Date:1-30 June
Venue: BFI Southbank, South Bank, Waterloo, London SE1 8XT
Tickets: please visit www.bfi.org.uk/go/japansocietykurosawa

In June, the BFI celebrates Akira Kurosawa’s centenary with a season of the great Japanese director’s finest films at BFI Southbank and the nationwide release of a new restoration of Oscar winner Rashomon. This hugely influential and visually stunning masterpiece, which contemplates different versions of ‘truth’, forms the centrepiece of the season.

The BFI have kindly offered  Japan Society members three pairs of tickets to one of the screenings from this season.

The winners are:

Ms Elizabeth Ingrams

Ms Suzette Pettit

Ms Sarah Warburton

Tickets will be available to pick up from the box office on the day.

Akira Kurosawa and His Influence (BFI Southbank, 1 – 30 June) features twelve of Kurosawa’s own works, including the famous Seven Samurai, Throne of Blood and Red Beard, as well as a selection of films from directors inspired by Kurosawa.

Rashomon will also be released at the Irish Film Institute, Dublin, and cinemas nationwide from 18 June.

For more information and a full list of titles, visit www.bfi.org.uk/go/japansocietykurosawa

Third Window Films has kindly given the Japan Society 3 pairs of tickets  to attend their opening screening of Fish Story on Friday 28th May at the ICA. In this smart, wild anime/action/horror/comedy/drama hybrid, a mysterious punk song performed in the 70s has a profound effect on the future. Directed by Yoshihiro Nakamura, Fish Story is an adaptation of the novel by Kotaro Isaka.

The ticket winners are:

Mr Lee Todd

Ms Suzette Pettit

Mr Sachie Kimura

Tickets will be available to pick up from the box office on the day.

Runner Up:

Ms Sarah Warburton

Our runner-up willreceive a copy of the new Miki Satoshi film ‘Instant Swamp’ on DVD!

Instant Swamp

Haname is a lively young journalist blessed with an exceedingly vivid imaginative working for a woman’s magazine on the brink of bankruptcy. Her daily diet of gloopy health drinks aren’t enough to shield her from what she perceives as a particularly severe run of bad luck, which all began on her eighth birthday when her father stormed out of the house, not only abandoning her, but flinging all her toys into a nearby swamp, including a cat talisman which she thinks must have been cursed. Haname sets out to retrieve her lost possessions, a quest which reacquaints her with her father, now a hippie working at a junk shop who goes under the name Light Bulb , and brings her into contact with a punk named Gus.

The Third Window Films brand was born in 2005 when its film-loving founders grew bored of the stream of worn-out shock horror vehicles from the Far East. Third Window Films works hard to bring you the wonderful world beyond long-haired ghost films and mindless Hollywood action copies, sourcing the finest works in new Far Eastern cinema. We strive to represent a rich variety of film genres, be they dramas, comedies, political satires, action or anything else in between. Expect everything from the unknown and cult to the off-beat and even the occasional mainstream masterpiece… or expect nothing but quality Asian cinema!

The Japan Society’ Annual Golf Tournament, for the Asprey and Garrard Plate, was held this year at The Donnington Grove Country Club, Newbury , West Berkshire.

The Winner of The Asprey and Garrard Plate  was Ms Anne Antonnen

Second was Mr Michael Sheridan

Third equal were Minister Ken Okaniwa and Mr Andrew Fraser

Nearest the Pin was Kimiko Tominaga

Longest Drive was Douglas Isles

The trophies were presented by Captain Simon Chelton, Vice President, Asia, BAE Systems.

We should like to thank all of those who participated, and show our sincere appreciation to BAE Systems for their sponsorship and kind support.

]]> http://www.japansociety.org.uk/12918/japan-society-members%e2%80%99-art-exhibition-2010-winners/ Thu, 29 Jul 2010 17:07:54 +0000 japansociety http://www.japansociety.org.uk/?p=12918
The 'Asobi - Play' Japan Society Members' Art Exhibition Prize-giving and Closing Reception The winner of this year's competion for her 'ASOBI Sake Set' was Jill Fanshawe Kato In second place was Yoshiko Torii for her sculpture 'Art Space for the Future'. In third place was Hanako Clulow for her piece 'Deja Vu'.]]> Japan Society Members’ Art Exhibition 2010 – Winners The ‘Asobi – Play’ Japan Society Members’ Art Exhibition Prize-giving and Closing Reception

This, the second, Japan Society Art Exhibition centred around the theme of ‘Asobi – Play’. 22 entries were received this year, ranging from photography to sculpture. The exhibition was also a competition and prizes were awarded to the winning entrants during the closing reception at the Embassy of Japan on 27 May 2010.

