity as well. As an educator, Takehara’s regular and extensive travels were elemental for his teaching as well as his own learning. He did not stand alone and profess; rather, he amassed the voices and experiences of people in the field who practiced excellence – Bernard Leach, Lucy Rie, Shoji Hamada – and brought the aesthetics they represented to his classroom. He collected art from every venture for the purpose of exposing students to creative diversity and inspiring them with the distinctions of fine craft.

Always in the pursuit of excellence, Takehara invited diverse artistic thinkers to expand and round out his own teaching. He expanded BSU students’ learning opportunities through the visiting artist series he initiated early in his tenure at Boise State. He hosted such ceramic icons as Paul Soldner, Peter Lane, David Shaner, and Frank Boyden, to name a few. He recognized the power of women in the field of clay art, too, and the list of visiting artists also includes Ruth Duckworth, Dora Delarious, and Ulla Viotti, among others.

The solution to the ever-present challenge of funding in the arts was simple to Takehara, who proposed to his students that if they created quality work and produced a market venue, this would generate the resources for the visiting artist workshops. Takehara initiated BSU’s annual Ceramic Sale & Student Show. The sale continues today and still provides the prospect for students to sell their fledgling art while contributing to the fund that enhances their own development.

Throughout his career, Takehara collected ceramics through purchases and trades of his works of art, building a collection of museum quality. Takehara maintained friendships with ceramists worldwide and often traveled to foreign countries to visit studios where he acquired many of the works in his collection. In 1994, Takehara donated his collection of fine contemporary ceramics by internationally recognized artists to the Boise Art Museum (BAM). His donation of 165 ceramics has generated numerous purchases and donations to support and further BAM’s ceramics collection.

A relentless perfectionist, Mr. Takehara’s inspiring, large-scale porcelain works helped to define clay as ceramic art in the Pacific Northwest during the latter half of the twentieth century and are widely cherished by devoted collectors. His pieces have an iconic power, calling the viewer to a place of contemplation; a place to recall the sublime.

http://www.artdaily.org/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=30808

Western celebrates Japan Week

When Western Japanese professor Michiko Yusa came to Bellingham in 1983, she felt like she stuck out. As a native from Japan, she said some people treated her differently. She said she could not even find the kinds of food she liked to eat. Soy sauce was hard to obtain, yet alone tofu.

Over time, Yusa witnessed Bellingham become a more progressive city. She said people today would never consider treating her as they did a couple decades ago. Three years ago, Japanese language became a major at Western, and sushi is now commonplace.

During April 27 to May 1, the Western community celebrated Japan Week, a tradition Yusa started 13 years ago. She said the original intent of the week was to increase awareness of the Japanese program and to help turn the program into a major.

Yusa said Americans’ understanding of Japan has come a long way in the past few decades.

“Our awareness has completely evolved,” Yusa said. “Overall, it is a totally different world.”

Activities throughout Japan Week included discussions, lectures and film showings. The most attended event was Japan Night, hosted by the Asia University America Program.

Western currently has 32 Japanese students enrolled from Asia University in Tokyo, Japan. The students just reached the midpoint of their 5-month stay and are business, law or economics majors who are learning English.

Past Japan Week topics have ranged from popular culture to war and peace to nature. Last year’s theme was “Return to the Origin,” because it was the 12th annual Japan Week, and traditional East Asian calendars are organized in a 12-year cycle. In 2008, Japan Week looked back at the roots of Western’s Japanese language program and examined how it has grown.

This year’s theme, selected by Yusa, was “Women in Japan.”

The theme was highlighted throughout the week by Western art history professor Julia Sapin’s lecture about women’s portrayal in Japanese advertising and by a Global Gatherings discussion regarding gender roles in Japan and the U.S.

Yusa said the role of women in Japan is a complex issue that needs to be examined from a both historical and present-day perspective.

Yusa said the way women are currently viewed in Japanese society is a result of how women were treated about 300 to 350 years ago during the samurai period. She said it was then that women first became the objects of men and had less power. Until the Middle Ages, women had more power and prestige and could be financially independent, she said.

While it is still harder for women than men to secure a career in Japan, today’s women might have more opportunities than they have had in the recent past, Yusa said.

At the Global Gatherings discussion, Asia University America Program student Sho Shimamura said he could see himself getting married and taking on some of the duties involved in raising a family and keeping up a household, as long as he could also work. The discussion group said if Shimamura is representative of the younger generation of Japanese men, Japan’s standards might be changing.

Dan Lindeman, a fiscal specialist for International Programs and Exchanges, said there is a belief in Japan that companies do not want to hire and train women because they think women will quit as soon as they get married and start a family. Lindeman said this is a belief that creates its own reality because if people believe it is true, women will be more likely to not try to get a job and have a family instead.

Edward Vajda, associate director of the Center for International Studies, helped coordinate Japan Week. He said people were able to look at Japanese culture from many perspectives. The week involved both the Western community and the Japanese international students on campus and incorporated both visual arts and linguistics.

Vajda said it is advantageous to fit many Japanese-related events into one week, otherwise the events might go unnoticed. He said any student could benefit from learning about Japan because of its special connection to Washington through the Pacific Rim and because of the high Japanese population in Washington.

During Japan Night, the Asia University students gave interactive demonstrations of different Japanese traditions, such as tea ceremonies, calligraphy, haikus and fashion.

Ellie McDermott, student services assistant for Asia University America Program, said she personally has had a great experience learning about Japanese culture. She said it was rewarding to see students sharing their own culture with friends from Western and the Bellingham community who came to participate. She said Japan Night was set up differently from other events throughout the week because it was an interactive festival.

“It is a chance to see different aspects of Japanese culture on a more one-to-one level,” McDermott said.

Ai Maekawa, an Asia University student, taught origami at Japan Night. She said origami is fun, and she has done it since she was a child.

Shimamura helped cook the food. Dishes served on Japan Night included okonomiyaki, a pan-fried food mainly made of batter and cabbage; yakisoba, a fried noodle dish; and curry rice. Shimamura demonstrated Kendo, a Japanese sport that means “way of the sword.”

Kendo is a sword-fighting martial art that involves spiritual and mental development, as well as physical improvement. It has its roots in traditional samurai swordsmanship.

Other popular martial arts sports in Japan include aikido, judo, sumo and karate. Shimamura said kendo is the most polite Japanese sport.

McDermott said having international students at Western provides a good opportunity for Western students to grow in their world views through the interactions they have with international students.

Maekawa said she has made some Western friends, but she would like to have more.

“Without leaving Bellingham, you can learn so much about a different culture and how to communicate with people from different cultures,” McDermott said.

Western senior Katy Cumby spent last year studying abroad at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies in Japan.

One thing that stood out to her was how old things were in Japan compared to Washington, Cumby said. As a native of Puyallup, Cumby said she was not used to seeing buildings that were built more than 100 years ago. She said some of the trees at temples she visited were 400 years old.

“There is all this old history, and I thought that was just really [impacting] because I had never thought about it before,” she said.

Cumby’s visit taught her as much about American customs as it did Japanese customs. She said she found out during her stay that some things were not as universal as she once thought they were. Cumby said she was surprised at how painfully slow people walk in Japan.

She said she thought walking with a purpose was a universal concept, but people in Japan tended to walk at a slower pace.

Cumby said a difference she appreciated in Japan was people’s awareness of the feelings of others around them.

She said people’s high awareness of social cues prevented others from having to come out and directly say what they need.

For instance, Cumby said if someone looked uncomfortable in a conversation, a Japanese person would know to change the subject. If someone seemed confused, a Japanese person would likely explain things further without being asked.

Also, people at her school in Japan were much more group-focused than Americans, Cumby said. Most students were involved in clubs, she said.

Despite this emphasis on groups, college students often lived at home with their parents or alone in studio apartments, she said.

Cumby said studying abroad taught her the value of interacting with people from different cultures.

Vajda said Japan Week helps increase the interaction between exchange students and Western students, which is a goal of the International Studies Center.

