I have been really busy with organizing RISE JAPAN events this past several weeks, but finally gained a time to update here.  I am one of the organizers of the series of Japan earthquake & tsunami relief fundraiser art exhibitions & performances called RISE JAPAN.  We have done two art exhibitions at Gallery Heist, Kokoro Studio and ARC Studios & Gallery on April 2nd and 7th, and successfully raised $24,100!!!! We raised $15123 from Vol.1, and $9009 from Vol.2!!  It has been really emotional days, don’t know how many times I had tears in my eyes – I am so grateful for amazing support from all the visitors, buyers, participant artists, vendors, local businesses and media.  We made a final announcement yesterday, visited Give2Asia office today (I tried to express everything I could say in those announcements!).  THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH.  I am one of the starving artists among many others, but as an artist I strongly believe in the power of art.  There are so much I can do, so much WE can do. We are not living alone, we all support each other.  I am so glad that I was able to put something amazing like RISE JAPAN events together, and prove this belief by making it happen.

I know that Japan needs long-term financial and psychological support since reconstruction takes years and years.  I’m making more research and figuring out the way to do it as I work on my own projects.  We, RISE JAPAN, are going to have a booth at Cherry Blossom Festival this weekend, both Saturday and Sunday. Please follow my twitter @aoi_gm to find out where we will be located exactly.  Also, please visit our website http://www.risejapan.us for more info.  Feel free to let us know if you could be part of us and help us.

I made limited “RISE JAPAN” giclee prints off of the mural piece I did at Gallery Heist for RISE JAPAN Vol.1. (The photo is below – I wrote “RISE JAPAN” on the wall of both Gallery Heist and Kokoro Studio) Numbered and signed. Besides producing events, this is what I can offer to help my home country Japan!

From the night of RISE JAPAN Vol.1 at Gallery Heist & Kokoro Studio *Above is at Gallery Heist

My mural on the wall + Jane Kim, the supervisor of Tenderloin on the mic & Tiger Honey Pot!

Framed “RISE JAPAN” at RISE JAPAN Vol.2 @ARC Studios & Gallery

This framed piece was sold at silent auction for $400 at “buy now” price (highest bid was $600!) on the night of the event, and all donated to Give2Asia.  Thank you so much!!

There are a few more left, purchase from here before it’s gone! :

All proceeds will be donated to Give2Asia: Artists Help Japan Fund.

We were also on KRON4 News!! Thank you KRON4 for helping us spreading the word, especially Brian Greif for your tremendous support.

Photo: Randy Dodson / Casey Holtz of SF Station / Ben Needham of ARC Studios & Gallery

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Life
Giclee print
Paper size: 18×18″
Artwork size: 17×17″
Heavyweight watercolor paper

「還源」シリーズの作品から、gicleeプリントを作りました。オリジナルは書道用画仙紙をウッドパネルにマウントした4フィートx４フィートの大作ですが、コンパクトで壁にすっきり飾れる18×18″のサイズで、ラフなテクスチャーが個性的な陰影を作り出すウォーターカラーペーパーを選びました。リミテッドエディションなので、お早めにどうぞ。

I made limited edition prints of my works from KANGEN -Reunited with Nature- Series. The first series is Life. The original work is 4ft x 4ft, sumi ink on Japanese calligraphy paper mounted on wood panel. The black ink print on a natural white watercolor paper, which has really beautiful texture, looks amazing. Grab one before it’s gone…

[Video] Live calligraphy performance “KANGEN -Reunited with Nature-”
in collaboration with Mika Yanagihara
November 19, 2010 at Fivepoints Arthouse, San Francisco
Music: Zaion (http://www.zaionrecordings.com/)
Textile Sculpture: Hiroko Tsuchimoto
Video edited by Phil Nationales

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Smart Design San Francisco Officeにゲストスピーカーとしてお邪魔してきました。

Smart Designは多くのプロダクトデザイン、ブランド／アイデンティティー、パッケージなど多岐にわたるデザインを手がけるデザインファーム。ニューヨーク、サンフランシスコ、バルセロナにオフィスがあります。今回、このSmart Designのサンフランシスコオフィスに２月の”GetSmart Speaker”として招待を受け、書道の簡単な歴史から、私の書活動についてのプレゼンテーションをさせて頂いてきました。

エントランス。カラフルでお洒落です。トイレのサインもユニークでかわいい。

Entrance. Colorful, sleek interior design. Humorous bathroom door signage.

プロジェクターのセットアップ。オンラインのカンファレンスで、NYとバルセロナのオフィスとも繋がります。

Setting up the projector.  It’s connected to New York and Barcelona offices as an online conference.

去年１１月の「還源」ショーに来てくださったデザイナーののりこさん。今まで見た事のない一風変わった書道のパフォーマンスに感動してくださり、このオフィスに招いてくださいました。

Senior communication designer, Noriko, kindly invited me to Smart Design for the February’s guest speaker presentation. She came to my “KANGEN -Reunited with Nature-” show last November, and thought of sharing my unique calligraphy performance with her coworkers and other designers within the company.  Thank u!