The top three were:

In first place and winner of this year’s competion for her
‘ASOBI Sake Set’ was Jill Fanshawe Kato

In second place was Yoshiko Torii for her sculpture ‘Art Space for the Future’.

In third place was Hanako Clulow for her piece ‘Deja Vu’.

Jill Fanshawe Kato with her winning ‘ASOBI Sake Set

Yoshiko Torii with her sculpture      Hanako Clulow’s

‘Art Space for the Future’                      ‘Deja Vu’

Images Courtesy of The Embassy of Japan

To view all the entries as a slideshow, please click here.

Before the formal prize-giving and announcement of the winning piece of artwork, Yoon Heechang (Tama Art University) and Tamiko O’Brien (Camberwell College of Art) also gave fascinating talks, comparing notes on their experiences of space.

Jill Fanshawe Kato receiving her prize:
a Nintendo Wii games Console with games courtesy of Rising Star Games

We would finally like to thank all the sponsors for their kind support and prize donations for the competition.

On Sunday 23rd May 2010 over 1000 people from across Hammersmith and London dropped into Hammersmith Park to enjoy a day of fun in the sun at the Hammersmith Park Japanese Garden Party.

Families and couples enjoyed a wide variety of performances and music including Taiko Drumming from the Thames Taiko Group, and Japanese Martial Arts from Shorinji Kempo; as well as,  savouring the Japanese cuisine, such as,  Takoyaki and Yakisoba that was available from food stalls.

The children who attended were delighted by the entertainment and activity workshops, and got involved in Origami, Shodo, Kimono Bookmark and Fan making, and listened to traditional kamishibai storytelling.

In addition there were also tours of the refurbished Japanese garden and a Traditional Japanese tea ceremony demonstration.

All in all, it was a family fun filled day, enjoyed by everyone!

We would also like to thank the many volunteers who offered their time and support to the event, enabling its success.

We are pleased to announce the winners of the World Haiku Contest for Schools 2010. Entrants were asked to compose their own Haiku on the theme of SCHOOL and submit it with an accompanying illustration, for a chance to win a trip to Japan for two.

All winning entries will be published in a Haiku book and winners will each receive a copy.

Grand Prize - Two return Economy Class flights to Japan with Japan Airlines plus two nights accommodation at the Imperial Hotel Tokyo

William Duggleby (12) – Thomas Keble School, Stroud
Just one flake of snow
Falls from the ice leaden sky
And Maths turns to slush

School Prize – : £100 of Book Tokens awarded to the school with the most outstanding entries.
St Cedd’s School, Essex

Runners Up – Runner up prizes including a certificate of achievement and a chance of publication in the 2010 edition of ‘Haiku by World Children’.

Ivan Anderson (7) – Skerries School, Shetland
Boats on moorings
Birds in the sky
Out the school window

Myles Cullum (9)- St Cedd’s School, Essex
On my first long day
I cried and cried all day long
Till it was home time

Amy Hammond (14) – Woodlands School, Essex
Ring, ring goes the bell
Rushing to the field squelching
in mud back to class

Anisa Khatun (7/8) – Arnhem Wharf Primary School, London
Waiting for children
Who come racing out from class
Deserted playground

Michael Lester (13) – Hornsea Secondary School, Yorkshire
The pen-stained whiteboard
Sitting in the dark corner
Longs to be dusted

Ramneet Gill (13) – Bishop Wand C of E Secondary School, Middlesex
Leaves fall from small trees
Sad war means no school for some
No skills to lead life

Ellen Woolf (14) – Bishop Wand C of E Secondary School, Middlesex
Knowledge fills your mind
But so does break time gossip
Social life at stake

Organised by the JAL Foundation and sponsored by:

Hideko Udagawa – Romantic Novelties for Violin and Orchestra
Special price of £9.60 (RRP £15.00) for Japan Society Members (Courtesy of  Signum Records)

Hideko Udagawa, violin
Philharmonia Orchestra,
Martyn Brabbins conductor

Hideko Udagawa has performed extensively throughout the world and captivates international audiences with her artistry and enthusiasm. As a protégée of Nathan Milstein, she has inherited the great Russian romantic tradition of violin playing, and brings it to the fore in this collection of works by Rimsky-Korsakov, Tchaikovsky, Glazounov, Gade and Ysase.