“One of our goals is to internationalize the campus by both bringing students here and by increasing the interaction,” Vajda said.

http://westernfrontonline.net/2009050510984/news/western-celebrates-japan-week/

Onsen (Hot Springs) in Japan

Ubayu Onsen, Yamagata

Nachikatsuura, Japan

Japanese art do in Delhi

Traditionally Japanese: At this art do at the Japan Foundation, guests caught a glimpse of the traditional Japanese art. On display were Noh Masks by Goto Terumoto and Japanese calligraphy works by Goto Kazue.

Made in India? The artist couple was visiting India for the first time. Kazue greeted everyone with a namaste. Said Terumoto, “We love Indian food, I don’t think it’s that spicy.” Yuka Koyasu, a guest, said, “Indians are a generous lot, dhanyawad.”

Dance ’n’ Drama: Students of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) presented a dance-drama titled, The Lotus Path. Debanjali Biswas, a performer said, “It traces the journey of Buddhism to different parts of the world.”

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Delhi/Japanese-art-do-in-Delhi-/articleshow/4451237.cms

Youth Learning Traditions, Future Bearers of the Art

Pass by the seemingly abandoned chapel at the foothills of Diamond Head, and you might be lucky enough to hear the booming sound of Taiko drums echoing from the building.
On this particular afternoon, the drums sound as a group of children play a very energetic and dance-like piece called Yodan-uchi. This piece involves movement around three large taiko drums, and is played to a fast-paced beat. It is an exciting sight for any passerby.

For those unfamiliar with the term, "taiko" means "big drum" in Japanese. Since it was brought to the states from Japan in the 1960s, Taiko has become an increasingly popular art form in North America. This performance art has become well known in various American communities and in colleges across the nation. But for some, taiko is not just about the music.

In an age when President Obama has inspired youth to take on civic responsibility for the good of all, so has the Taiko Center of the Pacific, a Honolulu-based taiko school, inspired youth to learn taiko to become more connected with Japanese tradition and understand their own obligation to pay respects to the art's origins.

In 1994, Chizuko Endo and world-renowned master taiko drummer Kenny Endo established the Taiko Center of the Pacific, or TCP, to provide a school where youth and adults alike could learn to drum while also observing the discipline and practices that are involved with the art form.
For instance, in the dojo they emphasize respect for the teachers, the instruments, for oneself, and for the art of taiko by bowing at the door before entering or exiting.

Through the school, the Endos formed the Taiko Center of the Pacific Youth Group, an accomplished performance group for advanced children aged 5-18. Yodan-uchi is a piece from their performance repertoire, and the energy and love of taiko is ever apparent in each song they play. For TCP, youth are especially important since they are the future of the art of Taiko.
"To be exposed to the artsgives youth better tools for doing well in their own lives as well as enriching the lives of those around them," says Kenny Endo, who has revolutionized the art form with his philosophy of tradition combined with innovation. "The important thing is to find one's path and dedicate their time to something they love."

For members of the Youth Group, taiko is that something.

"Through the years, taiko has provided me with an outlet to express myself. When I play I am able to channel all the emotions in my life into each hit of the drum," says Julia Hirata, who has been performing with the TCP Youth Group for one year, but has played taiko for about two years.

Long-time TCP Youth Group performer Ryan Luce says "there is a feeling, or 'high,' associated with playing taiko music," and he enjoys playing because of the cultural experience he acquires through the art.

This summer, the Youth Group will be taking its first trip to Japan on a Taiko Intensive Study Tour. There, they will have the invaluable opportunity to workshop with some of Japan's top taiko pioneers and apply some of the traditions they have learned.

"The trip to Japan is a natural step to discover the roots of this art form, meet new people and be exposed to the positive aspects of Japanese culture," says Endo. "Hopefully it will also inspire some of them to further learn about the rich traditions and their potential to keep creating."

The TCP Youth group will also be performing on April 25th at the Hawaii Theatre as a part of "Taiko Fest '09! Island Style," a concert organized by the Taiko Center of the Pacific. Also featured will be the Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble; Rhythm Summit Trio with Kenny Endo, Noel Okimoto, and Dean Taba; and special guests from a remote island in Japan, Hachijo Daiko.

For those children who wish to play but are not yet at performing level, TCP offers classes for kids ages 5-83, and has also brought back its Family Taiko classes to encourage parents and children to learn taiko and its Japanese traditions together. For more information on this and the concert, visit www.taikoarts.com or email info@taikoarts.com.

http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20090418/GETPUBLISHED/904180347/-1/sportsfront

Japan-America Society of Hawaii's McInerny Foundation Japan Day

Kelsey Soma
Reader Submitted

The Japan-America Society of Hawaii (JASH) is providing four of Hawaii's high schools with the opportunity to experience Japanese culture at its Japan Day on Wednesday, April 8, 2009 (sponsored by McInerny Foundation) at Hawaii Tokai International College (2241 Kapiolani Boulevard, 8th floor classrooms and 9th floor Auditorium) from 9:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

Student participants will come from Maryknoll School, Maui High School, St. Andrew's Priory, and St. Louis School for this half-day program, which features expert, community-minded volunteers who donate their time, energy, and supplies to the event.

The program highlights hands-on cultural activities that include bon dance, bonsai, calligraphy, traditional crafts, ikebana (Japanese art of flower arrangement), soroban (Japanese abacus), tea ceremony, and yukata wearing.

The program begins with a taiko demonstration by Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble, under the direction of Mr. Kenny Endo.

Since its inception in 1993, over 4,500 students from 48 public and private high schools have experienced this educational outreach program.

PROGRAM: Wednesday, April 8, 2009, Hawaii Tokai International College
Opening Ceremony w/ Taiko Performance 9:15 am
On-going Activities 9:45 am 12:15 pm
Bon Dance - Room 810 Bonsai Room 802A
Calligraphy - 9th floor Auditorium Crafts - Room 801A
Ikebana Room 802B Soroban Room 801B
Tea Ceremony - 9th floor Auditorium Yukata Room 809
PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES:
*The power and energy of taiko by Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble
*Participation in a traditional tea ceremony performed by Urasenke Foundation
*Honolulu Fukushima Bon Dance Club teaching traditional bon dance
*Creation of Japanese Crafts led by Kikufu Nippon Bunka Kenkyu Kai
*Calligraphy brush lessons by Mrs. Shokyoku Hashiro
*The art of Kimono and Yukata dressing by kimono expert Mrs. Jean Sakihara and students from Kimono Project USA at Education Laboratory School
*Giant Abacus Calculation demonstrations and instruction with Mr. Hideaki Oshima from the Araki Hiroya Soroban School
*Mrs. Jessie Nakata teaching the students the art and aesthetics of ikebana
*Bonsai arrangements led by the Hawaii Bonsai Association

The Japan-America Society of Hawaii is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with the mission of promoting understanding and friendship between the peoples of Japan and the United States through the special and unique perspective of Hawaii. The Society is committed to education and conducts six school programs from kindergarten to grade 12 and at the undergraduate level at no cost for Hawaii's students.

Information: Kelsey Soma, JASH, (808) 469-4646, ksoma@jashawaii.org.

Kodo ensemble turns drumming into art

QUINCY — It’s the rumble that gets you: the thumping, thunderous sounds of the taiko drums that are both unsettling and more than a bit exhilarating. For Kodo, one of Japan’s premier taiko groups, that rumbling is as deeply spiritual as it is dramatic – really, a window into an entire Japanese subculture flush with rites and history.

MUSIC PREVIEW

KODO At Symphony Hall, 301 Massachusetts Ave., Boston, 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets $32-$58 available at the box office and by calling 617-266-1492.

The current Kodo group, which performs at Symphony Hall on Sunday afternoon, is more than two decades old. Its forerunner developed on the island of Sado, off Japan’s northwest coast and near Okinawa, which had long had been a refuge for exiles and intellectuals, a magnet for gold diggers (gold was discovered there during the Edo period) and, later, a de facto artist colony, thanks to an influx of students in the 1960s and 70s.

The tight-knit artist community gave birth to a touring drum ensemble – an extension of the intense percussion sounds that have been a part of Japanese music for centuries. The first version of the group, called Ondekoza, debuted in the 70s, and the first Kodo was formed by several of the Ondekoza musicians in 1981. While the contemporary Kodo group draws on a number of styles, taiko drumming remains the core characteristic.