創作書道作品を通して、どんなことを伝えようとしているのか、漢字やひらがなをどうやってくずすのか、文字の配置の決め方やバランスの取り方、そして言葉の意味などを、ひとつひとつ解説していきました。

Through the presentation, I explained what I’m trying to convey through my works, how to de-construct and re-construct the form of letters such as Kanji and Hiragana, how to determine the composition and the balance of letters, and also the meanings of the poems in my works.

書道用筆に触れてみる。毛の種類の違いは、実際に触れてみると明らかです。

Touch and feel the brushes. You can see the difference of the brush hair when you actually touch them.

バルセロナオフィスがモニターで繋がっています。Hello!

The monitor is connected to the Barcelona office. Hello!

終始和やかな雰囲気で、（実は）病み上がりながらも、楽しくプレゼンテーションが出来ました。Q&Aでは、沢山の質問が飛び交いました。コンテンポラリーな作品を作る上で、トラディショナル（伝統的な基本スキル）は必要なのか、書道とグラフィティの違いは何か、パフォーマンス書道ではArt of making（制作過程を見せるというアート）に重点を置いているのか、そしてそれについてどう思うのか、精神を制作モードに入れるときになにをするのか、などなど。こういったディスカッションを通して、オリエンタル文化や日本語という言語に馴染みのないオーディエンスから見た書道というものを知るということは、私にとって大切な事です。文字を材料として扱う芸術だからこそ、展示やパフォーマンスは見る者の目線に立って、デザインしていかないといけないからであり、同時にそういった生の声や疑問を聞く事で、指導者としても着眼すべき点が明確になります。私自身にとっても収穫のあるセッションでした。Smart Designの皆さんどうもありがとうございました。

来月はまた別のデザインファームでゲストスピーカーとしてレクチャーすることになりそうです。詳細は後にアップします。どうぞお楽しみに！

In a comfortable atmosphere, I had fun having a presentation of slides and videos, although I was just recovering from sickness. Especially the last 20 minutes of Q&A was very interesting – there were really good insights and questions, such as “is the traditional aspect of calligraphy skill still significant when you are making contemporary work?”, “what is the difference between Japanese calligraphy and graffiti?”, “for the calligraphy performance, is it more about the art of making than the actual finalized work?”, “what do you specifically do to set your mind in the production mode?” etc etc. It is important for me to know the perception and understanding of Japanese calligraphy from non-Japanese speakers’ point of view. Especially for those who are not familiar with oriental traditional culture and who don’t understand Japanese language, the level of understanding the meaning must vary.  Since Japanese calligraphy is the art form that uses letters as its material, as a presenter, I have to design the exhibitions and performances accessible and understandable for everyone considering the language barrier.  And as an educator, it is crucial to listen to the audience’s voice and know what needs to be explained.  – It was very meaningful experience.  Thank you very much Smart Design!

Next month, I will be having a guest speaker presentation at a different design firm. Details are TBA. Stay tuned :)

Smart Design http://www.smartdesignworldwide.com

Special thanks to: Akko Terasawa for awesome photos.

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1月24日、サンフランシスコはHunter’s PointにあるBurnett Children’s Development Centerで３〜４歳の子ども達に書道のクラスの指導をしました。アメリカではこの日のちょうど一週間前がMartin Luther King Jr.’s Dayであり、Black History Monthに先駆けて、キング牧師が説いた「愛」をテーマにすることに。クラスは２クラス、１時間ずつ。

On January 24th, I taught 3~4 years old kids at Burnett Children’s Development Center in Hunter’s Point / Bayview in San Francisco.  I was invited as a guest art instructor by a non-profit organization called ArtSeed, which has been contributing to this school to improve their art education programs over 7 years.  In the United States, January 17th was Martin Luther King Jr.’s Day – so we have decided to design this workshop in respect of his teaching of “LOVE”.  Two classes, one hour each.

こどもたちに、「今日は、あい　と書きますよー」とホワイトボードに書いて説明。「LOVEってなんだかみんなわかるかな？」とみんなにたずねたところ、「I LOVE my mommy（ママだいすきだよ）」という返事が返ってきました。思わず、こころがほろり。。

“We’re gonna write LOVE today!” – I explained what the calligraphy is in really simple words, as I was writing them out on the white board. And I asked, “Do you know what LOVE is?” Then a boy answered, “I LOVE my mommy.”  Awwww, so sweet.

先生方も興味津々。

Teachers were even more curious to try.

元気な子ども達の注意を引くのもお仕事です。

It’s my job to catch these energetic kids’ attention, too.

じゅんびできてるひとー？　　はーーい！！

Who’s ready to do this~?         Me~~!!!

I was really impressed at how kids are so good at mimicking!

Your mommy is so proud of you!

With everyone from one class!

よくできました！

Well done!

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