Visual Arts
Highlights
“A Cut Above” is a group show that explores hand-cut work in paper, wood, prints and sculpture. Continuing the focus of Asian-inspired art at The Lakeshore, this show presents unique contemporary works in a variety of mediums and perspectives inspired by traditional art practices. Co-curated by MalPina Chan. Includes the work of Betsy Best Spaden, Mia Yoshihara-Bradshaw, Julia Harrison, Laureen Iida, Naoko Morisawa and June Sekiguchi. On View till Sept. 14, 2014. 11448 Rainier Ave. S. For details, go to eraliving.com.
Pinoy Words Expressed Kultura Arts presents a group show of Northwest Filipina photographers entitled “Through Our Eyes: Gender & Sexuality”. The work of Karen Garret de Luna, Melissa Nolledo, Shiboney and Carina del Rosario is on view through May 29th. Closing reception “Status of Women” is on May 28th from 6 – 8pm. M. Rosetta Hunter Art Gallery at Seattle Central Community College.1701 Broadway on Capitol Hill. Open Mon. – Fri. 9:30am – 3:30pm and also evenings from 5 – 7pm on Tues. & Wed. Free admission. (206) 934-4379 or go to seattlecentral.edu/artgallery.
Seattle Central Community College School Of Apparel Design & Development presents their 2014 Fashion Portfolio Showcase entitled “OFÏ THE BOLT”. Graduates will display portfoilios and clothing lines featuring tailoring, outer wear and sportswear for men, women and children. Want to be ahead of the curve and see where fashion is coming from and where it’s going? Take a look at the work of some of these students for a preview. For years now, this school’s department under the guidance of Hisako Nakaya has been turning out some real talent and companies have snatched up many of these students upon graduation. Tuesday, June 17th from 9am – 8pm. Use the 1716 Harvard entrance. 1701 Broadway on Capitol Hill. Go to www.schoolofppareldesignanddevelopment.com for details.
Carina del Rosario has a show entitled “An Ocean Apart – Photos from Madagascar and the Philippines” at Anderson House through July 1st. 17201 15th NE in Shoreline. Free and open every day. For details, call (206) 445-3659.
“Facets Of Life” is a group show featuring local ethnic artists Humaira Abid, Stewart Wong, Sabah Al-Dhaher, Esther Ervin and Gail Tremblay currently on view till June 29, 2014. Ethnic Heritage Art Gallery on the 6th Floor Plaza of Seattle Municipal Tower located at 700 Fifth Ave. For details, go to www.seattle.gov/EthnicArtGallery.
New and recent shows due to open at the Wing include the following – “RESIST – Asian American Acts of Struggle” remains on view through Jan. 18th, 2015. Wing Luke also co-sponsors a new exhibition “Voices of Nisei Veterans” at the Nisei Veterans Committee (NVC) Hall. Oral history testimonies and rare collections tell the story of Japanese American veterans before, during and after World War II. Preview these alongside a new traveling exhibition entitled “Nisei Veteran: Common Story, Common Bond” which comes with a program at 2pm. The NVC Hall is located at. A recent show entitled “transit in half-light: Lead Pencil Studio encounters The Wing’s collection” features the work of the art team of Annie Han and Daniel Mihalyo. They offer an installation that integrates artifacts from the museum collection into dream-like landscapes that brings up a dialogue about migration, transit, material extraction, and labor. The artists/architects will give an exclusive tour of the installation on Sat., June 28th at 1:30pm. $10 general admission and $8 for members. On view till July 14th. Family Fun Day activity for Sat., June 21st at 1pm will feature fiber arts artist and community activist Laura Wong-Whitebear who will teach participants how to weave your very own miniature mat. Still on view is “#iconic: Power and Pop Culture” which explores how Asian American pop icons are made and what it means to look up to – or challenge – these figures. “Hometown Desi: South Asian Culture in the Pacific Northwest” is a semi-permanent display that opened Oct. 3. It will explore the history of South Asians in this area up to the present. On display through Oct. 19, 2014 is “Grit: Asian Pacific Pioneers Across the Northwest”. Stories of pioneers and trailblazers who persisted through challenges of natural disasters, racial discrimination and violence to carve out a home in this new territory. The Museum offers a “Songs of Willow Frost Tour” based on the latest novel by author Jamie Ford set for Sat., May 24th & May 31st at 3pm. “Summer Camp @ The Wing” offers the following activities – August 4th & 5th brings “Puppets: Shadows And Light” where participants explore the art of puppetry through storytelling, performance and hands-on workshops. August 11th – 15th is “Moving Art: The Journey” looks at art that moves with us from skateboards to kites and other things. You must register for summer camp activities by July 20th, 2014. Go to wingluke.org/summer-camp or call (206) 623-5124 x 116.The Wing is at 719 South King St. (206) 623-5124 or visit www.wingluke.org. Closed Mondays. Tuesday – Sunday from 10am – 5pm. First Thursday of each month is free from 10am – 8pm. Third Saturday of each month is free from 10am – 8pm.
“The Way of the Brush” is the first of a year- long celebration and focus on Asian influences in the arts. Brush paintings and work influenced by that tradition are the focus of work by Karen Dedrickson, Louise Kikuchi, Fumiko Kimura, Alan Lau, Patsy Surh O’Connell and Akio Takamori. Guest-curated by MalPena Chan with help from June Sekiguchi. This show is now on view at UW Harborview Hospital in the basement cafeteria of the main building until June 29th. Questions? Ask Peggy Weiss who coordinates the art at UW Harborview at pweiss@uw.edu.
Currently on view at Seattle Asian Art Museum in Volunteer Park – On view through June 29, 2014 is “INKED – Wan Qingli”. This artist trained during the Cultural Revolution, uses a sharp wit and brush to match to address contemporary social ills with playful brush strokes full of humor and universal themes. On view till June 28, 2014 is “Hometown Boy: Liu Xiaodong”. Now heralded as one of China’s renowned contemporary artists, Lui grew up in a small industrial town before moving to Beijing. As a mature artist he returns to his hometown to find childhood friends still struggling, undeveloped rice paddies and his parents’ house still the same. Now an outsider, he captures the nuances of small town life in a typical Chinese town. “Colored Vases” is the first work by Chinese contemporary artist Ai Weiwei acquired by Seattle Art Museum. The artist took ancient earthenware vases and dipped them in buckets of industrial paint allowing them to drip dry. By covering the surfaces with a new paint, what is underneath – like history itself – is “no longer visible, but is still there.” The irony is that they play on the question on and question authenticity issues that the artist likes to raise in today’s market for Chinese Art. Seattle Asian Art Museum Foster Galleries in Volunteer Park. 1400 E. Prospect. (206) 654-3100.
