Home Arts Arts Etc. Art Etc. – 1/5/2011

Art Etc. – 1/5/2011

Alan Chong Lau

January 5, 2011

530

Highlights
Visual Arts
Performing Arts
Film/Media
Written Arts
Art News/ Opportunites

Highlights

Siddhartha Mukherjee is a cancer physician, researcher, professor of medicine and writer at Columbia University. He comes to Seattle on behalf of his new book entitled “The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer” (Scribner). Far from a scholarly, boring treatise on a major disease, the book is involving and humane and written with clarity. Presented by Seattle Arts & Lectures in association with Elliott Bay Book Company. January 12 at 7:30 p.m. at Town Hall Seattle. Go to www.lectures.org or call (206) 621-2230. Town Hall is located at 1119 Eighth Avenue (at Seneca).
Northwest Film Forum presents their annual Children’s Film Festival Seattle, the largest festival of its kind in the Pacific Northwest. Set for January 28 – February 6, the event will screen more than 100 films from 25 countries. A special program will spotlight the best in animation from China curated by acclaimed animator Joe Chang. The complete schedule is at www.childrensfilmfestivalseattle.org. Teachers and educators who want to book field trips can e-mail [email protected]. The NWFF is located 1515 – 12^th Avenue on Capitol Hill. www.nwfilmforum.org.
Seattle artist Jesianne Asagi’s imaginative mixed-media pieces are part of the permanent collection on view at the Black Bottle located in Belltown at 2600 First Ave. Call (206) 441-1500.
Maki Tamura has her second solo exhibition at James Harris Gallery. The work here features carefully constructed drawings and hanging sculpture that riff off motifs found in 18^th and 19^th century European decorative arts. The distinction between drawing and sculpture is playfully blurred by crafting the entire object out of paper. Drop by and get lost in another world. Through Jan. 15. James Harris Gallery, located at 312 Second Ave. S. Call (206) 903-6220 or visit www.jamesharrisgallery.com.
“Celebrate Asia!” is the annual concert (see preview story in this issue) that features musical traditions of Asia. Jan. 14, 2011. With Carolyn Kuan conducting, Sumi Jo, soprano, Masayo Ishigure on koto and Hu Jianbing on shang. Hosted by James Sun. Pre-concert performances start at 6:30 p.m. in the Grand Lobby. Located at the Benaroya Hall downtown, 200 University Ave. Call (206) 215-4747 or go to www.celebrateasia.org” www.celebrateasia.org.
“99 Years of Love” was a TV drama depicting Japanese American history in the Northwest that aired on Japanese television earlier this year. Now locals have a chance to see the entire series with subtitles. It is always interesting to see how the Japanese media interpret Japanese American history. Screens at the NVC Memorial Hall at 1212 South King on January 8, 15 & 22. You must register in advance to attend. (425) 679-5120.

