AATJ Japanese Speech Contest at PCC West on April 8, 2018

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“Come join us for the 29th Annual Arizona Japanese Speech Contest!
The objectives of the Annual Arizona Japanese Speech Contest are to bring together Japanese language students from all over the state of Arizona to present their individually-written and memorized speeches before a panel of judges, family, and community members. Participants with a range of language ability (beginner to advanced) and from a range of institutions (high school, community college, and university) are invited to compete for prizes and participate in cultural activities.
By providing an opportunity for students to compete at a state-wide speech contest, we hope to encourage the study of the Japanese language. It is stimulating for students to see their peers from other schools working hard to achieve the same goal of Japanese language proficiency. We aim to create ties throughout our community by opening the event to the public and by soliciting sponsors among local shops, restaurants, and other business entities within and outside of Arizona. We believe that the state-wide speech contest is an ideal format for students to develop their presentational skills; furthermore, it is a great chance for students to use Japanese beyond the traditional classroom setting.”

UP-COMING SPEECH CONTEST DATES AND VENUES (2018)

The 29th Annual Arizona Japanese Speech Contest
Application Instructions (2018)

Time & Date:
12:30 to 6:00 p.m., Sunday, April 8, 2018

Place:
Center for the Arts,
Pima Community College, West Campus
2202 W. Anklam Road
Tucson, AZ 85709

Info: http://aatjaz.org/

Ikebana exhibit “Gardens in the Galleries” at Tucson Museum of Art, April 6 to 8, 2018

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photo courtesy of Patricia Deridder

“The Tucson Museum of Art is pleased to announce a three-day special exhibition, Garden in the Galleries, presenting ikebana flower arrangements located throughout the museum’s art galleries. Ikebana, or “living flowers,” is a Japanese ancient art dating back to the 7th century when offerings of flowers were made at altars. By the 16th century, this art form became integrated into Buddhist and Shinto religions. Over the centuries, ikebana has grown into 1000 schools and can be practiced by anyone interested in learning the discipline. Based on strict ideas of shape, line, and form found in nature, ikebana strives for balance and harmony. Blooms, stems, and leaves each play an important role, representing heaven, earth, and humanity.

Different schools and styles of ikebana are represented in this exhibition, integrated within the permanent collection galleries. During the run of the exhibition, artists will share their knowledge of this unique art form by offering demonstrations of how to make the arrangements. Lectures related to ikebana, Japanese culture, and hands-on activities will also take place throughout the weekend.”

Opening preview party on April 6, from 6 to 9 p.m. $60 with performances by Odaiko Sonora, sushi + sake + beer.

Saturday April 7:
11:00 am – Ikebana demonstrations with Ping Wei
2:00 pm – Join Dr. Takashi Miura for a lecture about Buddhist aesthetics focusing on Japanese art and ikebana.

Sunday April 8:
All Day – art-making with TMALearn!, part of Second Sundaze: Family Day @ TMA.

Mixed media Cherry Blossoms in the Margaret E. Mooney Hall
Japanese inspired fans in the Sculpture Garden
Fish Windsocks in the Creative Space

11:00 am – Origami classes
2:00 pm – Woodworking demonstration with Patricia Reddemann

Tucson Museum of Art, 140 N. Main Ave. Open 10 to 5 p.m. Tuesdays to Sundays

www.tucsonmuseumofart.org

Samurai film series featuring Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune at the Loft Cinema in April into May

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The Samurai Films of Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune

“One was a hardworking Renaissance man – a student of literature trained as a painter and apprenticed to director Kajiro Yamamoto before striking out on his own as a filmmaker. The other was a hard-living military veteran, a cameraman-in-training who stumbled into acting after his grizzled mug and gruff demeanor won a talent search. Together, director Akira Kurosawa and actor Toshiro Mifune created some of Japanese cinema’s most enduring treasures, films that expertly combined the joyful thrills of Saturday matinee cliffhangers with thought-provoking philosophy and the classic beauty of screen painting.