The Frye Art Museum has a show entitled “Isamu Noguchi And Qi Baishi – Beijing 1930”. The show documents a period of six months when the Japanese American artist spent six months in Beijing where he studied with the modern Chinese brush painting master. Includes forty-five works by Noguchi and twenty-three works by Qi Baishi. Through May 25th. A parallel exhibit entitled “Mark Tobey and Teng Baiye – Seattle/Shanghai” looks at the relationship between contemporary American artist Mark Tobey who met Chinese artist Teng Baiye when the latter was a student at UW. Tobey studied Chinese calligraphy with him and the show considers what influence this had on Tobey’s own abstract work. Paintings by both men are on display. Call (206) 622-9250 or go to fryemuseum.org.
“Who You Were, Who You Are, Where Are You Now?” is a group show of portrait-making curated by City of Seattle’s Portable Works Collection curator Deborah Paine from their vast reserves. On view through July 1st. Seattle Municipal Tower Gallery at 700 Fifth Ave. on the Third Floor. Open Mon. – Fri. (206) 684-7132 or go to seattle.gov/arts/publicart/municipal_tower.asp.
The first exhibition held outside Japan dedicated to Japanese Art Deco entitled “Deco Japan: Shaping Art and Culture, 1920 – 1945” comes to Seattle Asian Art Museum May 10th – Oct. 19th. 1400 E. Prospect St. in Volunteer Park. This talk takes place at Seattle Art Museum downtown. A kimono lecture and fashion show “Retro Modern” by Yu Ugawa will take place on Sat., June 7th (Free First Saturday) from 11am – 2pm at Seattle Asian Art Museum. Fuller Garden Court in partnership with the Japan American Society and Kimono Art. For details on this event, go to www.jassw.org. Eight Musicians and dancers from Nagoya, Japan demonstrate the centuries-old art form of Noh on June 14th in a program entitled “Asia Arts in Action”. The Chuden Yugakukai group belongs to the traditional Kanze School of Noh Drama. There will be a demonstration of Japanese Noh Mask Carving at 1pm with a Japanese Noh Drama Performance at 2:30pm. The “Asian Arts in Action” program continues on Sat., June 28th with a Micro Tie-Dye Bandhini Workshop led by textile artist A. Jabbar Khatri from Gujarat, India. 11am – 4pm. Participants will tie and dye a silk scarf. Limited to 12 and supplies are included in the tickets. Purchase tickets online. “Deco Night” takes place at the Asian Art Museum & Volunteer Park Amphitheater with a full evening celebration of the “Deco Japan” show. There will be short tours of the exhibition with light refreshments from 6:30 – 8:30pm. At 7pm, Textile artist Yoshiko Wada speaks about Japanese Deco textiles and fashion in partnership with the Volunteer Park Trust with tickets at $10 and $5 for SAM members. From 8:30 – 10:30pm, there will be a short selection of Deco era music from Japan and the U.S. followed by a screening of the 1931 silent film “The Lady and the Beard” by Yasujiro Ozu with an original score performed live by the Aono Jikken Ensemble with live benshi narration. Free admission for this outdoor program. “Asia Arts in Action” program activity for Wed., July 30th at 7pm is a Korean Hanji Paper Fashion Show. Designer Jeon Yang-Bae creates contemporary fashion using traditional handmade papers of Korean hanji. Models working with a crew from Bunsan, Korea show over 60 pieces of clothing. Reception included. In partnership with Asia Pacific Cultural Center. Tickets are $49 and $44 for SAM members. As part of a “Deco Era Japanese Film series”, Kenji Mizoguchi’s “Osaka Elegy” is screened on Fri., August 1st at 8:30pm. August 8th brings Yasujiro Ozu’s “Floating Weeds”. Free admission to these films. On Thu., August 21st, enjoy a free performance by the Japanese contemporary group Imeruat at 7pm. The group is composed of contemporary composer Masashi Hamauzu and vocalist Mina who incorporates elements of her Ainu ancestry (indigenous people of Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan Reserve your free tickets online. The “Asia Talks” series continues with a program entitled “Kantha: Embroidered Textiles of Bangladesh” on Thurs. , Sept. 18th at 7pm. Niaz Zaman will introduce the katha textile form, design motifs, traditional meanings, and adaptation from domestic use to the global market. Reserve your free tickets online. Sat., Sept. 27th , a new University Fall Series beings entitled “New Worlds of Science: The Heritage of East Asia”. Tickets go on sale in August for a series of 10 talks on Saturday mornings co-organized by Prof. Christopher Cullen, Needham Research Institute who will give the first two lectures. Topics range from ancient astronomy and cosmology to Chinese medicine and the modernization of Korea and Japan. For complete information on all events, go to seattleartmuseum.org. “Nature and Pattern in Japanese Design” is a related exhibition to “Deco Japan” in two parts that will be shown at Seattle Art Museum downtown. Part 1 is now on view till August 3rd , 2014. Part 2 begins August 16th, 2014 and continues till April 19th, 2015. Visit sam.org or call (206) 654-3100.
Bellevue Arts Museum presents the traveling exhibit “Folding Paper: The Infinite Possibilities of Origami” from May 16th – September 21st. Though this art form originated in Japan, this exhibit reveals how that form has evolved through the participation of modern artists from around the world. Over 140 works from international artists takes this traditional art form and pushes it into the future. A series of related events throughout the run of the exhibition are planned including a talk by Vanessa Gould on June 6th at 6:30pm. Festival Folding with PAPER takes place on Saturdays from 1 – 3pm on June 7th, July 12th, August 2nd and September 13th. On Sat., June 14th from 11am – 3pm, enjoy tea & sweets with the East-West Chanoyu Center. Following the origami show is “The Art of Gaman: Arts and Crafts from the Japanese American Internment Camps, 1942 – 1946”, A Smithsonian traveling exhibit curated by Delphine Hirasuna. The show runs from July 3rd to Oct. 12th with many events planned. So far, Curator Delphine Hirasuna talks on Thurs., July 3rd at 7pm. California-based installation artist and sculptor Wendy Maruyama gives a talk about Executive Order 9066 and her work on the subject on September 5th at 7pm. 510 Bellevue Way NE. Go to www.bellevuearts.org.
Opening June 5th and on view through June 28th are two Japanese print-related shows at Davidson Galleries. “Selected Etchings: 1960s-2010s” by world-renowned print artist Ryohei Tanaka showcases both his black and white and color work. This artist is known for his use of texture in traditional Japanese motifs and landscapes. A group show of “Women and Children in Japanese Color Woodblocks (ca. 1885-1915) show the influence of the West both in clothing and the use of illusionistic pictorial space in once was a traditional Japanese media. 313 Occidental Ave. S. (206) 624-6700.