“Taiko is not simply percussion, and for that, it’s very fortunate for Kodo that we’ve had a chance to perform at Symphony Hall,” said company manager Jun Akimoto, who was preparing for what will be the group’s second trip to the hallowed concert hall. “We bring this experience to a broader audience, and to bring it to classical music lovers and jazz lovers and lots of different kinds of backgrounds gets it to people who appreciate music most.”

The Kodo musicians – there are 50 – still live on Sado and harvest rice, run an apprentice program and exist in the same communal fashion as their forebears and the island’s historical inhabitants. Musically, they continue to involve more modern Japanese sounds along with the ancient pieces that form the repertoire. Over the years, Akimoto said, Kodo has attracted former rock drummers, young composers and women.

“We have come to know that female drummers have different ideas than male drummers,” Akimoto wrote in Kodo’s press notes. “And because our different physical characteristics influence how we play, we are finding techniques and styles which male drummers never imagined.”

Akimoto said he wished the group had more time to spend in Boston, but Kodo will most certainly return. Next time, he said, he would like to broaden the visit to include other cultural activities and provide more perspective on Kodo, Sado and the taiko drum’s cultural importance.

“There are many Japanese groups that use taiko drums,” he said. “Kodo is not the same thing as taiko. Kodo is a community.”

http://www.patriotledger.com/entertainment/x1537600482/Kodo-ensemble-turns-drumming-into-art

SCI-TECH: Japanese scientist unveil humanoid walking robot

(NECN/APTV) - Japanese scientists on Monday unveiled a new humanoid walking robot at Tsukuba City, in Ibaraki prefecture, northeast of Tokyo.

HRP-4C, the latest model showcased to the media by the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) has a female face which can express various emotions.

Developers at the government-backed organization, said their "cybernetic human," wasn't ready to help with daily chores or work side by side with humans - as robotics has been billed to do in the future.

Japan has been leading the sphere of robotics technology, and the government is pushing to develop the industry as a road to growth.

Yet, scientists said it was a challenge to develop a robot which looks like human and moves like human.

At AIST, Japan's national body for the state of art technology, developers have been working on such integration for past three years.

Other robots, like the ones from Hiroshi Kobayashi at the Tokyo University of Science and Hiroshi Ishiguro at Osaka University, have human-like faces and have been tested as receptionists.

Demands are growing for socially useful robots, such as those for caring for the elderly and the sick, government officials said.

HRP-4C was designed to look like an average Japanese woman, although its silver-and-black body makes it appear to be wearing a space-suit.

The robotic framework for the HRP-4C without the face and other coverings will

go on sale for about 20 (m) million yen (200-thousand US dollars) each, and its programming technology will be made public so other people can come up with fun moves for the robot, the scientists said.

The robot shown Monday has 30 motors in its body that allows it to walk and move its arms as well as eight motors on its face to create expressions like anger and surprise.

In a demonstration for reporters, the robot waddled out, blinking, a bit like an animation figure come to life, and said, "Hello, everyone," in a tiny feminine voice while its mouth moved.

The big challenge in creating HRP-4C was making the parts small so it looks female, especially its thinner legs, said Shuji Kajita, who leads the institute's humanoid research group.

The robot will appear in a Tokyo fashion show, although without any clothes, in a special section just for the robot next week.

The following story and video is from APTV.




http://www.necn.com/Boston/SciTech/2009/03/16/Japanese-scientist-unveil/1237197705.html

Rape Victim Presses Case of Police Abuse in Japan

Run Date: 01/02/09
By Catherine Makino

WeNews correspondent

In Japan, rape is often kept hush-hush. But the high-profile case of one rape victim is challenging the silent treatment and raising questions about police practices. 'Jane,' as the victim is known, is suing police who required her to re-enact the crime.

(WOMENSENEWS)--An Australian woman who was raped by a U.S. Navy sailor in Japan in 2002 has settled the score, at least for the time being, with her assailant.

"Jane" as she calls herself, filed a civil suit against her assailant, a Wisconsin man named Bloke Deans, after the police here failed to bring criminal charges against him. In November 2004, she was awarded $49,555 in compensation from Japan's Ministry of Defense.

Now she's focused on what she calls her second rape by police officers at the nearby station where she sought help after the attack. The police didn't literally rape her, but they asked her to re-enact the crime in a way that she says left her feeling doubly assaulted.
She is seeking $182,000 in compensation.

She also says she's pressing the case to change a culture that prevents many women from bringing charges. "It is a silent culture where nobody says anything. But things are changing as more women begin to speak out," she told Women's eNews.

Although Jane has kept her real name out of news coverage, she has nonetheless become famous in Japan for talking about the taboo topic of her rape.

She sued the Kanagawa police for mistreatment and last week a judge dismissed her case in Tokyo's High Court.

Jane's lawyer, Mami Nakano, criticized the ruling. "If this kind of idea is tolerated in society, it would hinder rape victims from reporting their cases to police," she said.

In statements to the courts, the Kanagawa police have argued they are not obligated to provide rape victims with underwear or showers and it is an unreasonable request that investigations require the participation of a female officer. The police also said that because rape victims do not need urgent medical treatment they are not required to take them to emergency rooms and they do not believe Jane's assertion that she was too depressed by the crime to return to the scene. Taking re-enactment photos is normal protocol.

On Dec. 22 she appealed to Japan's Supreme Court. Jane says more than 40 lawyers from Kanagawa, Tokyo and Yokohama have offered to represent her appeal for free.

Rape in Van in Parking Lot

In the port city of Yokosuka, Jane was raped six years ago in her van in a parking lot after she left a bar in the early hours.

She says Deans, who was discharged from the USS Kitty Hawk in November 2002, has been allowed to avoid punishment by an unresponsive U.S. government despite her requests to learn how his case would be handled.

"I have been asking since the day I was raped," she says. "I even wrote letters to President Bush, Condoleezza Rice, the U.S. military and government officials. They still have not gotten back to me."

Jane alleges that after the rape, she went to the police who then kept her in custody for 12 hours. She was afraid they would arrest her if she left and says she was in shock. The police moved her from a small room, then to the scene of the crime, then back to the station in a large room with other people.

She claims she was not fed, allowed to see a doctor, or given fresh underwear.

"I went to the Japanese police to seek help, sadly they didn't believe me," said Jane, who made her standard request for anonymity to protect the privacy of her three sons. "They interrogated me for several hours and the entire time I begged them to take me to the hospital. But they said I wasn't hurt enough and, if I was, then I had to show them where. I was told that on-duty doctors are for urgent patients and rape victims were not urgent."

Asked to Re-Enact the Crime

The worst offense, she says, occurred two months later, when the Kanagawa police asked her to return to the station to help investigators take re-enactment photographs. The photographer asked her to assume the various positions that the rape entailed. Incapable of doing so, Jane gave instructions to male and female officers so the photos could be taken.

"I was forced to become the director of my own rape," Jane says. "Re-enactment photographs must be banned. No human being should have to go through that. The police treated me without compassion or dignity."

Michael O'Connell, commissioner for Victim's Rights Australia, a government advocacy group, calls it one of the worst cases of police re-victimization that he has ever encountered.
"On hearing about Jane's plight, I was appalled that a victim of sexual assault would be treated with so little respect and dignity," he said in an e-mail to Women's eNews. "Internationally, the most progressive police know that their responsibilities to victims include protecting the victim, collecting and preserving evidence, and supporting the victim."

A report in late October by the United Nations Human Rights Committee found Japanese police practices in rape cases insufficient under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. It also found a shortage of doctors and nurses in Japan trained to handle sexual violence and raised concern about weak-to-nonexistent punishment of sexual violence.

Call for Rape Crisis Centers

"Japan urgently needs to develop a national network of rape crisis centers and hotlines, linking different professionals to support sexual assault victims," Dr. Hisako Motoyama, executive director of Asia-Japan Women's Resource Center in Tokyo, said in a recent interview. "We definitely need to reform our out-of-date criminal justice system, including review of the penal code, systemic training of judges and prosecutors, and enforceable guidelines."