Alongside the Philharmonia Orchestra this disc includes two world premiere recordings of works by Eugène Ysaÿe – Mazurka No.2 Op.10 and Saltarelle Carnavalesque, Op.Posth.

Praise for Hideko’s last disc with Signum – Rachmaninov for Violin & Piano, with pianist Konstantin Lifschitz (SIGCD164)

“The world premiere recording … of the 1889 Romance … is very beautifully played by both artists and alone is worth the price of the disc.”
International Record Review, February 2010

Japan Society members can purchase a copy of the CD at a discounted price of £9.60 (RRP £15.00)  by giving the Japan Society member voucher code (JAPAN) when buying it from www.signumrecords.com. We are grateful to Signum records for kindly giving Japan Society members this 20% discount on top of their usual direct from site price of £12.00.

 

The Leach Pottery in St Ives is one of eleven institutions long-listed for the £100,000 Art Fund Prize, the UK’s largest single arts prize.

If you haven’t cast your vote already please go to the following link and vote for the Leach Pottery to win the Art Fund Prize for Museums and Galleries. We are the smallest contender by a long way and the only Cornish candidate – indeed the only South West candidate – the deadline for voting is 7th May so once you have voted please get all your friends, colleagues and family to do it too. Just one vote per email address – and you can leave a comment to let the judges know why you think Leach should win. The first prize is £100k which would go a very long way to paying for a new education centre for the pottery. Here’s the link www.artfundprize.org.uk/2010/vote – and thank you in advance

The long list has been selected by a panel of Judges chaired this year by broadcaster Kirsty Young. The £100,000 prize is awarded to the museum or gallery for a project completed in the last year, that the Judges deem demonstrates the most originality, imagination and excellence. The Prize, which has been sponsored by the UK’s leading independent art charity, The Art Fund, for three years, aims to increase public appreciation and enjoyment of the UK’s museums and galleries.

The public can vote for their favourite long-listed institution and leave comments for the Judges on the Art Fund Prize website telling the Judges why they should win. The poll results and online comments will be given to the Judges for their consideration when selecting the Short List and Winner. Visitors to the website can enter an exclusive competition to win a limited edition Jonathan Yeo print.

To vote, comment or for more information about the Art Fund Prize go to: www.artfundprize.org.uk/2010/vote

Saturday, 24th April

Each year the Conversation Group celebrates the coming of spring with its much celebrated Hanami or cherry blossom viewing picnic.

This year the group met in Kensington Gardens under the cherry trees near the Albert Memorial for an afternoon of eating, drinking and chatting. It was thoroughly enjoyable and fun-filled occasion, with over 80 attendees, all soaking up the sunshine and atmosphere, before continuing  the seasonal celebrations in the Queen Arms local pub, where Kirin Beer was on tap and readily enjoyed!

Tuesday 27th April 2010

The Japan Society was delighted to celebrate with Miyako Yoshida her final UK performances (17th & 23rd April, Royal Ballet). In conversation with Kevin O’Hare, Administrative Director of the Royal Ballet, Miyako reflected on an illustrious career during which she has worked with the Royal Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet, K-ballet among others.

Miyako Yoshida won the Prix de Lausanne, which led to a scholarship to the Royal Ballet. She joined Sadler’s Wells Royal Ballet (now Birmingham Royal Ballet) in 1984 and moved to The Royal Ballet in 1995. Since 2006 she has been a Principal Guest Artist.

She has danced the leading classical roles in The Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, Swan Lake, Ondine, The Nutcracker, Coppelia and La Fille mal Gardee. With her mastery of many styles, from Petipa to Ashton and MacMillan to Balanchine, she has thrilled audiences everywhere. Miyako Yoshida’s final performance with The Royal Ballet will be Romeo and Juliet in Tokyo in June.

Miyako Yoshida is a UNESCO Ambassador for Peace, has been awarded an OBE for her services to dance, and in 2007 a Japan Society Award for her work in promoting Japan -UK relations.

This was a truly fascinating and rewarding evening, attracting just over 100 guests,  many of whom were Miyako Yoshida’s supporters, showing their enthusiasm towards her work and wishing her well in her future activity.

Following the conversation with Kevin O’Hare, there was an opportunity for the audience to ask questions.

The evening concluded with an informal sushi and sake reception, which was thoroughly enjoyed by attendees.

The Japan Society was also pleased to welcome members of Otomodachi-kai and friends of Asia House to this special event, and was exceedingly grateful to Asia House for hosting it, and for their event support.