Seattle artist Saya Moriyasu keeps busy with the following activities. She has work in a group show about Soap Lake at the Moses Lake Museum and Art Center through June 13th. Go to https://tinyuri.com/qbxeln3 for details. In Portland she has work in the PDX Contemporary window with Tony Sonnenberg. Presented by Pulliam Fine Arts. Upcoming you can see her work in SAM Party in the Park and in the fall with Maki Tamura at MadArt Uw. Some of her functional work can be found at Sugar Pill behind Blick at 900 E. Broadway on Capitol Hill. She also has a new email at ArtSaayaa@gmail.com.
“Tender Buttons: The Art of Laura Castellanos” is on view through June 28th at ArtXchange Gallery at 512 First Ave. S. Open Tues. – Sat. (206) 839-0377 or go to www.artxchange.org.
The work of graduate students Hesheng Chen, Haeree Park and Xinchen Xie are included in the University of Washington 2014 MFA + MDes Thesis Exhibition at Henry Gallery’s North Galleries May 24th – June 22nd . 15th Ave. NE + NE 41st St on the Seattle campus of the University of Washington. (206) 543-2280 or go to henryart.org.
The Portland Japanese Garden has announced their exhibitions set for 2014. “Rediscovering Lacquer: 11 Artists Reinvent a Timeless Tradition” on view June 14th – July 6th and “Urushi: Materpieces of Lacquer Ware by Kazumi Murose, Living National Treasure of Japan”, on view Oct. 25th – Nov. 16th. For details, go to http://japanesegarden.com/pressroom/50th-anniversary-press-kit/.
KOBO Gallery at Higo in Japantown/International District has the following –Currently on view are these two shows featuring work made of wood. “Wooden Heirloom Automata” by Bliss Kolb featuring mechanical creatures like birds that move and sing. And sculptor Joel Sayre’s “Wood Tumblers” that resemble those round, smooth stones you pick up off the beach. Go to koboseattle.com for updates. 604 S. Jackson St. 704 Terry Ave. (206) 622-9250.
The paper cut art of Lauren Iida is on display at West Elm in the South Lake Union area of Seattle through the month of May. 2201 Westlake. (206) 467-5798. To see more of Iida’s work, go to www.laureniida.com.
Aallyah Gupta presents a show of her non-representational acrylics on Dura-lar, focusing on weather patterns and organic movement. On view with John Smither’s work through May 31st. CORE at 117 Prefontaine Place S. Open from Wed. – Sat. (206) 467-4444 or go to coregallery.org.
“Take Me There – Maps And Books from Old Japan” is an exhibit on display until June 5th at Allen Library’s North Lobby and the East Asian Library. There will be tours of the show in English on Tuesdays & Wednesdays at 12:30pm and Saturdays at 1:15pm. Tours in Japanese are on Saturdays at 2pm. All tours start at the Allen Library on the UW campus in Seattle. For more information, call (206) 543-4490.
“Capturing a Generation through the Eye of a Lens: The Photographs of Frank C. Hirahara, 1948 – 1954” is a collection of never-before-seen photos taken of Portland’s Nisei generation. It captures the social events and life in Portland’s Japantown of a now fast disappearing generation. On view through June 15th. Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center in Portland. 121 NW Second Ave. (503) 224-1458 or visit www.oregonnikkei.org. (541) 346-3027 or go to jsma.uoregon.edu.
“Meet Me at Higo” permanent exhibit- Part Two” presented and sponsored by the Wing is a multi-media presentation and self-guided tour that tells the origins and history of the store as a Japanese American five and dime. At Kobo at Higo, 604 South Jackson. E-mail info@koboseattle.com or call (206) 381-3000.
The work of Alice Chew, David Ko, James Kurihara, Naoka Morisawa, Mia Yoshihara-Bradshaw, June Sekiguchi and others is included in the group show, “Funny Bone – Humor in Art” at University House at 4400 Stone Way N. in Seattle. Opening reception is June 19th from 5:30 – 7:30pm. Artist talks take place July 13th at 7:30pm. For details, email june@junesekiguchi.com.
The Ohara School of Ikebana have their flower arrangement exhibition at the Japanese Cultural & Community Center of Washington on June 7th & 8th. 12 – 5pm on Sat. and 11:30am – 4pm on Sun. 1414 S. Weller St. in Seattle. Ikebana demonstrations on both days at 2pm. Free. (425) 861-7865.
The “Art of Traditional Japanese Theater” is a curricular rotation emphasizing “Noh” and its comic counterpart, “Kyogen”. The display features prints, paintings, printed books, a noh costume and carved wooden masks. On view till July 6th at the University of Oregon Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art. 1430 Johnson Lane in Eugene. (541) 346-3027 or visit jsma.uoregon.edu.
“Bartkira” is an exhibit held in conjunction with the release of a book, a comic-art re-creation of Katsuhiro Otomo’s 1988 Japanese cyperpunk action film, “Akira”. On view through May 31st Floating World Comics at 400 NW Couch St. in Portland. (503) 241-0227 or go to www.floatingworldcomics.com.
Seattle-raised artist Roger Shimomura has a show of new work entitled “Great American Muse” from May 8th – June 28th at the Flomenhaft Gallery in Chelsea area of New York City. Opening reception is May 8th from 6 – 8pm. The artist states the following – “Central to my work is the manipulation of common objects into something other than what they seem. Recently, I became reacquainted with Great American Nude, a series of paintings by Tom Wesselmann. The interplay between the female figure, still life objects, and a familiar piece of contemporary art fascinated me as it set up multiple interpretations. By starting with Wesselmann’s premise of juxtaposing three separate motifs and adding race and culture to the mix, the level of interpretation rose exponentially, each component adding its own history and viewpoint, resulting in endless potential for dialogue and debate.”
If viewing the work of Chinese brush painter Qi Baishi at the Frye has got you interested in his work, there is another show in the Bay Area that may interest you as well. “The Carved Brush – Calligraphy, Painting and Seal Carving by Qi Baishi” now on view through July 13th, 2014. At the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco at 200 Larkin St. (415) 581-3500.