Rape is widely regarded as one of the most shameful experiences in Japan, said Dr. Hisako Watanabe, a child psychiatrist and assistant professor at Keio University in Tokyo who has treated rape victims, including small children, for 35 years. Many victims, she said, suffer the aftermath on their own, without proper medical and mental care or any chances of suing the perpetrator.

In 2006, Japan's Gender Equality Bureau released a study finding that of 1,578 female respondents around 7 percent said they had been raped, at least once. Of those, only about 5 percent--6 out of 114--reported the crime to the police. Of those who remained silent, nearly 40 percent said they were "embarrassed."

"The public assumption in Japan continues to be that rape does not exist; therefore there isn't any need for 24-hour rape crisis centers or support groups," Watanabe said. "Rape is still considered rare and, even when it happens, the victim could be suspected of having enticed the perpetrator into the act. Such an attitude by people around the victim could be more detrimental than the trauma of rape itself."

Catherine Makino is currently the Japan foreign correspondent for Inter Press Service and is president of the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan. She has worked for numerous other major publications and broadcasters.

http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/3874/context/archive

Expert in Japanese tea and flower arranging traditions demonstrates in WNC

ASHEVILLE – Devotees of Japanese culture are in for a treat next week when a renowned expert in Japanese art forms — including tea ceremony and ikebana, or flower arranging — shares her knowledge at a meeting of the Asheville chapter of Ikebana International.

Emiko Nishiwaki, cultural liaison from Japan to Western North Carolina, and Choy Falvey, owner of Choy's Flowers and Ikebana in Hendersonville, will present a traditional tea ceremony and a program on kimonos at 10 a.m. Feb. 24 at the Folk Art Center. The public is welcome.
Nishiwaki, who comes from the small town of Agui, Japan, is a master of ikebana in Kyoto, Japan, and a master in the art of tea ceremony, which represents the essence of Japanese culture.

Since August 2007, she has been the Japanese Outreach Program coordinator at Western Carolina University, bringing the Japanese cultural spirit to students in kindergarten through high school, as well as civic organizations, through ikebana, tea ceremony and other aspects of Japanese culture. The program is supported by the Japan Foundation, an affiliate association of the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

One of the most easily shared cultural exchanges comes through flowers — the key component of ikebana.

This ancient and disciplined art form brings creative expression through plant materials by applying certain rules of construction. Line, color, space, contrast, texture and other design teachings bring humanity and nature in harmony to create both beauty and a sense of calm to those who create ikebana.

The need for a sense of harmony is universal, Nishiwaki said in an interview.
“Japan is very fast now, very busy,” she said. “But once a week, I can listen to water sounds, listen to the winds … people in modern life need meditation, and I need it too.”

Nishiwaki said she was raised with Western ways and wasn't particularly interested in the centuries-old rituals of her ancestors. But when she traveled in Europe as a teenager and found many Westerners eager to learn more about her heritage, she decided to explore her history and its art forms.

Today, she is excited to share her knowledge with anyone who is interested, and particularly enjoys being in school classrooms in Western North Carolina teaching children about origami, Japanese folk dance and tea ceremony — a ritual that, in Japan, can last as long as five hours, she said.

“This is a great opportunity for me to be here, to see this grassroots exchange of culture,” Nishiwaki said. “I am also learning about American culture, and Asheville is a very nice place to study because it's such an artistic place.”

Sally Robinson, president of the Asheville chapter of Ikebana International, who is hosting Nishiwaki through July in her Montreat home, said she became enchanted with Japanese culture when her husband's job took them to Tokyo for seven years in the 1970s.

“Everyone is really looking forward to the program on the 24{+t}{+h}, and I hope a lot of people will come,” Robinson said. “I think the world needs what Emiko is talking about … quiet times and appreciation of simple beauty. I believe that's important for all of us.”

http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009902160302

Samurai archery, an ancient sport, still thrives

By ERIC TALMADGE

ZUSHI, Japan (AP) — It is about as far from the Olympic sport of archery as it can get. The bow is taller than the person shooting it, and, to the uninitiated, it appears lopsided and unbalanced. There are no sights, no high-tech stabilizers.

And, of course, it is done on horseback, at upward of 40 mph.

It's called yabusame, and it is the sport of the samurai.

Each year, archers in feudal shooting gear climb atop their decorated mounts for a lively competition on the beach of Zushi, a town just south of Tokyo, galloping in the sand as thousands of onlookers cheer and shout. The first competition was held here in 1199.

The scene is like something out of a movie by the great Akira Kurosawa. Banners flap in the ocean wind marking the beginning and end of the shooting runway. Little boys in bright robes and black hats scamper about collecting the arrows and the debris from the wooden or clay targets destroyed by each hit.

"There is nothing like this outside of Japan," said Ietaka Kaneko, who heads the Japan Equestrian Archery Association and the Takeda School of Horseback Archery, which traces its origins back more than 800 years.

The targets, held about seven feet aloft on small poles or scaffoldings, are roughly the size of a mounted opponent's chest. There are three along the runway, which is only 165 yards long, giving the archer just enough time to raise his bow, load and shoot — three times — all the while spurring on his horse.

When the dull, turnip-shaped tip of an arrow strikes just right, the board explodes in a blur of splinters. But as often as not, the arrows miss, sailing past the targets and thudding into the canvas behind them.

In battle, hitting the target was the whole idea. But yabusame has from its origins been almost as much an art as a sport. In many competitions, hitting the target is almost an afterthought — archers are judged, if they are judged at all, on the beauty of their run and the form they display as they release each arrow.

Here, hitting counts.

"Many schools today see yabusame as more of a ceremonial thing," said Kaneko, a retired veterinarian. "In our school, it is our earnest desire to connect."

Each score brings a loud round of awed cheers and raucous applause and each splintered target is branded with a hot iron commemorating the day and recycled as a good luck charm. A long line stretches along the beach well before the competition is over as spectators make sure they go home with a piece for their collection.

Yabusame in Japan is something like polo in England, or rodeos in America.

Very few people actually participate in yabusame, because few have access to horses or the time to learn all the technique involved in riding them for sport. But Kaneko, whose family roots are in the now-defunct samurai class, grew up around them and his steeds were trained specifically for archery competitions.

"I have been shooting since I was 17," he said. He's 87 now, and was on hand to officiate at this year's beach competition, though he did not shoot at any targets. Instead, he started it all off, as drums beat, with a symbolic draw at the cloud-filled sky.

"The most difficult part is staying absolutely stable no matter how fast the horse is galloping," he said. "The style is not like Western or European equestrian riding."

Archers don't actually sit. They squat, using special stirrups and very light saddles.
There are three main types of shooting.

The first, and most common, involves releasing the arrow at a target directly to the side of the archer from about 10 feet. Targets can also be placed obliquely to the front of the archer's path, or up to 50 feet away.

"When people think of the samurai, they don't realize that in the old days, archery was more important in battle than swords," said Hisashi Yoshimi, one of the featured shooters at the beach competition. "Archers didn't shoot at targets close up. They kept a distance and fired upward so that the arrows would rain down on advancing troops."

Yoshimi said that tradition is reflected in the longbows, which are better suited for long-range attacks on a general area rather than picking off single adversaries.

"The bows haven't really been adapted for this kind of shooting, because there is a big part of the sport that is spiritual, rather than practical," he said. "That's a lot of its appeal."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jDHl8FFiJ7cZ1fqDG9kHU-1jjfewD95GD28O0

Azuchi Momoyama Period Art

Suit of Armor flanked by sword and bow Japan Late Momoyama period-early Edo period early 17th century
http://www.flickr.com/photos/44124324682@N01/424133311/



Cherry Blossom Viewing (detail), Momoyama period (1573–1615), 17th centuryKano Naganobu (1577–1654)Pair of six-panel folding screens; ink, color, and gold on paper; each 58 7/8 x 11 ft. 8 1/4 in. (149.4 x 356.1 cm)Tokyo National Museum, National Treasure

http://www.metmuseum.org/special/Oribe/8.L.htm






Hasegawa Tohaku. Pine Forest. Momoyama Period. 16-17th C
http://instructional1.calstatela.edu/bevans/Art101/Art101B-11-Japan/WebPage-Full.00027.html

Gift Of Conservation From Japan Comes To Houston Museum

In January 2009, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, will unveil a pair of 17th-century six-paneled screens from its permanent collection newly restored by conservation experts in Japan.
The screens were among only nine objects selected last year from prestigious Asian collections around the world for a competitive conservation program overseen by Japan’s National Research Institute for Cultural Properties.