“Mifune had a kind of talent I had never encountered before in the Japanese film world.” – Akira Kurosawa

Over the course of almost two decades, their sixteen collaborations left a broad, indelible mark on world cinema, influencing modern-day tastemakers and shaping narrative genres from the spaghetti Western to the space opera. Kurosawa first took note of the handsome actor when Mifune was twenty-seven, during an open audition at Toho Studios; he was soon cast in Snow Trail (1947), a film Kurosawa wrote for director Senkichi Taniguchi. Just one year later, Kurosawa gave Mifune the lead role of a consumptive gangster in his film Drunken Angel, after which the actor proceeded to inhabit a variety of deeply felt roles for the director, all marked by Mifune’s rare combination of intense physicality and surprising tenderness. Of their many collaborations, it is the duo’s jidai-geki, or period dramas, set in feudal Japan, that popularized Japanese cinema in the West and forever linked Kurosawa and Mifune in the public imagination. From the 1950 sensation Rashomon to 1961’s Yojimbo and beyond, the pair’s samurai films, propelled by Kurosawa’s directorial genius and Mifune’s acting bravado, lit up screens around the world, until they parted ways professionally in 1965. This April (and into May), The Loft Cinema proudly presents a thrilling retrospective featuring five of the greatest samurai films of Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune!”

Schedule — every Wednesday for 5 weeks (click on our NEW Upcoming Movies link for the movie posters) at the Loft Cinema, 3233 E. Speedway Blvd. Tucson

April 4  “Rashomon”

April 11  “The Seven Samurai”

April 18  “Throne of Blood”

April 25  “The Hidden Fortress:

May 2 “Yojimbo”

www.loftcinema.org

 

 

46th Annual Bonsai Show at Tucson Botanical Gardens on March 24 and 25

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“Stop by the Tucson Botanical Gardens and learn more about the ancient Japanese art form that uses cultivation techniques to produce small trees in containers that mimic the shape and size of full trees. This is the annual exhibit by the Tucson Bonsai Society.

March 24 and 25, 9 to 4 p.m. both days

46th annual exhibition of bonsai trees offered by members of the Tucson Bonsai Society. Formally staged exhibits will be in the pavilion building, educational exhibits and trees in early stages of training will be in the surrounding areas. Demonstrations of bonsai technique will be offered throughout the day by teachers and instructors. Selection of bonsai for sale, win a bonsai in the raffle. Sign up for Basic Bonsai classes beginning in April. Garden admission $15 includes the show, the butterfly greenhouse, all other exhibits. March and April are ideal months to get started growing your own bonsai.

  • Formal display of trees and bonsai in training
  • Educational exhibits
  • Demonstrations on the hour
  • Raffle and bonsai for sale
  • Sign up for April – August Bonsai Basics classes”
  • www.tucsonbotanical.org, 2150 N. Alvernon Way, Tucson.

Zen Path: Kyudo Ceremonial Japanese Archery on March 24 at Yume Japanese Gardens.

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“Kyudo (Japanese archery) is the oldest traditional martial art in Japan. Although the bow was originally used for hunting and for warfare, it is now used as a tool for developing and polishing a person’s character. Beyond just shooting arrows at a target, the practitioner works within a ceremonial framework to master form, timing and awareness. Elements of Buddhism, Shinto and Taoism are all interwoven into the history and applications of kyudo.

The bow (called a yumi) is about eight feet long and traditionally made of bamboo, although nowadays beginners and people living in harsh climates often use yumi made of synthetic materials. Practitioners typically dress in hakama and gi or in kimono. While standard shooting distance is 28 meters (about 100 feet), ceremonial demonstrations can be performed at “makiwara”, or short range targets.

For our presentation Arizona Kyudo Kai will demonstrate and discuss the basic elements of kyudo, show the standing and kneeling forms of the hassetsu (the eight step kata that all shooting forms are based on) and then perform a formal three-person ceremonial shoot called “Hitotsu Mato Sharei”. Afterwards, the audience will get the opportunity to participate in the discussion and learn more about the hassetsu (without bows and arrows in hand).”

More information: www.yumegardens.org