The Late Walasse Ting (1929-2010) was a beloved artist/poet who grew up in Shanghai. When he was 20 years old, he left China and lived in Paris for a few years and became acquainted with European artists associated with the avant-garde art group called COBRA. He moved again to New York in 1958 at the height of the Abstract Expressionist period. His dripping monochromatic abstractions in the manner of Paris-based Chinese painter, Zao Wouki soon changed in America. His calligraphic strokes were used to make figurative outlines infused with juicy colors and flamboyant rhythms. He worked in theatre, taught and lectured on art. He also authored a number of books of poetry. “A book like hundred flower garden”: Walasse Ting’s 1 Cent Life” was a book of poems he made illustrated with lithographs by second-generation Abstract Expressionist artists such as Sam Francis (also the book’s editor), Joan Mitchell, Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and COBRA artists such as Karl Appel and Asger Jorn. A exhibit based on the book is now on view at San Francisco’s De Young Museum in Golden Gate Park through Sept. 7th, 2014. 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive in the park. For details, call (415) 750-3600 or email contact@famsf.org.
The Oakland Museum in the Bay Area has new shows in April worth noting. “SuperAwesome: Art and Giant Robot” shows the work of 15 artists associated with the groundbreaking magazine Giant Robot. Ahead of its time, this publication led the crest of the wave in interest in anime, manga, Asian American pop and alternative culture. “Vinyl: The Sound and Culture of Records”. This show delves into the social and cultural phenomenon of listening to, collecting and sharing records or vinyl. Both shows continue on until July 27th, 2014. 1000 Oak St. For information, call toll free (888) 625-6873.
“Treasures from Korea: Arts and Culture of the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910)” is an exhibition currently at the Philadelphia Museum of Art Through May 26th. More than 150 works are on exhibit including screen paintings and calligraphy. The Joseon Kingdom was one of the longest surviving monarchies in the world and shaped the culture of modern Korea in numerous ways. After Philadelphia, the exhibition then travels to Los Angeles County Museum of Art from June 29th – Sept. 28th and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston from Nov. 2nd – Jan. 11, 2015.
The University of Chicago presents “Envisioning China: A Festival of Arts and Culture” on-going through June 15th. Highlights include the Chicago premiere of Chinese opera star Ling Ke and the Tianjin Peking Opera Company on April 12th The Smart Museum of Art has a show entitled “Performing Images: Opera in Chinese Visual Culture” which has on view rarely seen works from late imperial China. For details, go to envisioningchina.uchicago.edu and like the festival on Facebook at facebook.com/envisioningchina.
“Yoga – The Art of Transformation”, a Smithsonian traveling exhibit makes its’ only West Coast stop at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco. On view until May 25th. Go to Asianart.org for details.
“Trees, Mountains and Streams – Chinese Landscape Paintings of the 20th Century” and “Alternative Visions – Renditions of Myth, Legend and Folk Tales from China and Japan” are two shows up until June 15th at Art Gallery of Greater Victoria. 1040 Moss St. in Victoria, BC Canada. Go to aggv.ca for details.
“Light From Shadow Illustrates Use of Gold in Japanese Art” is a show that features some of the most important Japanese works of art in the museum collection. Through June 1, 2014. Honolulu Museum of Art at www.honolulumuseum.org/.
The Chinese government may have forgotten that the Tiananmen Square massacre of June 4th, 1989 ever happened but the rest of the world hasn’t. The Asian American Arts Centre reprise a group show they put together shortly after that incident and present “China: June 4, 1989 – The 25th Anniversary Exhibition in Commemoration of the Tiananmen Square 1989 Student Movement” on view June 1st – 10th at Whitebox Art Center at 329 Broome St. in New York. About fifty artists are in this show including work by Vito Acconci, Luis Camnitzer, Mel Chin, Billy Harlem, Edgar Heap of Birds, Ik Joong Kang, Lilliana Porter and many others. Accompanying the show will be a wall of clippings displaying news articles and momentos of that day in history. Some information can be found at http://www.artspiral.org/past_exhibitions/june4/june4.php. In conjunction with the show, a special screening of “Portraits of Loss and the Quest for Justice”, a documentary produced by Human Rights in China with footage shot by the Tiananmen Mothers will be shown during the opening and closing receptions for the show Jun1st from 5 – 8pm and June 10th from 5 – 7pm. For complete details, email rlee@artspiral.org.
The Asia Society in New York has the following shows opening. “Golden Visions of Densatil: A Tibetan Buddhist Monastery” is on view through May 18th. This exhibition is the first ever to explore the history, iconography, and artistic production associated with the central Tibetan Buddhist monastery known as Densatil that was destroyed during China’s Cultural Revolution. After its’ destruction, fragments of the reliefs and sculptures were dispersed around the world. This exhibition brings together a selection of works that explore the spiritual journey that was laid out in the imagery of the stupas. Nalini Malani is a contemporary South Asian artist currently dividing her time between Mumbai and Amsterdam. Her work uses allegory and symbolism to explore issues relating to gender, class and race in a post-colonial world. “Transgressions” is a video/shadow play drawn from the Asia Society Museum Collection as well as a selection of Malani’s artist books. On view through August 3rd. “Tales of Wonder: Indian Art from the Asia society Museum Collection” is on view now through May 4th. 725 Park Ave. in New York City. Go to www.asiasociety.org/new-york.
Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York has a new exhibit entitled “Lost Kingdoms – Hindu-Buddhist Sculpture of Early Southeast Asia, 5th to 8th Century”. 1000 Fifth Ave. Go to www.metmuseum.org for more information.
“From Barbed Wire to Battlefields – Japanese-American Experiences in World War II” is a new exhibit at the National World War II Museum in New Orleans on loan from the Smithsonian. It remains on view through October of this year. For more, visit www.barbedwiretobattlefields.org/home.
“Art Deco Hawai’i” is a group show that looks at the Hawaiian take on the international Art Deco style. Opens July 3rd and runs until Jan. 11, 2015. Honolulu Museum of Art at 900 S. Beretania St. (808) 532-8700.
The May/June 2014 of ArtAsiaPacific magazine has a feature on a group of young Taiwanese writers, photographers and filmmakers who produced “Theatre”, the first Chinese-language magazine dedicated to experimental time-based art in the 1960’s. Go to events@aapmag.com for details.
About 150,000 Korean cultural relics are scattered throughout more than 20 countries world-wide. The Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation is supporting preservation and research on them as a way of promoting understanding of Korean artifacts. Recent projects have included the Koryo Museum of Art in Kyoto, the Freer Gallery, the Sackler Gallery and Honolulu Museum of Art in the US and Sevres, Cite de la Ceramique in France.
Artist Trust presents “A Workshop for Visual Artists” on Sat., May 31st from 10am – 12 pm and 1:30pm – 3:30pm. Learn what you can do to advance your career. Seattle Pacific University in Seattle at McKenna Hall 118 on campus. 350 West Bertona. Go to www.artisttrust.org/events for all the information.
The Norton Simon Museum of Pasadena, California has agreed to return a 10th period statue to Cambodia that may have been looted from a Cambodian temple during war-time in the 1970’s. It is one of three being returned from the US. As part of the agreement, the Cambodian government has agreed to periodically loan other ancient statues to the museum from time to time.