The MFAH will present the transformed screens, last shown at the museum in 2005, in Art Unfolded: The Gift of Conservation from Japan from January 17 through February 22, 2009 in the Caroline Wiess Law Building. The exhibition will feature a presentation describing the conservation process, including materials used, and a video of the Hie Sanno festival depicted on the screens. The screens, titled Hie Sanno Sairei-Zu, will eventually be the centerpiece of a new MFAH gallery devoted to Japanese art scheduled to open in winter 2009-2010.

Conservators at the Association of Conservation for National Treasures, Kyushu Branch Studio at the Kyushu National Museum, carefully implemented their conservation of the Hie Sanno screens over nine months. They treated the painted panels of the screen for surface damage and pigment deterioration, replaced the backing and border fabrics of the panels, and reattached the original metal fittings.

"Japan’s passion for the preservation of tradition and art is well-recognized, and the museum is fortunate to be the recipient of that passion," said Wynne Phelan, MFAH conservation director. "The masterful work of the Kyushu experts has guaranteed the long-term preservation of the screens."

The Hie Sanno Sairei-Zu screens derive from the practice of painting panoramic views of the city of Kyoto and its environs that evolved in the 16th century. Festival screens adopt the same elevated vantage point and panoramic presentation as city view paintings, but also have a unique narrative and anecdotal quality. Festival screens became an independent subject matter in the Momoyama period (1573-1615), and are often remarkably faithful to the topography and events being portrayed.

The Hie Sanno festival is held every April in tribute to peace and a rich harvest. It dates from 1072 and takes place at the Hiyoshi Taisha Shrine in Sakamoto, an historic village on Lake Biwa that lies at the foot of Mount Hie, near Kyoto. Sairei in the title of the screens means festival and Zu means diagram or illustration.

The MFAH screens, each about 5 feet by 12 feet, describe the village and shrine complex set against the beautiful landscape around Lake Biwa. The narrative of the screen reads right to left. The upper middle part of the right screen shows the Hiyoshi Taisha Shrine complex. A distinctive large red gate (torii) marks the boundary of the shrine’s sacred space.

The Jinko-sai, the great procession of large portable shrines from other villages, departs through the Hiyoshi Taisha Shrine’s red gate toward Sakamoto. The heavy shrines are transported by many men as other men on horseback oversee the proceedings. In the left screen, villagers watch as the portable shrines are carried onto boats on Lake Biwa to return to their villages.
Hie Sanno Sairei-Zu was given to the museum in 1996 as a bequest of Mrs. Dudley C. Sharp, Sr., who was a generous supporter of Asian art at the MFAH. -- www.mfah.org

http://www.huliq.com/13/74758/gift-conservation-japan-comes-houston-museum

6th Asian Print Awards (2008 APAs) Presented in Singapore; Recognizing Innovations and Outstanding Achievements Across Asia

Singapore, Nov 30, 2008 (ACN Newswire via COMTEX) -- The 6th Asian Print Awards took place at the Shangri La Hotel in Singapore on Friday night, November 28, at a gathering of Asia's leading print professionals and print manufacturers. The event featured more than 20 awards with over 700 participants witnessing first hand the creme de la creme of Asian printers.
Paul Callaghan, Chairman of Asian Print Awards (APA) said, "Print is relevant to most businesses. Such a visual industry requires the recognition and support from its peer members to encourage higher standards and the continual pursuit of the highest possible quality. The event is a platform to showcase the works of even the most humble business alongside with the main industry players to allow a true exhibition of the capabilities present in Asia.

"The objectives set out by the Asian Print Awards are to recognise the best Asia has to offer in all areas of print and packaging production. 'Achieving excellence' and being awarded a medal is the ultimate accolade that Asian companies can strive for. To ensure the value of the awards, fair play is strictly enforced and entries are judged through coded entry numbers to guarantee that neutrality takes place."

The 6th APA has always enjoyed strong support in the Asian print community from countries such as China, Hong Kong, Japan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mauritius, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam. This year there is also a huge influx of entries from Japan; an estimate of 250 more entries than the previous year as the awards gain more recognition in Asia. Winning gold at the APA took more on quality than before as jurors said that relevance and excellence were just basics for consideration. Entries have to ensure an element of precise print fineness to win gold.

"It must be remembered that this competition is judged on the quality of the print, it does not matter how fancy or clever a design may be or the number of processes used, the ultimate goal is to achieve print excellence," said Alf Carrigan, chairman of the judging panel for APA.
This evening of celebration has covered all areas of print production, with special focuses on Platinum Sponsor Awards including: Best in digital colour proofing - Epson; Best use of the digital printing process - Fuji Xerox; Best application of creative colour - GMG, Best in Sheetfed offset - Heidelberg; Best in innovative printing - Kodak; Best in more than one production process - Phoenix Blankets; Environmental Printer Awards - technotrans; Best in web offset printing - UPM; and Best in packaging printing and converting processes - Bottcher Systems.

- 6th Asian Print Awards '2008 APA' Winners - 1. Posters, Showcards

Gold - Cyberprint Company Limited - Thailand
Silver - Aksorn Sampas Press (1987) Co. Ltd - Thailand
Bronze - Yamada Photo Process Incorporation - Japan
Bronze - Taisei Futaba Industry Co. Ltd - Japan

2. Leaflets, Flyers, Folders and Brochures

Gold - Taisei Futaba Industry Co. Ltd - Japan
Silver - Ramya Reprographic Pvt Ltd - India
Bronze - Pragati Offset Pvt Ltd - India
Bronze - Aksorn Sampas Press (1987) Co. Ltd - Thailand

3. Postcards and Greeting Cards

Gold - Phongwarin Printing Ltd - Thailand
Silver - Taisei Futaba Industry Co. Ltd - Japan
Bronze - Supornchai Die-cut Part Ltd - Thailand

4. Multi-Piece Productions and Campaigns

Gold - PT Suburmitra Grafistama - Indonesia
Silver - C&C Offset Printing Co Ltd - Hong Kong
Bronze - Cross Incorporation - Japan
Bronze - Trinity Publishing Co Ltd - Thailand

5. Catalogues, Booklets

Gold - Cyberprint Company Limited - Thailand
Silver - Urano Co. Ltd. - Japan
Bronze - C&C Offset Printing Co Ltd - Hong Kong
Bronze - Yamada Photo Process Inc - Japan

6. Sheetfed Magazines

Gold - BHS Book Printing Sdn Bhd - Malaysia
Silver - SPH Magazines Pte Ltd - Singapore
Bronze - Amarin Printing & Publishing Public Co Ltd - Thailand
Bronze - Silverpoint Press Pvt Ltd - India

7. Calenders

Gold - Thomson Press India Limited - India
Silver - Pragati Offset Pvt Ltd - India
Bronze - Cyberprint Company Limited - Thailand

8. Limited Editions and Art Reproductions

Gold - C&C Joint Printing Co (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong
Silver - Pragati Offset Pvt Ltd - India
Bronze - Cyberprint Company Limited - Thailand
Bronze - Li Feng Ya Commercial Printing (Shenzhen) Pte Ltd - China

9. Book Printing (Less than 4 colours)

Gold - Everbest Printing Co Ltd - China
Silver - C&C Joint Printing Co (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong
Bronze - Shoeido Printing Co Ltd - Japan

10. Book Printing (4 or more colours)

Gold - C&C Offset Printing Co Ltd - Hong Kong
Silver - Eins Corporation - Japan
Bronze - Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd - Thailand
Bronze - Everbest Printing Co Ltd - China

