by Jill Shiraki | Sep 9, 2021 | Classes & Events
Fri, Oct 8, 1pm – Kay Sekimachi:Geometries – J-Sei group tour
Join us for a group visit to see “Kay Sekimachi: Geometries” exhibit at BAMPFA, the UC Berkeley Pacific Film Archive Museum. We will meet at BAMPFA, 2155 Center Street (at Oxford St), easily accessible by BART. The group ticket price is $8 Please RSVP to jill@j-sei.org with “Kay Sekimachi tour” in the subject line.
“Kay Sekimachi: Geometries” includes more than fifty objects that highlight the artist’s material and formal innovations across her career. First recognized for her woven monofilament sculptures, made between 1964 and 1974, Sekimachi has since used linear, pliable elements—monofilament, thread, and paper, among other materials—to create experimental objects that fold together art and craft, found and made, and Japanese and American artistic traditions.
Born in San Francisco and growing up in Berkeley, Kay Sekimachi studied at the California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland from 1946 to 1949. In 1949 she took up weaving on the loom and became so adept at the labor-intensive process that she is often referred to as a “weaver’s weaver.” Today, almost fifty years after she began to work in fiber, Sekimachi is recognized as a pioneer in resurrecting it as a medium of artistic expression.
Sekimachi uses the loom to construct three-dimensional sculptural forms. In the early 1970s she used nylon monofilament to create hanging quadruple tubular woven forms to explore ideas of space, transparency, and movement. Inspired by her ancestral homeland of Japan, Sekimachi repeatedly returns to that ancient culture for ideas.
“Sekimachi eschews color in order to reinforce the sculptural qualities of her forms and emphasize the natural properties of her chosen materials. Enamored with antique Japanese paper, she has created a series of standing geometric postlike forms that suggest ancient totemic figures.” –Smithsonian American Art Museum
by Jill Shiraki | Sep 9, 2021 | Classes & Events, Other News
Sat, Nov 20, 10 am – Dementia in the AAPI Community presented by UCSF CARE
Note: Change in date from Oct 9th due to speaker availability.
Learn about Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias amongst Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPI). How prevalent is dementia in the AAPI community? What are the causes and how can we better address the needs? CARE (Collaborative Approach for Asian and Pacific Islanders Research and Education) is a program of UCSF. Their primary goal is to pave the way for the meaningful inclusion of AAPI in clinical and caregiving research across the lifespan. Find out how you can help support the work that benefits community care of our elders. RSVP on Eventbrite
“You took care of me, and now it’s my turn to take care of you. My name is June Yasuhara. I was born in San Jose where I have lived all my life. I am the primary caregiver to both my Japanese parents who have dementia. My mother, Eiko, who is 83 was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2017. She is originally from Japan and came to the United States when she was a teen. My dad, James, is 87 and he was diagnosed with mixed dementia in early 2019. . .” [Continue to learn more.]
by Jill Shiraki | Sep 9, 2021 | Classes & Events
Sundays with author Alden Hayashi – Two Nails, One Love
Two Nails, One Love is a semi autobiographical novel about an estranged mother-son relationship that evolves and eventually heals as the son realizes just how much his life has been affected by his mother’s traumatic past. The novel covers broad themes of discrimination (both racial and LGBTQ), ethnic identity, and immigration. Join us for one or both conversations.
Sun, Oct 17, 4 pm – JA history talk hosted by Brian Niiya, Densho – RSVP for Oct 17 here.
Sun, Oct 24, 4 pm – LGBTQ talk hosted by Stan Yogi, Okaeri-LA – RSVP for Oct 24 here.
Alden Hayashi has worked for more than 30 years in the publishing industry. He has been a staff writer/editor at the Harvard Business Review, the MIT Sloan Management Review, Scientific American, and several other magazines. He has now turned his focus to writing fiction. A short story —”Finding the Right Keiko“—was published in The Baltimore Review (Winter 2021), and his first novel—Two Nails, One Love—has recently been published by Black Rose Writing (Sept 2021).
The program is co-sponsored by You Know You Are Japanese American When (Facebook Group), J-Sei, Densho, and Okaeri-LA.
To purchase the book, please visit Eastwind Books.
by Jill Shiraki | Sep 4, 2021 | Classes & Events
Sun, Oct 17, 2-3:30 – Chiura Obata: Art and Life Inspired by Nature
Co-presented as part of Ashby Village Arts and Culture Series
World-renowned American artist and distinguished UC Berkeley professor, Chiura Obata (1885-1975), is considered by many today one of the foremost California landscape painters of the 20th century.
His seminal work depicting the High Sierra was created nearly 100 years in 1927, and was captured vividly in the book Obata’s Yosemite. Obata’s art and his philosophy of gratitude and reverence to “Dai Shizen”– Great Nature — continues to resonate with admirers both new and old. As people today search for inspiration and healing as stewards of our planet, a fresh look at Obata’s art and life afford lessons for everyone. “Paintings must give to others the kinds of feeling about Nature that Nature gives us. If we pass this along, not just to art lovers but to everybody, our friends, our community, our country, it is the best possible promise for peace in the future.”
His granddaughter Kimi Hill has consulted on numerous books and exhibitions about her grandfather, including a recent retrospective at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. As family historian Hill also edited the book Topaz Moon: Chiura Obata’s Art of the Internment which tells the story of the Obata family, one of the thousands of Japanese-Americans stripped of their homes and livelihoods and incarcerated during WWII.
RSVP to info@ashbyvillage.org with “Chiura Obata” in the subject line.
Automated AI captioning will be available at this event.
by Jill Shiraki | Sep 3, 2021 | 50th Anniversary
Oct 21, 7 pm – Cultivating Community: Legacy of Centers in the East Bay
a program in celebration of J-Sei’s 50th Anniversary
Looking back at the evolution of J-Sei in celebrating its 50th anniversary, we recognize the efforts that spanned the East Bay from the spark that was ignited by the East Bay Japanese for Action. Join us to hear from our guests remembering the Berkeley Nikkei Center, Eden Senior Center and Sakura Kai Senior Center that initiated services for Japanese elders.
Tets Maniwa, Berkeley Nikkei Center
Pam Honda, Eden Senior Center
June Sakaguchi and Amy Shinsako – Sakura Kai Senior Center
These programs continue as cornerstones of the community and have evolved to meet the changing needs.
Find out how they evolved, organized, and continued to serve the needs of their constituents. RSVP to jill@j-sei.org with “East Bay Centers” in the subject line.