Performing Arts
Highlights
Seattle Butoh Festival 2014 Spring: Solo Fest takes place May 30th & 31st at 7:30pm. Butoh is a body based performing art that emerged in Japan in the late 1950’s with founding artists Hijikata Tatsumi and Ohno Kazuo. Butoh is grounded in revealing elements of deep inner life through the undeniable truth of the body. Each night presents solos by different dancers. $15/$12 (seniors, students)/$25 (both nights). Tickets at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/622234 or at the door. At Taoist Studies Institute at 225 N. 70th St. in Seattle. For more information, call (2060 729-2054.
Paul Kikuchi appears in a duo setting with Thollem McDonas on June 7th at 8pm at the Chapel Performance Space in Seattle’s Wallingford neighborhood at 4649 Sunnyside Ave. N. For details on the concert, go to waywardmusic.blogspot.com/.
UW Theatre presents Jean-Claude Grumberg’s play, “The Workshop” about laborers surviving in Paris after WW II. Directed by Andrew Tsao. Previews on Wed. and Thurs., May 28-29th. Opening night is May 30th. Runs through Sun., June 8th at Glenn Hughes Penthouse Theatre. A post-show talk is held on Thurs., June 5th. Go to dramacom@uw.edu for details.
Seattle Iranian Festival takes place on Sat., June 28th from noon – 7pm at the Seattle Center House. There will be a wide array of programs displays, food and fun for all ages. Visiting novelist Porochista Khakpour will be reading as well. Free admission. See www.iaca-seattle.org for details. Seattle Center House is at 305 Harrison on Seattle Center Grounds.
The 2014 Seattle Bon Odori takes place July 19th & 20th with traditional street dances, food, cultural activities and a beer garden. There will be dancing lessons days prior to the event for those who wish to learn. Seattle Betsuin Buddhist Church at 1427 S. Main. 4 – 10pm on Sat. and 3 – 8pm on Sun. (206) 329-0800 for more information.
Pagdiriwang Philippine Festival celebrates the arts and culture of the Philippines. Free. June 7 – 8th at Seattle Center house. Go to http://seattlecenter.com/festal/.
Early warning for 2015. The Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra with Myung-Whun Chung conducting and Sunwook Kim on piano take on Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 and Brahms Symphony No. 4 on April 21st at 7:30pm. Noted American cellist Yo-Yo Ma performs with Seattle Symphony on May 3rd at 2pm. At Benaroya Hall downtown at 3rd & Union. (206) 215-4747 or go to seattlesymphony.org.
“Dhrupad Days” is the annual Indian music festival featuring workshops by noted Dhrupad artists Padmashri Pandit, the Gundecha Brothers and a cello concert by Nancy Lesh Kulkarni. May 24th – 30th. The final event, “Soul of Sound: Gundecha Brothers – An Indian Classical Music Concert” takes place on May 30th at 7pm at the Cornish Playhouse at Seattle Center. 201 Mercer St. Tickets to this concert at www.cornish.edu/musicseries. Presented byCornish College of the Arts in Seattle. For details, go to http://dhrupad.com/dhrupad-days/dhrupad-days-2014/.
The Wing hosts the following performances. On Sat., May 31st at 3pm, catch award-winning musician, distinguished artist, and teacher, Debi Prasad Chatterjee as he performs classical North Indian music. The concert is followed by a Q & A. $8 General, free for members. On Sat., June 7th at 3pm, choreographer Gabrielle Nomura weaves dance, theater, and live music by Seattle Kokon Taiko into an exploration of the Japanese American experience during WWII in a piece entitled “Farewell Shikata ga nai”. $5 General, free to members. The above two concerts, reserve tickets at (206) 623-5124. As we head into June, we are talking about Summer and that means JAMFEST, the annual series of musical concerts in the buildings and streets of Seattle’s Chinatown/ID neighborhood. On Thurs., June 19th at 5:30pm the Wing hosts a cabaret. After that, hit the streets to sample performances, food, deals and more. $8 General, $6 Students/Seniors and $5 members. Season passes available. Visit wingluke.org/jamfest for details.
The Seattle Japanese Garden presents “Children’s Day” on May 26th from noon – 4pm. Expect fun performances and activities for all ages. Go to Seattle.JapaneseGarden.org for details.
Sister cities International Festival showcases Okinawa and also features the cultures of the Philippines, China, Korea and Japan with live entertainment, arts and crafts, dance and children’s activities. May 25th – 27th. Pierce College Ft. Steilacoom campus at 9401 Farwest Dr. S.W. in Lakewood. Go to www.lsca.us or call (253) 906-1346 for details.
“No Longer Invisible: In Their Own Words” conveys the stories and lives of Asian Pacific American groups not often highlighted in UW’s program to commemorate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. View the stories online at www.washington.edu/omad/no-longer-invisible/ and hear the writers perform on May 29th from 1pm – 3pm at the Kelly Ethnic Cultural Center on the UW campus. Free and open to the public but RSVP is appreciated by emailing riziki@uw.edu or creang@uw.edu. The stories will also be displayed in the Center through June 4th.
One of the top ukulele groups from Japan, Clarence & his Happy Stars present a special performance at Seattle Keiro on June 3rd at 3pm on the 3rd floor. 1601 E. Yesler. (206) 726-6501 or email lasami@nikkeiconcerns.org.
“Breaking the Silence” by Seattle playwright/writer Nikki Nojima Lewis is piece based on Japanese American family history. It receives a Portland performance with local performers on May 31st at 2:30pm at Gerding Theater at the Armory, Ellyn Bye Studio at 128 NW 11th Ave. Free. Directed by Dmae Roberts. Louis will be there for a dialogue after the show. (503) 445-3700 or go to www.pcs.org.
“Drama! Dance! Drums!” is a live performing arts program that highlights the Japanese art forms of taiko drumming, traditional Japanese dance and noh and kyogen theatre traditions. June 4th at 7pm. Portland State University at Lincoln Performance Hall, Room 75. For details, call (503) 725-8577 or visit www.pdx.edu/cjs.
Future file
The Blue Scholars are headlining the Inaugural Solstice Concert Series for the Fremont Fair this year on Sat., June 21st starting at 5pm. $20 admission for all ages. For details, go to Fremontfair.com.