11. Packaging offset printing

Gold - K.P.P. Packaging Pte Ltd - Singapore
Gold - Shanghai Jielong Art Printing Co Ltd - China
Silver - Linocraft Printers Sdn Bhd - Malaysia
Bronze - Printing Solution Co Ltd - Thailand

12. Web Offset (Coated Stock 70gsm and up)

Gold - Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd - Thailand
Silver - Shanghai Li Feng Ya Commercial Printing (Shenzhen) Pte Ltd - China
Bronze - C&C Offset Printing Co Ltd - Hong Kong

13. Web Offset (LWC 65gsm or less)

Gold - Times Printers Pte Ltd - Singapore
Silver - C&C Offset Printing Co Ltd - Hong Kong
Bronze - Ringier Print (HK) Ltd - Hong Kong

14. Digital Printing Electrographic/Laser

Gold - PT Suburmitra Grafistama - Indonesia
Silver - Soontorn Film Co Ltd - Thailand
Bronze - C & C Security Printing - Hong Kong

15. Digital Printing Ink Jet

Gold - Standard (Chan's) Co - Hongkong
Silver - Asahi Advertising Incorporation - Japan
Bronze - Shivang Creations Private Limited - India

16. Embellishment

Gold - Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd - Thailand
Silver - Leo Paper Products Limited - Hongkong
Bronze - Winson Press Pte Ltd - Singapore

17. Self Promotion

Gold - Pragati Offset Pvt Ltd - India
Silver - Leo Paper Products Limited - Hongkong
Bronze - ICR Co. Ltd (International Creative Room) - Japan

18. Innovation in Printing

Gold - Siam Offset Co Ltd - Thailand

19. Speciality Printing

Gold - C&C Offset Printing Co Ltd - Hong Kong
Silver - Morio Co Ltd - Thailand
Bronze - Prodon Enterprises - India

20. Digital Colour Proofing

Gold - Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd - Thailand
Silver - Schawk Imaging (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. - China
Bronze - Siam Toppan Packaging Co Ltd - Thailand

- 2008 APA Platinum Sponsor Awards -
I. Best in Sheetfed Offset - Heidelberg Platinum Sponsor Award
Entrant: Cyberprint Company Limited
Country: Thailand
Prepress: Soonthorn Film
Printer: Cyberprint Company Limited
II. Best Application of Creative Colour - GMG Platinum Sponsor Award
Entrant: Shivang Creations Private Limited
Country: India
Prepress: Shivang Creations Private Limited
Printer: Shivang Creations Private Limited
III. Best in Digital Colour Proofing - Epson Platinum Sponsor Award
Entrant: Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd
Country: Thailand
Prepress: Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd
Printer: Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd
IV. Best Use of the Digital Printing Process - Fuji Xerox Platinum Sponsor Award
Entrant: PT Suburmitra GXtra Phoenix Blanket
rafistama
Country: Indonesia
Prepress: Kisah Personal Publishing
Printer: PT Suburmitra Grafistama
V. Best in Innovative Printing - Kodak Platinum Sponsor Award
Entrant: Siam Offset Co Ltd
Country: Thailand
Prepress: Imagin Graphic Co Ltd
Printer: Siam Offset Co Ltd
VI. Best in Web Offset Printing - UPM Platinum Sponsor Award
Entrant: Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd
Country: Thailand
Prepress: Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd
Printer: Sirivatana Interprint Co Ltd
VII. Best in Packaging Printing and Converting Processes - Bottcher Systems Platinum Sponsor Award
Entrant: K.P.P. Packaging Pte Ltd
Country: Singapore
Prepress: K.P.P. Packaging Pte Ltd
Printer: K.P.P. Packaging Pte Ltd
VIII. Best in More than One Production Process - Phoenix Blankets Platinum Sponsor Award
Entrant: Hong Kong Economic Times Limited
Country: Thailand
Printer: Cyberprint Company Limited
IX. Environmental Printer Awards - technotrans Platinum Sponsor Award
Entrant: Thumbprints Company Sdn Bhd
Country: Malaysia

2008 APA Gold Sponsors
Agfa, Asian Printing Equipment Centre, CGS Publishing Technologies, Day International, EskoArtwork, Fuji Film, Goss International, Hewlett Packard, Hostmann - Steinberg, IST METZ GmbH, Komori, Konica Minolta, MAN Ferrostaal, MAN Roland, Oce, Ricoh, Dainippon Screen, Thai Print Awards 2007

2008 APA Patrons
Esko Artworks, Canon, KBA, X-Rite (Official Supplier of 6th APA)

2008 APA Supporting Associations
Print & Media Association Singapore (PMAS), The Thai Printing Association, PEIAC, Indonesia Print Awards (IPA)

2008 APA Title sponsor
Messe Dusseldorf GmbH - event organiser of drupa 2008
About Asian Print Awards (APA)

The Annual Asian Print Awards was founded to recognise outstanding achievement in the print and packaging industries across Asia. With more than half the world's population represented in this fast growing area, communication in the form of printed matter links Asia's diverse cultures. It is imperative that such print achievements do not go unrecognised, especially among the population base that Asia enjoys. The entries are judged on a wholly quality oriented set of criteria to ensure that fair play is enacted at all times. To further enforced neutrality, the companies' names will not be disclosed and entries are judged through a coded entry number. The Independent Judging Panel comprises ten highly qualified personnel from within Asia and around the world. Please visit www.asianprintawards.com.sg.

About Callahan Publishing Pte Ltd

Callahan Publishing delivers the only regional printing trade publications in Asia. It closes the knowledge gap between the United States and Europe by delivering the latest development in the Asian markets. The magazines by Callahan Publishing are circulated to more than 11,000 companies in 13 countries monthly, including developing markets like China and Indochina. These magazines are a genuine source of market information for printers, manufacturers and suppliers. It also provides launch platforms for new products introduced to Asia. Please visit www.cpublish.com.sg.

Contact: Callahan Publishing Pte Ltd
116 Lavander Street
Unit 03-02
Pek Chuan Building
Singapore 338730
E-mail: paul[at]cpublish.com.sg
Website: www.asianprintawards.com.sg

http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/6th-Asian-Print-Awards-2008/story.aspx?guid=%7B3A1BF1B5-E3B9-4AF1-BBAB-3B6141F94803%7D

Poof! goes the art work as taboos broken

The skies above the Hiroshima Peace Memorial were perfectly clear last Tuesday morning — until a small plane appeared and started writing in smoke a Japanese word that could be translated as "Bang!"

In an article the next day, the local Chugoku Shimbun reported it was flooded with phone calls from citizens who had seen the skywriting, which was obviously designed to remind them of the atomic bombing of the city 63 years ago. Most callers, the newspaper reported, expressed "displeasure."

It turns out that the stunt was the latest project by artist group Chim 596 Pom, whose shock tactics The Japan Times covered this summer. They were filming the word as it floated in the sky above the memorial that they planned to submit for a solo show at Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art next month.

But not any more. The stunt was denounced by Sunao Tsuboi, head of an association of atomic-bomb victims' groups in Hiroshima, and attracted vitriolic criticism on the infamous 2Channel Web site, resulting in Ryuta Ushiro, the normally footloose leader of Chim 596 Pom, offering a public apology. The exhibition was also canceled.

The Japanese word the artists wrote in the sky was "pika" — the kind of term used in manga to describe bright flashes of light. It is also used in popular literature to describe the blinding flash of an atomic-bomb explosion. Ushiro said he had hoped the work would draw attention to perceived ignorance among younger generations about the atomic bombing.

But that wasn't enough to placate the detractors. Tsuboi commented wryly that the artists were entertaining themselves at the expense of others and that they should think more seriously about the issues involved. 2 Channel was awash with complaints, from resentment that Tokyo-artists were exploiting Hiroshima to simple statements of hatred.

With that abuse, the public apology and, above all, the canceled exhibition, Chim 596 Pom, who had enjoyed a meteoric rise of late, have suffered a big setback. And it has been at the hands of one of this country's long-standing, unique and formidable artistic taboos: facetiousness with respect to the atomic bombings.