Visual Arts

“INDIGO: Laura Kina and Shelly Jyoti” is a show that features textile-based artwork that explores cross-cultural narratives. Indian artist Shelly Jyoti and US artist Laura Kina use indigo dye, Gujarat-style mirrored dazzle, Jewish tzitzit inspired tassels and traditional Indian fiber arts to tell their contemporary stories. Opening reception is January 6 from 5 – 8 p.m. and First Thursday, February 3 from 5 – 8 p.m. Show is on view through February 19. Artxchange Gallery at 512 First Avenue S. Call (206) 839-0377 or visit www.artxchange.org.
“Tales of a Grand Past and Uncertain Future” is the title of a show of prints by Yoshitoshi Monogatari on view till January 15 at the Cullom Gallery. Located at 603 S. Main St. Call (206) 919-8278 or visit www.cullomgallery.com.
“Love Empire” is a show of mixed-media paintings by James Lawrence Ardena through January 30. Shoreline Community College Gallery at 16101 Greenwood Ave. N. Administration Building 1000 in Shoreline. (206) 546-4101 x 4433 or visit www.shore.ctc.edu.
Sculpture by Harold Hoy on view through January 29 at Gallery IMA. Located at 123 S. Jackson St. in Pioneer Square. Call (206) 625-0055 or visit www.galleryima.com.
“A History of the Japanese Community in Washington” exhibit opens at Tacoma Art Museum on Jan. 12 at 10:30 a.m. Go to www.tacomaartmuseum.org.
An exhibit entitled “History of Pacific Northwest Japanese Restaurants” is on view till June 1, 2011 at the Northwest Nikkei Museum in the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Washington. Included are excerpts from interviews with those who owned, worked and grew up with the restaurants. The Japanese Cultural and Community Center, located at 1414 S. Weller. Call (206) 568-7114 or visit www.jcccw.org.
Against the backdrop of the Great Depression, the U.S. government created the Public Works of Art Program – the first federal government program to support the arts nationally. From the Smithsonian American Art Museum comes a selection of the paintings made with the support from this program. “1934: A New Deal For Artists” is on view from through January 9, 2011. Whatcom Museum at the Lightcatcher is located at 121 Prospect Street in Bellingham. Call (360) 778-8930 or visit: www.whatcommuseum.org.
“Waste Not” is a monumental installation collaboration between the contemporary artist Song Dong and his mother. All of the everyday objects collected during her entire life are piled up within the frame of her house. Through January 16, 2011. Vancouver Art Gallery, located at 750 Hornby Street in Vancouver, B.C. Call (604) 662-4719.
The work of Saya Moriyasu, Yuki Nakamura, Arun Sharma, Brendan Tang, Patti Warashina and others is included in “BAM Biennial 2010: Clay Throwdown”. This is Bellevue Arts Museum’s new juried exhibition competition where artists are asked to make work expressly for the show. Continues on view through January 16. Noted ceramic artist and UW Art Professor Akio Takamori was one of the judges. Bellevue Arts Museum is located at 510 Bellevue Way N.E. Call (425) 519-0770.
KOBO Gallery at HIGO features their annual “Simple Cup” show with hundreds of ceramic cups from artists from the Northwest and Japan. Megumi Schacher teaches an Ikebana class here January 9 from 1 – 3 p.m. Call or e-mail the shop for advance reservations. KOBO Gallery at HIGO is located at 604 South Jackson St. Call (206) 381-3000 or visit: www.koboseattle.com.
“From Edo To Tacoma – Three Eras of Japanese Woodblock Prints: Edo, Meiji, and 20^th Century Works” remains on view through February 13, 2011. The second rotation of new work means what is currently on view is an entirely new show. Events connected to the show include the following – Gwen Perkins from the nearby Washington State History Museum will speak on “A History of the Japanese Community” on January 12 at 10:30 a.m. On Third Thursday January 20 from 5 – 8 p.m. will be a program entitled “A Night in Japan” with honored guests from the Consulate-General of Japan. Includes performances by Stadium Taiko group, the Kabuki Academy, a koi kite workshop in the Open Art Studio, Japanese snacks and sake tasting and a screening of the Japanese animated feature film, “Miyori’s Forest” all in the nearby restaurant. Silk Strings will present a koto concert on January 22 at 3 p.m. Tacoma Art Museum is at 1701 Pacific Avenue in Tacoma. Call (253) 272-4258 or visit www.tacomaartmuseum.org.