The Japanese avant-garde jazz couple of pianist/composer Satoko Fujii and trumpeter Natsuki Tamura do a June US/Canada tour to promote their new recordings. Fujii’s New York Orchestra has a new recording entitled “Shiki” (Libra Records) which features a longer composition that covers the four seasons and features new member, trombonist Yasuko Kaneko plus the cream of today’s New York jazz musicians. Natsuki Tamura’s new recrding “Du Du” (Libra Records) features Kaneko as well as Fujii on accordion. The group plays the Vancouver Jazz Festival on Monday, June 23rd (http://coastaljazz.ca) but stop by Seattle along the way to play The Royal Room, local musician Wayne Horvitz’s new spot for jazz on Sat., June 21st at 6pm. 5000 Rainier Ave. S. (206) 906-9920 or go to http://theroyalroomseattle.com.
“International Dance Festival” is a ten-day event of dance from around the world, around the country and around the block in indoor and outdoor venues centered along the South Lake Union area. June 13th – 22nd. For details, go to www.seattleidforg.
UW Professor Mark Jenkins play about contemporary Cambodia entitled “Red Earth, Gold Gate” won ACT Theatre’s 2013 New Play Award. The full-length production of this play will premiere as part of ACT’s 2015 season with Victor Pappas directing.
Portland Taiko perform at the 4th Annual Sake Fest PDX set for June 26th from 6:30 – 9pm. A ticket gets you tasting samples of many kinds of sake and plum wine, a free tasting glass and snacks. At the Sentinel Hotel in Portland. A portion of the profits will be donated to Japan America Society of Portland. Go to http://sakefestpdx.com for details.
ACT Theatre has announced their 2014 season. Appearing Sept. 5 – 28th is “The Invisible Hand” by Ayad Akhtar. The story revolves around an American financial guru who is captured and held by a militant organization in Pakistan who must raise his won 10 million dollar ransom. To be directed by Allen Nause. For details on this play and the upcoming season, go to acttheatre.org/subscriptions or call (206) 292-7676.
For those of you who missed the performances of Jeanne Sakata’s “Hold These Truths”, her one person play on the night Gordon Hirabayashi was arrested for defying the curfew for Japanese Americans in Seattle at the beginning of WWII have another opportunity. ACT Theatre will produce this play again July 31st – August 3rd of this year with possibly Joel de la Fuente in the lead. They are currently entertaining the idea of adapting “The Tale of Heike” and bringing it to the stage in the fall of 2016. Noted playwright Philip Kan Gotanda may be working on the script with local Seattle writers.
Film & Media
Highlights
The Seattle International Film Festival features new films from around the world, nationally and locally from May 15th – June 8th. For details, go to http://www.siff.net/. Tickets on sale now.
“Stateless” is a documentary film on stateless Vietnamese who lived in the Philippines and came to the United States after 2005. It screens with a discussion with the filmmaker afterwards on May 23rd at 7pm. Free. UW Ethnic Cultural Center at 3940 Brooklyn Ave. NE in the University District. (206) 543-4635.
“Honor & Sacrafice: The Roy Matsumoto Story” tells the story of this decorated Nisei veteran. This documentary film screens on Sun., May 25th at 7pm on KCTS 9. Vist www.honordoc.com for details.
Currently screening in local theatres – “Million Dollar Arm”, a story about a sports agent’s scheme to locate baseball’s next great arm in India by training and recruiting cricket pitchers. Japanese actor Ken Watanabe plays a scientist who has devoted his life to the search for Godzilla in the Hollywood re-make of the 1954 Japanese classic. This new version is directed by Gareth Edwards.
The Wing and Tasveer partner together to bring you the 2nd South Asian International Documentary (SAID) Film Festival, the only one of its kind in the country. Set for the weekend of June 28th and 29th. For festival information and tickets visit: www.tasveer.org. Films will screen on-site at The Wing and tickets must be purchased.
The Japanese Cultural & Community Center presents a Japanese film series entitled “Matinee Eiga” every Sunday at 2pm. $5 for non-members and $3 for JCCCW members. 1414 S. Weller St. (206) 568-7114 or go to www.jcccw.org. Call (425) 369-1012 for details.
Bay Area composer and jazz bassist Mark Izu is featured in three of four documentary films on Japanese American Lives, presented by the Center for Asian American Media on PBS Stations nationwide in May. He composed the music for “Stories from Tohoku” and “Mrs. Judo”. He and fellow jazz musician/composer/arranger Anthony Brown are the subject of the film, “Don’t Lose Your Soul”.
ABC is showing a primetime sitcom entitled “Fresh Off the Boat” based on the memoir by restaurateur and chef Eddie Huang. Stories will be based on the Huang family and how this Taiwanese immigrant family encounters life in America in the 1990’s. The pilot was directed by Seattle movie director Lynn Shelton.
The Written Arts
Highlights
Author Haroon Ullah who grew up in Eastern Washington will return to the Puget Sound region to talk about his book about Pakistan entitled “Bargain from The Bazaar” (Public Affairs Books) on May 23rd from 11:30am – 2pm as keynote speaker fro the World Affairs Council’s “Member to Member Lunch” event. Tickets are $20. At the World Trade Center. Ullah is now part of Secretary of State John Kerry’s Policy Planning Staff at the U.S. State Department. (206) 441-5930 for information.
Dr. Zhou Jing of Sichuan University presents a talk entitled “An Archival Look at the West China Union University Museum” which was China’s first university museum. May 23rd at noon. University of Washington Seattle’s Thomson Hall 317.
Professor Li Yongxian of Sichuan University gives a talk entitled “The Archaeology of Western Tibet – Reaching Across the Himalayas” on May 23rd at 3:30pm. University of Washington Seattle. Denny Hall 401.
Seattle poet Brian Komei Dempster visits from the University of San Francisco where he teaches to read and talk about his debut book of poetry entitled “Topaz”. The book follows the influence of the internment camp experience amongst Japanese Americans and traces the ramifications through generations of a family and a people. On May 31st he will do a program entitled “Japanese American Impisonment & Resettlement: The Power of Our Intergenerational Stories” with presentations by Janet Sakamoto Baba and Atsushi Kiuchi from the Pacific Northwest writing project, Omoide. 7pm at NVC Memorial Hall at 1212 South King St. Co-presented with the Nisei Veterans Committee, Densho, The Japanese American Legacy Project & Elliott Bay Book Company. On June 1st at 3pm, Dempster reads with fellow poet Janet Norman Knox at Eagle Harbor Books at 157 Winslow Way E. on Bainbridge Island. On June 3rd, he will be at University Book Store at 6pm in a reading entitled “Asian Pacific American Poetry Across the Generations” with poets Sharon Hashimoto, Arlene Kim and Alan Chong Lau with a special tribute reading of the poems of the late Kim-An Lieberman. 4326 University Way NE. Finally on June 5th, the poet collaborates with his musician father Stuart Dempster, artist mother Renko Ishida Dempster and storyteller Dee Goto in the theatre at the Wing Luke Museum. 6pm. 719 South King St. For details on all of his events, go to http://briankomeidempster.com/events/.