Journalist Makoto Murata, who has been observing the Japanese art world for 30 years, says "the atomic bombings have always been a sensitive issue," noting that 10 years ago the Chinese artist Cai Guoqiang ran into similar difficulties when he tried to hold one of his famous explosion works in Hiroshima. (His international reputation has now made such projects possible.)

There are other artistic taboos in Japan that outsiders might find puzzling. The Emperor is accorded such protection that he is no doubt the envy of royal families the world over. In 1986, Nobuyuki Oura's "Holding Perspective," a collage series depicting him alongside, for example, tattooed buttocks, caused a stir when it was purchased by the Museum of Modern Art, Toyama. Over 300 rightwingers turned up at the prefectural assembly demanding the works be sold, and they ended up getting their way.

Murata remembered that in the mid 1990s, too, another argument flared when a similarly "disrespectful" painting by Kikuji Yamashita was being considered for a major retrospective of the artist. The show ended up going on without it.

Japan's museums have always been averse to sexually explicit art, too, says Murata. "Museums just wouldn't show such work, exercising jishu kisei — or self-regulation or restraint."
Four years ago, the Yokohama Museum of Art was forced to pull a sexually confrontational exhibit from its walls. The video work, by Tadasu Takamine, showed a disabled person being assisted in masturbation.

Still, Murata says the Takamine case demonstrates that over the last few years Japan's museums have become more willing to confront their nation's taboos.

"In the past, museums just wouldn't have shown such work," he says. These days they might show it, but try to circumvent problems by issuing warnings to visitors about the content.
The Mori Art Museum adopted that approach with shunga — pornographic ukiyo-e (genre painting) woodblock prints — in 2003. The Yokohama Triennale has done the same this year.
While purists might fret that such warnings undermine the very shock that such art is likely trying to harness, it seems there is currently no other option.

There are indications that advance notice might have saved Chim 596 Pom, too. Among the shouted abuse online were comments asking why the artists and the museum hadn't informed the victims' groups in advance. The suggestion is that with fair warning, even their understandably delicate sensibilities might have been able to cope with the affront.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fa20081030ec.html

The Healing Art of Reiki

Reiki is a Japanese type of spiritual practice also used for stress reduction and relaxation. It is a technique that also helps promote healing either for self or for other people. It is characterized as a practice of "laying of hands".

The healing powers of the technique are based on the idea that there is an unseen "life force energy" that flows through each person. This life force is said to be the reason why people are alive. When one's life force energy is low, then people are likely to get sick or feel weak. If the life force is high, people fell healthy and happy.

Reiki is also a form of meditation used as a type of therapy for treating physical, emotional, and mental diseases. The name Reiki is taken from two Japanese characters that describe energy itself. The word "rei", which means "unseen" or "spiritual" and "ki" which means "energy" or "life force" is combined to become Reiki. In English, its meaning is usually given as "universal life energy".

It was Mikao Usui who was known to have developed Reiki in 20th century Japan. Story has it that Usui received the ability of healing after going through three weeks of fasting and meditating on top of Mount Kurama. Practitioners of Reiki use a technique similar to that of the laying on of hands.

This action is said to promote the channeling of "healing energy" to another person. The energy flows through the palms and brings along with it healing powers that can be used for self-treatment as well as for treating others.

Reiki is a simple, natural as well as safe method of dispensing spiritual healing and self-improvement. It is said to be effective in providing alternative treatment for virtually every known illness and malady. Not only that, Reiki also helps create an added beneficial effect, that of spiritual healing. This method is also said to work well when combined with other medical or therapeutic techniques to help relieve side effects and promote recovery.

Reiki, although seen as a very powerful healing technique, is an amazingly simple to learn. Reiki and the ability to use it effectively cannot be taught in the usual sense. The skill is said to be "transferred" to the student during a Reiki class. This ability is not merely learned but is passed on by a Reiki master to the student during a gathering known as "attunement". After the skill has been passed on, it allows the student to tap into an unlimited supply of "life force energy" that can then be used to improve one's health and enhance the one's quality of life.

Although the practice of Reiki may be spiritual in nature, it is not considered as a religion. There are no set of beliefs that one should learn about before learning to practice the technique known as Reiki. The practice does not depend on any form of dogma.

It will work whether the student believes it or not. But it is said that the practice of Reiki helps people to keep in touch of their spiritual selves rather than the intellectual concept that it provides.

The practice of Reiki also aims to develop and promote living in harmony with others. Aside from practicing Reiki and its principles, the founder of the Reiki system, Mikao Usui also recommends the practice of simple ethical ideals that can lead to peace and harmony among people. Getting to know what Reiki is may help people not only become a healing channel but also a tool to promote peace among other people.

Visit us at TrainingReiki.com and find out more about the ancient healing art of Reiki, what is a Reiki attunement, how you can obtain a Reiki certification and howReiki crystals can help you.

http://www.bestsyndication.com/?q=node/18291

Japan, China building stronger ties through art

Norio Sugawara / Yomiuri Shimbun Senior Writer

Cultural exchanges in various fields are recently under way between Japan and China, helping the nations deepen their ties through contemporary art.

The exhibition "Avant-Garde China," to be held until Oct. 20 at the National Art Center, Tokyo, in Roppongi, Minato Ward, Tokyo, is designed to look back at the past 20 years of contemporary Chinese art.

With about 50 important works from contemporary artists on display, the exhibition shows the outline of Chinese art in the post-Cultural Revolution era.

In the past, contemporary Chinese art has been shown in one-person exhibitions or along with other Asian art.

Of the artists often known as the best four painters in China, works of three, including Wang Guangyi, are on display.

Also on display are video documentaries, including footage of radical performance pieces by artists such as Ma Liuming, that describe oppression under China's one-party rule.

The exhibition also includes works created by artists who left the country around the time of the Tiananmen Square Incident in 1989, but it focuses on the works created before they left to emphasize works originating in China.

Among the 14 artists--counting a two-person collaboration as one--and two artistic groups, the exhibition includes artists whose works were deemed immoral and were censored by the authorities around the time of the Tiananmen incident.

The most significant point of the exhibition is that the works are ones Japanese experts wanted to present to the public, rather than those the Chinese wanted to present.

According to spokesmen for the National Art Center, Tokyo, and the National Museum of Art, Osaka, which organized the exhibition, the Chinese sounded out the possibility of jointly organizing the exhibition.

Fearful of not being able to select the works it wanted to display, the Japanese side declined the joint approach and collected works directly from artists living in China and from museums and art galleries, both inside and outside China.

Consequently, the Japanese organizers had to spend extra time and money on such tasks as clearing customs to bring the works into Japan. Thanks to these efforts, the organizers were able to hold an exhibition "with contents that met our standards," as Akira Tatehata, director of the National Museum of Art, Osaka, put it.

Sun Yuan and Peng Yu's displayed collaborative work, "Home for the Aged," featured resin images of elderly people in wheelchairs, highlighting the aging society issue.

The duo, who came to Japan while the exhibition was being held, described the environment surrounding the art scene in China, saying: "No country gives its people unlimited freedom. We've presented our works in a closed-door, underground setting, but today we can exhibit our works with more freedom than ever before.

"Whether or not people really understand what we intended to create, we're becoming more popular."

Cultural interactions are deepened when we really understand our partners and the exhibition deserves some credit for the recent increase in art exchanges between Japan and China.
Six years ago, the Tokyo Gallery + BTAP, based in Ginza, Tokyo, opened a gallery in Beijing. In spring this year, two other Japanese galleries opened in Beijing.

One of the two, the Mizuma Art Gallery, based in Meguro Ward, Tokyo, opened a gallery in Caochangdi, Beijing, promoting the works of young Japanese artists such as Makoto Aida and Akira Yamaguchi.

Sueo Mizuma, who owns the gallery, said, "There are a number of foreign galleries, including first-class galleries from New York, that have opened branches in Beijing, and attracted visitors from all over the world.

"From this enthusiasm, I knew by intuition that Beijing would become the center of the art scene in Asia. In the past, Japanese artists headed for Europe and the United States to pursue success, but in the years ahead their success in China will open their way to the world, I think," he said.
The other Japanese gallery in Beijing is Wada Fine Arts, based in Tsukiji, Chuo Ward, Tokyo.