The Burke Museum mounts their first major exhibition of their international textile collection showing work from the peoples of the Americas, Asia and the Pacific Islands in “Weaving Heritage: Textile Masterpieces From the Burke Collection”. Through February 27, 2012. Call (206) 543-5590 or go to www.washington.edu/burkemuseum.
“Wang Huaiqing: A Painter’s Painter in Contemporary China” traces the artist’s development through 23 innovative works. Recognized as one of China’s leading contemporary artists for his ability to blur the line between abstract and naturalistic art. Nov. 18 – July 17. Also includes small shows on traditional and modern Japanese woodblock print and a room of work by Northwest artists, Paul Horiuchi and George Tsutakawa. Seattle Asian Art Museum, located at 1400 Prospect in Volunteer Park. Call (206) 654-3100 or visit www.seattleartmuseum.org.
“Born Into Identity: The Asian Pacific American Adoptee Experience” is the latest show to open at the “Wing.” 13 APA Adoptee artists and oral histories from community members explore the complexities of being an APA adoptee. “Sacred Seattle” is a new exhibit opening September 16 from 6 – 8 p.m. It traces spaces, places and paths where Asian Pacific Americans both belong to and long for the sacred. “Home Revealed: Artists of the Chinatown-International District” remains on view until April 17, 2011. Jan. 6 is “First Thursday” and gives you a chance to experience the historic hotel tour at a discount (always free to members). 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. Local community activist Vera Ing reads from her new memoir “Dim Sum: The Seattle ABC (American Born Chinese) Dream” on Jan. 6 at 6 p.m. in the Tateuchi Story Theatre. Also an opening reception for a new exhibit entitled “Cultural Confluence: Urban People of Asian and Native American Heritages” takes place on Jan. 13 from 5:30 – 8 p.m. Also opening on Sat., Jan. 15 is a new exhibit entitled “New Years All Year Round” that looks at Asian traditions for the New Year from various Asian cultures. For details on all of the above, go to www.wingluke.org or call (206) 623-5124.
Local artist MalPina Chan curates a show on book art entitled “The Art of the Book: Hand to Hand” through Jan. 9. Columbia City Gallery is located at 4864 Rainier Ave. S. Call (206) 760-9843 or visit www.columbiacitygallery.com.
The work of Paul Horiuchi and George Tsutakawa is included in a group show entitled “Guy Anderson and other Friends – the Paul I. Gingrich, Jr. Collection” on view through Jan. 2 at Museum of Northwest War, locate at 121 South First St. La Connor, Wash. Call (360) 466-4446 or visit www.museumofnwart.org.
“TAKEN: FBI” is a new exhibit that examines the experiences of Japanese American families in the Portland area imprisoned by the FBI and Department of Justice shortly after the bombing at Pearl Harbor. On view at the Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center through May 30, 2011. A series of monthly programs will be held to accompany the exhibit. For details, go to www.oregonikkei.org.
SOIL Art Collective is now accepting proposals for shows in their exhibition space from June – Dec. 2011. Deadline is Jan. 21, 2011. Go to www.soilart.org.
Art4Culture’s gallery space is accepting applications for shows for their 2011-2012 season now with a deadline of Jan. 10, 2011. Artists, artist teams and independent curators in King County not affiliated with a commercial gallery are eligible to apply. Call Esther at (206) 296-8674 for questions.