A benefit for The Antipodes Collective and their non-profit free children’s library, Khmer children’s book publishing venture and their arts based literacy program in rural eastern Cambodia will be held on Sat., June 7th from 6 – 8pm. On hand will be refreshments, Lauren Iida’s Cambodia-themed paper cutout art and fabulous silent auction items from local businesses and non-profits. At the Wheelhouse Coffee shop at 2113 Westlake Ave. in Seattle. Can’t make the event but still want to help? Checks can be sent and mailed to The Antipodes Collective at 2716 Elliott Ave. #1201, Seattle, WA 98121.
Seattle poet/educator Lonny Kaneko is teaching in China this quarter. Kaneko is a published poet and teacher at Highline Community College. To read his blog about his experiences there, go to http:/goldenchild39.blogspot.com/.
The cover story for the May issue of Seattle’s Child Magazine is “Activism In The Family” highlights Geo of Blue Scholars fame. It looks at how Quibuyen and his wife Chera Amlag bring passion for improving the world into their everyday parenting. For detail, go to seattleschild.com.
“Stories of Arrival: Youth Voices” is a community partnership project between Foster High School, Jack Straw Cultural Center, KBCS 91.3 FM Radio and the Institute for Poetic Medicine. Poet/Project Director Merna Ann Hecht worked with ELL teachers Camil Stradley and Kristin Tregillus and the Jack Straw’s team of artists. They helped Foster High School English Language Learners tell their stories through poetry and these were recorded in the studio at Jack Straw. Now hear the results every weekday evening in April at 6:55pm after Hard Knock Radio on KBCS 91.3 FM Radio. Starts April 1st in celebration of National Poetry Month. Students from Bhutan, Burma, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Guinea, Iraq, Kenya, Mexico, Nepal, Somalia, Thailand, Uganda and Vietnam all participated. Go to http://kbcs.fm/ for details.
The Elliott Bay Book Company hosts and co-hosts literary events at their bookstore and venues around town. Here is a sampling. All readings at the book store unless otherwise noted. Elliott Bay co-sponsors the following readings with the Gardner Center for Asian Art & Ideas at Seattle Asian Art Museum’s auditorium. Evan Osnos reads from his forthcoming book entitled “Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New China” (Farrar Straus & Giroux) on Wed., May 28th at 7pm.Seattle Asian Art Museum is at 1400 E. Prospect in Volunteer Park. Kathryn Ma reads from her latest novel entitled “The Year She Left Us” (Harper Collins) at Elliott Bay on Mon., June 9th at 7pm. The story is about a Chinese American family facing crisis after a disastrous visit to their adopted daughter’s “home” orphanage in China. Lisa See, known for novels such as “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan” and her memoir, “On Gold Mountain” returns with her 9th book entitled “China Dolls” (Random House) which is the story of three young Chinese American women at the eve of Pearl Harbor whose friendship is tested after a betrayal. June 14th at 7pm. Purchase of a copy of the book secures a ticket admitting two to the reading. Former Pulitzer-Award winning reporter for the Seattle Times and Seattle Correspondent for the Los Angeles Times Alex Tizon returns to town to read from his highly personal and autobiographical memoir entitled “Big Little Man: In Search of My Asian Self (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) on Wed., June 18th at 7pm. Tizon now teaches at the University of Oregon. Yukari Iwatani Kane is a tech industry journalist for the Wall street Journal with a new book on Apple entitled “Haunted Empire: Apple After Steve Jobs” (Harper Business) from which she’ll talk about as part of the TOWN HALL CIVICS Series in a reading EB co-sponsors with Town Hall Seattle on Thurs., June 26th at 7:30pm. This reading is at Town Hall Seattle at 1119 Eighth Ave. (at Seneca). $5 tickets for this event available at the door starting at 6:30pm or in advance via www.townhallseattle.org (1-888-377-4510). For information, call (206) 652-4255 or go to www.townhallseattle.org. Iranian novelist Porochista Khakpour (“Sons and Other Flammable Objects”) reads from her newest novel entitled “The Last Illusion” (Bloomsbury) on Fri., June 27th at 7pm at the bookstore. The novel “weaves Iranian myth with American neurosis to create a bittersweet poetry all its own.” Bill Porter (Red Pine) has penned many books on China and translated volumes of Chinese poetry from the Buddhist/Taoist traditions. He reads from his new one entitled “Yellow River Odyssey” (Chin Music Press) on Sat., June 28th at 2pm. It looks at the present and the past as it travels miles up the Yellow River.Hong Kong-born novelist Jean Kwok (“Girl in Translation”) returns with a new novel entitled “Mambo in Chinatown” (Riverside) on Sat., June 28th at 7pm at the bookstore. The story revolves a working class Chinese American girl who bucks tradition and poverty to find love and success. For the fourth consecutive year, the Gardner Center For Asian Art & Ideas joins with the bookstore, Seattle University & Teamwork arts to bring us another South Asian author program. This “Eye On India Festival” has many elements. For starters, two musical performances take place at Seattle University’s Piggott Auditorium. The Saxophone sisters perform on June 17th at 7pm and Sonam Kalra and the Sufi Gospel Project perform June 23rd at 7pm. Seattle University professor Sonora Jha reads from his debut novel “Foreign” (Random House India) on Thurs., June 26th at 7pm in Seattle University’s Student Center 160. At Seattle Asian Art Museum on June 29th at 3pm in Stimson Auditorium, a program entitled “Words On Water: Eye On India” features the following writers. Commonwealth Prize-winning novelist Rana Dasgupta reads from her non-fiction book about a city entitled “Capital: The Eruption of Delhi (Penguin Press). Ravi Venkatesan , former chair of Microsoft India and Cummins India reads from his book entitled “Win in India, Win Everywhere: Conquering the Chaos” (Harvard Business Review Press). Other authors to be announced. Check www.seattleartmuseum.org for details. Tickets for the program at SAAM are $10 and $5 for SAM members available through www.seattleartmuseum.org/gardnercenter. For all information on the “Eye on India” programs, go to eyeonindia.org. Seattle Asian Art Museum is at 1400 East Prospect in Volunteer Park. July readings at Elliott Bay include up and coming novelist Celeste Ng on July 15th and Lan Cao reading from “The Lotus and the Storm” (Viking on August 26th.The bookstore is at 1521 Tenth Avenue in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood. (206) 624-6600 or visit www.elliottbaybook.com.
