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An Online Newsletter Showcasing Our Programs for the Month of January 2024! |
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With the holiday season behind us, we’re excited to step into 2025 with with not one, but two incredible art exhibitions. Our Miracle Mile office will host *ETHEREAL: Interpretations of the Ryūgūjо̄ Myth*, kicking off Tuesday, January 21st. To complement this exhibition, we’ll also be presenting a kokyū musical performance by the talented Misato Tachidani, along with a mixed-media art workshop led by artist Miki Yokoyama. Meanwhile, our traveling exhibition *Built Environment: An Alternative Guide to Japan* will be showcased at the SCI-Arc Kappe Library Gallery in Downtown Los Angeles. This exhibit will focus on the fascinating world of Japanese architecture. Continuing the theme, we’ll also present the third installment in our architectural lecture series, *HAI/KYO: Destruction and Rebirth of Japanese Architecture.* On the educational front, our winter term for Japanese language courses begins this month with a new selection of online offerings. If you missed the registration window, don’t worry—spring term will bring more opportunities, so be sure to check back for registration details. Our Japanese language team has been busy creating new J-LEAP reports, producing fresh videos for *Keisho Nihongo*, and crafting insightful one-pagers from our leadership workshop last fall. Take a moment to explore these materials and dive into the shared experiences of Japanese language educators nationwide. Finally, January marks the last month of the current JFF On Demand Theater lineup. Be sure to catch the short films before the program changes in February. For the current quarter, the United States now ranks second worldwide behind Mexico in the number of registered users. We look forward to welcoming you in 2025 with a fresh slate of exciting programs here at The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles! |
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ARCHITECTURE LECTURE SERIES To discuss Japanese architecture, this talk series is organized around five concepts unique to Japan: MA, KANE, HAI/KYO, IN/EI, and SUKI. Renowned Japanese architects and scholars will speak at each symposium about their ideas on architecture and the works they have produced. This series offers a unique opportunity to deepen your understanding of Japanese architecture and its cultural concepts by featuring their insights, enriching your perspective on this distinctive architectural heritage through the lens of contemporary practice. The second session will discuss the concept of 「廃墟」 (HAI/KYO). HAI/KYO refers to ruins that embody the remnants of historical destruction caused by disasters such as earthquakes, fires, floods, and wars, while also symbolizing themes of rebirth, recovery, and the creation of new urban landscapes. |
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ART EXHIBITION Opening Reception: The Ryūgūjо̄ [竜宮城], or Dragon Palace, is a mythical undersea kingdom in East Asian folklore, often depicted as a magnificent, otherworldly palace beneath the ocean. In Japan, the legend of Ryūgūjо̄ appears in classical Japanese literature, including the Manyо̄shū (compiled in the late 8th century), Heiji Monogatari (compiled in the late 12th century), and Genpei Seisuiki (compiled in the late 13th century). In these stories, the palace is ruled by the dragon king Ryūjin [竜神], a powerful sea deity who controls the tides and storms. The story of Ryūgūjо̄ reflects the transience of life, the beauty of fleeting moments, and the connection between myth and reality. The myth has inspired many interpretations, with locations across Japan claiming ties to the Ryūgūjо̄. Some of these places include Kagoshima, Okinawa (Ryūkyū), Nagasaki, Miyagi, and Shiga, regions closely connected to major bodies of water. In these areas, you can also find paintings, statues, temples, shrines, and tourist attractions inspired by the Ryūgūjо̄, showing how people have woven various stories from the same legend over generations. In this exhibition, ETHEREAL: Interpretations of the Ryūgūjо̄ Myth by Dwight Hwang and Miki Yokoyama, two artists reimagine this myth through their practices of Gyotaku and mix media, exploring the eternal cycle of life, death, and rebirth beneath the waves. |
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TRAVELING EXHIBITION Opening Reception: Location: SCI-Arc Kappe Library Gallery The exhibition features dozens of examples of buildings, civil engineering works and landscapes, etc., from all the prefectures of Japan, which are introduced through photographs, text and video images. It presents a rarely considered aspect of Japan, taking the built environment of the various of regions of a country that is geographically diverse and often struck by natural disasters, with the aim of examining how Japanese people have engaged and struggled with the natural environment and how they have carried on and created locality. |