Yumie Wada, the gallery's owner, said, "We started our trading with people who came to our shop in Beijing from Indonesia and Singapore. While our headquarters are in Tokyo, our Beijing branch is serving as a key showcase."

Galleries from other Asian countries have also opened branches in China. A leading gallery in Seoul held an exhibition of contemporary Japanese art at its Beijing branch, selling almost all the works put on sale, this year and last year.

A gallery based in Taipei plans to hold a one-person exhibition of a young Japanese painter at its branch in Shanghai, indicating that Beijing is not the only place where foreign galleries are opening in China.

In China, taxes of more than 30 percent are to be imposed on imported art works and their trading. On the other hand, foreigners can enjoy lower office rent and labor costs to operate their galleries.

When it comes to art auctions in recent years, the rapidly rising prices of Chinese art have sparked interest among collectors in works created in neighboring countries, in particular, those paintings created by young Japanese artists.

Now that the Beijing Olympics are over, and with the Chinese economy losing steam, changes that could impact the art scene there are expected. Yet, there are likely to be between Japan and China a growing number of exchanges of contemporary art that promote democracy and freedom in the years ahead.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/features/culture/20080911TDY04304.htm

Origami

Origami is the ancient art of Japanese paper folding, an art form spanning over 1,000 years.
A folk art, a creative art, a mathematical puzzle, a game-- all of these terms describe origami. Some people are attracted to origami for its simplicity, while others marvel at the minds of people who can devise the patterns for such ingenious creations. Some look to origami as a way to entertain, while others find it has a calming, relaxing effect.

Origami is unique among paper crafts in that it requires no materials other than the paper itself. Cutting, gluing, or drawing on the paper is avoided, using only paper folding to create the desired result. No special skills or artistic talent are needed for origami, although a good amount of patience and perseverance are very helpful. Models can be folded by following instructions exactly. Experimenting with different folds may lead to a totally new, original paper-fold.

The word "origami" comes from the Japanese language. "Ori" means folded and "kami" means paper. Paper-folding as a traditional folding art pervaded the Japanese culture more strongly than any other. But traditional paper-folding did not exist in Japan alone.

Papermaking was developed in China two thousand years ago but the Chinese did not readily share this knowledge. It eventually traveled to Korea and then Japan by the seventh century. This "trade secret" then spread in the direction of the Arab world, reaching Spain by the twelfth century.

Origami was first practiced in the Japanese imperial Court, where it was considered an amusing and elegant way of passing the time. Over the centuries the skill has been passed down to ordinary people, who took it up with enthusiasm and made it into the folk art that it is today. Today in Japan the art of paper-folding is as widely practiced by children, parents and grandparents as it was centuries ago. And for a number of years now origami has been immensely popular here in the western world.

During this journey, did simple paper-folding spread with the knowledge of papermaking? Or did each country independently discover that paper could not only be written and drawn on, but manipulated into forms? Despite the fact that some traditional models from different paper-folding traditions are similar, most people believe that each tradition developed its own paper-folding ideas.

Creative Paper-folding:

Today, origami is an international creative pastime. Building upon the basics of the traditional designs, many folders follow the creative path of leaders such as Master Akira Yoshizawa and philosopher Miguel de Unanmuno, devising their own new designs. The repertoire of a couple hundred traditional folds in the beginning of the twentieth century has grown to over tens of thousands now with endless number yet to be discovered.

Originally considered a child's activity origami now attracts the interest of mathematicians, engineers, scientists, computer programmers, college professors and professional artists. It is an art form than can be practiced by preschoolers to senior citizens, those who are hospitalized, handicapped, or blind, those who wish to share a craft with a group of friends, and those who wish to explore the infinite possibilities of paper-folding.

This excerpt is taken from The Art of Origami by Gay Merrill Gross.

Japanese Prints Tell the Story of Modern Japan in Exhibition at the Ringling Museum

SARASOTA.- Selected works from the Ringling Museum’s important collection of Japanese shin hanga and sosaku hanga woodblock prints, dating from the first half of the 20th century, are presented in Tradition and Transformation: Modern Masters of the Japanese Print, through January 4, 2009 in the Ulla R. and Arthur F. Searing Wing.

“We are committed to building awareness of Asian art at the Museum,” said Dr. John Wetenhall Executive Director of the Ringling Museum. “It is our hope that the Ringling Museum of Art will be recognized not only for its strength in Baroque and Renaissance art, but also for our breadth and quality of Asian art.”

Woodblock printing is an ancient art of Japan, dating back to the Nara period (710-784). Two woodblock print movements, shin hanga and sosaku hanga, emerged during the twentieth century, each reflecting the unique range of tastes, talents and interests of Japan’s modern culture, yet echoing the traditions of their ancestors.

Artists of the shin hanga or “new prints” movement present the modern beauty of Japan and Japanese culture using the traditional collaborative methods of their ancestors. In efforts to popularize their work, these artists incorporated Western aesthetic elements into their prints.

These elements included a greater sense of perspective, color gradation and the inclusion of an expanded spectrum of subject matter indicative of modern life such as utility poles and industrial symbols.

Artists of the sosaku hanga or “creative prints” movement are less traditional than the shin hanga artists. An earthquake in 1923 destroyed Tokyo and became the catalyst for the sosaka hanga movement. Mimicking the city’s resurrection through use of concrete and steel versus traditional wooden structures, artists of the sosaku hanga movement rebuilt woodblock printing on modern terms. Using the same medium, the artists became more individualistic in their methods as well as in their subject matter, content and aesthetic qualities and representation.

Tradition and Transformation features 40 examples of shin hanga and sosaku hanga from the Ringling’s permanent collection and includes such noteworthy artists such as Kiyoshi Saito and Koshiro Onchi.

http://www.artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=2&int_new=25499

Renowned Japanese artist to teach two courses at DSU this fall

Dickinson State University will offer two unique art courses this fall thanks to the generosity of artist Eitaro Sato, who has volunteered to serve as a visiting professor of art. Sato also will supply materials for the students in the calligraphy course, including ink, brushes and rice paper.
Sato is a Japanese artist who specializes in sculpture and calligraphy. He has won numerous prizes in both venues and is highly respected in Japan as a nationally recognized sculptor of bronze. He also is the executive director of Satoe Academy, the Japanese government-authorized non-profit school corporation that administers and manages one law school, one university, two colleges, four high schools, two junior high schools and one elementary school. All of Sato’s schools are located in or near Saitama, Japan, which is near Tokyo.

“The university is fortunate to have an artist of Mr. Sato’s caliber volunteer to teach our students,” said Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Rich Brauhn. “We appreciate his willingness to share his time and talent and look forward to his arrival on campus this fall.”

Sato will teach a calligraphy course and a clay sculpture course from Sept. 1-Oct. 31. The 1-credit courses will meet one day a week and are open to enrolled DSU students and to the general public as audit courses. The calligraphy course will be held at Hawks Point and the clay sculpture course will be held in the Art Building on South Campus. Sato will be accompanied at DSU by Professor Michio Matsui, who will act as interpreter. Matsui is a faculty member in the School of Tourism at Kobe Shukugawa Gakuin University, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan.

Matsui describes Sato, who is 81 years old, as “very disciplined,” stating that he rises each day at 4 a.m. to work on his art before going to his office to oversee his 11 schools.

Sato, Matsui and Junko Tanaka, principal at Sakae Higashi Junior-Senior High School, Saitama, Japan, visited DSU last week to explore the campus and finalize arrangements for Sato’s fall courses. During their visit, Sato gave calligraphy demonstrations to a number of people on campus. To see a photo of Sato at work, please visit http://dickinsonstate.com/images/sato.png.

Those interested in enrolling in one or both of Sato’s courses can contact the Office of Academic Records at 701-483-2331 for more information. Those wishing to audit a course will be required to pay a small fee. Some experience in sculpture is recommended for the clay sculpture course. No experience is necessary to enroll in the calligraphy course. Class sizes are limited to 15-20 students per course.

http://www.dickinsonstate.com/digest.asp?ArticleID=2397