The Wing hosts these readings in their Tateuchi Story Theatre. On Sat., June 21st at 4pm, spoken-word poet and community activist Michelle Myers performs poetry with song from her new poetry book entitled “The She Book.” Proceeds from book sales will be donated to aid anti-trafficking efforts and community building in Nicaragua. Seattle-raised poet/editor/professor Brian Komei Dempster will read from his debut poetry collection, “Topaz”. The book examines the experiences and lasting intergenerational impact of a Japanese American family’s separation and incarceration in American WWII prison camps. This takes place on Thurs., June 5th at 4pm. Free. For more information, on these and more, go to wingluke.org.
“The Mountain Poems of Stonehouse: A Celebration in Translation and Song” is a reading by Red Pine with vocalist/composer Jessika Kenny and musicians Eyvind Kang and Jarad Powell. Stonehouse was a 14th century Chinese hermit and poet. A book signing follows the reading. Thursday, May 22nd at 7pm. Frye Art Museum at 704 Terry. (206) 622-9250.
Tacoma poet Hannah Sanghee Park’s book, “The Same-Different” was selected by Rai Armantrout as the winner of the 2014 Walt Whitman Award from the Academy of American Poets and will be published by Louisiana State University Press in 2015. She also won the Ruth Lilly Poetry Fellowship in 2013. Park currently attends the Writing for Screen & Television Program at the USC School of Cinematic Arts, where she is currently developing a television pilot and feature-length screenplay.
Former Oregon Poet-Laureate and award-winning poet Lawson Fusao Inada makes his first ever visit to Japan in July of 2014 where he’ll do a reading at Tokyo’s Mori Art Museum.
Seattle-raised poet/educator W. Todd Kaneko has a new book of poetry due out in the fall entitled “Dead Wrestler Elegies” on Curbside Splendor Press. He now lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan and teaches at Grand Valley State University. He is the son of Eastside artist/educator/curator Cheryl Leo-Gwin and poet & writer/educator Lonny Kaneko.
Congratulations to IE contributing writer Shin Yu Pai. Pai, the author of seven books of poetry has been nominated for a Stranger Genius Award in literature. Winners in all categories will be announced in the fall with a grand ceremony.
Maijia Rhee Devine’s novel about Korea entitled “The Voices of Heaven” received the Bronze Medal, a 2014 Independent Publisher Book Award in the “Best Adult Fiction E-Book” category. She gives a TED talk about the novel at http://youtu.be/GFD-6JFLF5A.
Congratulations to Seattle-raised poet Paisley Rekdal who was awarded a 2014 Guggenheim Fellowship for Poetry. She receives $50,000 and goes to New York on May 7th for a reception for awardees both past and present. Rekdal is currently Professor of English at the University of Utah. She is the author of a book of essays entitled “The Night My Mother Met Bruce Lee”, a hybrid genre memoir entitled “Intimate” and four books of poetry entitled “A Crash of Rhinos”, “Six Girls Without Pants”, “The Invention of the Kaleidoscope” and most recently, “Animal Eye”.
“Part of the Family? – Nannies, Housekeepers, Caretakers and the Battle for Domestic Workers’ Rights” (Ig Publishing) is a new book by Sheila Bapat that chronicles the rising political and social movement to secure labor protections for domestic workers.
“The Last Incantations” (Northwestern University Press ) is a new book of poems by David Mura that looks at the intersection of our multiracial society and his experiences as a third-generation Japanese American trying to prove his “Americaness”. For details, go to http://www.nupress.northwestern.edu/.
Sandra Tsing Loh tackles menopause in her comic memoir entitled “The Madwoman in the Volvo”, a candid yet funny tale of her roller-coaster ride through the “change”.
Tinfish Press is known for publishing some of the most exciting and experimental writing by writers of the Asian Pacific region. Their upcoming latest title will be “Proposed Additions” by Donovan Kuhio Colleps. Got to www.tinfishpress.com for details.
Seoul Selection will publish “Shadows of the Void”, a new collection of poetry by Ynhui Park as translated by Brother Anthony of Taize. The poet is internationally known for his probing and philosophical poetry that easily transcends borders.
“Reverberations from Fukushima: 50 Japanese Poets Speak Out” is a new anthology that offers a deeper understanding of that tragedy from a humanistic rather than a technological or political perspective.
Wing Tek Lum, author of “The Nanjing Massacre: Poems” received the Elliot Cades Award for Literature presented by the Hawai’i Literary Arts Council.
Alex Tizon was a respected staff writer for the Seattle Times and a correspondent for the Los Angeles Times. Now he teaches at the University of Oregon. He has a new book due out in June entitled “Little Man: In Search of My Asian Self” (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt). His book looks at the experience, psyche, and mythology of the Asian American male.
“Beyond Green Tea and Grapefruit” (Bamboo Ridge Press) is a new book of stories and poems by Hawai’i-based writer Gail N. Harada.
Two Northwest Asian American classic memoirs are being reprinted in commemorative editions with new introductions by the University of Washington Press. “Nisei Daughter” by Monica Sone tells the story of growing up in Chinatown/ID as the daughter of Japanese immigrant hotel owners. Northwest historian Marie Rose Wong does the introduction. “American is in the Heart” by Carlos Bulosan is the legendary memoir of this treasured Filipino American writer and his bitter-sweet, life-long involvement with the American dream. Asian American scholars Marilyn C. Alquizola and Lane Ryo Hirabayashi do the new introduction for this one. Other titles in this series due for new editions include titles by John Okada and Mine Okubo. For details, go to http://www.washington.edu/uwpress/.
Shin Kyung-Sook whose first book translated into English entitled “Please Look After Mom” was an international best-seller has another book just translated into English entitled “I’ll Be Right There”. The book centers on the friendship, romance and loss experienced by four university students during the tumultuous 1980’s in South Korea.
Interested in the Hawai’I literary scene? Go to the Hawai’i book blog at wwwHawaiiReads.com.
“Mechademia 8 – Tezuka’s Manga Life” (University of Minnesota Press) as edited by Frenchy Lunning is an anthology of essays on the pioneer Japanese manga artist/writer known as the “Walt Disney of Japan.” Go to http://upress/book-division/series/mechademia for details.
“This One Summer” (First Second Books) written by Mariko Tamaki and illustrated by her cousin Jillian Tamaki is out just in time for summer. The collaborated on the previous well-reviewed book, “Skim.” This new book looks at the lives of two teenage girls in a summer beach town and how some of those experiences will change their lives forever.
“Singapore Noir” as edited by Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan is from the popular “noir” series on Akashi Books that looks at short stories on crime and suspense collected by editors in cities around the world. Tan looks at a Singapore rarely explored in Western literature and the people that inhabit its urban streets under cover of darkness.
Haroon K. Ulla