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MUSIC & ART Why not music inspired by art while surrounded by art? In this new series, "In the Tune of Art," we select music that matches the theme and artwork of the current exhibition and invite you to enjoy the melody in that environment. Musicians will also give special perform improvised performances inspired by the art. For the first session, we will be presenting a traditional Japanese instrument, the kokyū, to accompany the exhibition "ETHEREAL: Interpretations of the Ryūgūjо̄ Myth". The musician, Misato Tachidani from Toyama, Japan, will travel to our venue and play this unique string instrument as well as a brif introduction about the kokyū. The evening will also feature a collaboration with American Tsugaru shamisen player Mike Penny. Immerse yourself in the sound of the kokyū as it blends and spreads into the fantastical world of the deep sea! |
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WORKSHOP Join us for an evening of creativity and inspiration in a relaxed, welcoming atmosphere. Contemporary mix media artist Miki Yokoyama will guide participants through a hands-on workshop where we’ll create unique artworks by drawing with acrylic pens on dyed canvases. This workshop is part of the related events for the two-person exhibition ETHEREAL: Interpretations of the Ryūgūjо̄ Myth by Dwight Hwang and Miki Yokoyama, opening on January 21. Miki will share her techniques and walk you through the process, offering tips on how to bring your ideas to life. No prior experience is needed—just bring your curiosity and let your imagination flow. Together, we’ll create a shared vision of an ethereal world! |
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2024/25 J-LEAP REPORTS The initial Lead Teacher (LT)/Host Organization application period for the Japanese Language Education Assistant Program (J-LEAP) has ended, and now the Laurasian Institution and the Japan Foundation will now select the best candidates from those who applied to move forward! This month, we would like to welcome Kanaho Mochida, at Kearny High School in Kearny, NJ, and Natsumi Miyamoto, at Cranford High School in Cranford, NK! You can read about their experiences in the links above. |
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ON DEMAND This month, JFF Theater continues its current lineup. Make sure to check the website to see which movies are available!
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New Video Interview Series: My Keisho Nihongo, Your Keisho Nihongo Being a Keisho Nihongo/Japanese-as-a-Heritage-Language (JHL) learner, as opposed to a Japanese-as-a-Foreign Language (JFL) learner, can carry with it a set of unique challenges when there is a lack of local access to specialized education and community. Bicultural identity, especially in countries rich in diversity like the U.S., can factor into these learners' language acquisition and can be difficult for them to navigate. In this interview series, we talk with Keisho Nihongo learners about the personal challenges they faced and what helped them overcome those challenges. We hope that the advice, perspectives, and unique stories offered in these interviews will help and motivate other Keisho Nihongo learners throughout the U.S. William Kimmel: https://youtu.be/cQ-hhFGQUrk Luke Palermo: https://youtu.be/Y3EopxyplYs |
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General Invitation to Join JF USA Digital Library We recently renewed and added many new books in coordination with our New York and Toronto offices for our patrons in the US and Canada. There have also been an uptick in the number of applicants as well, which shows that this is a very popular service. We have also updated the application survey and the confirmation emails are still going out once a week on Wednesdays by 6:30PM pacific time. If you register and do not receive a welcome email from us within a Wednesday of registering, please contact us so we can help you out. |
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2024-2025 Japanese Language Grants Now Available! Details for the 2025-26 Japanese language Grants in the US should be available in late January 2025 so please check our website then for more information! Advocacy Support Letter If your Japanese language program is in danger of being cut due to COVID-19, we will send a support letter to stakeholders (Superintendent, Principal, Dean, etc.). |
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Japanese Language Education Update 132We’re thrilled to present four new One-Pagers designed to support Japanese language education! One focuses on advocacy for Japanese language education in California, while the other three highlight the work of key teacher associations in the state: NCJTA, CAJLT, and TJSC. These One-Pagers were developed during the 2024 AATJ/JFLA Leadership Summit workshop in Los Angeles this October, and they serve as fantastic resources for boosting advocacy and visibility for Japanese language education. These concise documents are ideal for connecting with key audiences, including parents, school decision-makers, and teachers who may not yet be familiar with the associations. We encourage you to use the California advocacy One-Pager in your own advocacy efforts. Additionally, we recommend that other teacher associations consider creating similar One-Pagers. It’s an excellent way to share what you do and why it matters in a clear, accessible format! |
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5700 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 100
Los Angeles, CA 90036-
jflainfo@jpf.go.jp
323.761.7510