Performing Arts

The Killerbees (with Bob Antolin on sax, flute and guitar) continue their weekly stand at Waid’s every Thursday at 8 p.m. $5 cover. Location at 1212 E. Jefferson. Call (206) 328-6483. They also have a new self-titled CD which will be available for purchase at the club.
Portland State University Center for Japanese Studies will host the only West Coast performance by the prestigious Kashu-juku Noh Theater from Kyoto, Japan set for March 16, 2011. They will be performing one of the centerpieces of their repertoire entitled “Aoi no Ue (Lady Aoi) adapted from Lay Murasaki’s “The Tale of Genji.” For details, go to www.pdx.edu.
The Portland Japanese Garden will have an “O-Shogatsu New Year’s Festival on Jan. 9 from noon – 3 p.m. and an “O-Shogatsu Dinner with Chef Naoko” on Jan. 16 from 1 – 3 p.m. For details, go to www.japanesegarden.com/events or call (503) 542-0280.

Film/Media

The new Japanese film “GANTZ” will screen at select theatres on January 20 at 8:30 p.m. with a live interview event. Seattle theatres include AMC Pacific Place 11 and Thornton Place with IMAX in Seattle. For details, go to www.fathomevents.com.
Actress Michelle Yeoh (“Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”) recently met with pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar (the country formerly known as Burma) as part of her research on a possible film role as the Novel Peace Laureate.
Award-winning director Tran Anh Hung (“The Scent of Green Papaya”, “Cyclo”) took four years to gain permission from Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami to bring his best-selling novel of male/female relationships, “Norwegian Wood” to the silver screen. The film will star Rinko Kikuchi and Kenichi Matsuyama. The film was nominated for the Venice Film Festival’s Golden Lion Award last fall. It opens in Japan this month and will subsequently be released in over 35 countries after that.

Written Arts

The Elliott Bay Book Company now situated in their cozy new digs on Capitol Hill has readings on almost every day of the week. Local writer Dori Jones Yang reads on behalf of her new young adult novel entitled “Daughter of Xanadu” (Random House). In it, the fictional daughter of Khubilai Khan meets and eventually befriends a traveler from the West, Marco Polo and they travel across 13^th century China together. Sunday, January 16 at 2 p.m. Amy Chua, Professor of Law at Yale Law School is a noted scholar with two major works on the global economy. But in her latest book, she gets personal. In “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother” (Penguin Press), she details her own upbringing in a traditional Chinese American home and how she ends up repeating it in raising her own children. January 21 at 7 p.m. All readings at Elliott Bay unless otherwise noted. Please see www.elliottbaybook.com for more details.
The Saturday University Sacred Sites of Asia Lecture Series, presented by the Gardner Center For Asian Art And Ideas, cosponsored by University Of Washington Jackson School Of International Studies and Elliott Bay Book Company continues with the following. On Saturday, January 15 at 9:30 a.m., UCLA Professor of Buddhist Studies Robert Buswell speaks about “Buddhist Monasteries and Monastic Life in Korea.” UW Architecture Professor Ken Oshima will speak about “Architecture of Asia Outside of Asia” on Saturday, January 22 at 9:30 a.m. At the Seattle Asian Art Museum located at 1400 E. Prospect in Volunteer Park. For more information, please see www.seattleartmuseum.org.
“Filipinos in the Willamette Valley by Tyrone Lim and Dolly Pangan-Specht was recently published as part of Arcadia Publishing’s “Images of America” series.
“Listen to The Fragrance” is a new book by Charles Wu that is a personal appreciation of the Portland’s classical Chinese garden with translations and commentary on the literary inscriptions found throughout the garden. To order the book, call (503) 228-8131 or go to www.lansugarden.org.
Ruiyan Xu, web producer of the award-winning P.O.V. documentary series has had her first novel published. “The Lost and Forgotten Languages of Shanghai” tells the story of a happily married businessman who loses his ability to speak Chinese after a horrible accident. Visit www.ruiyanxu.com to learn more.
If you are wondering what interesting books you forgot to read this year, the Philippine American Writers and Artists, Inc. queried some of its’ members and came up with a holiday book list. Log on to http://pawainc.blogspot.com/ to see who’s reading what.

Art News/ Opportunites

Congratulations to Yoko Ott, Director of Bellevue’s arts space, Open Satellite who was mentioned in CityArts “The Power List – 50 People who Make Seattle Arts Go” (Seattle January 2011 issue of CityArts).
The City of Enumclaw is seeking visual artists to exhibit works of art at City Hall Gallery in 2011. Deadline is November 30, 2011. For more information, call (360) 802-0239.
Congratulations to Washington State artists, writers, filmmakers and performers Karen Hsiao Savage, Eliaichi Kimaro, Larissa Min, David Hoon Kim, Maritess Zurbano, Zhi Lin and Yuki Nakamura who all received 2010 Grants for Artist Projects from Artist Trust. For details, go to www.artisttrust.org.
Kaze Daiko’s Winter 2011 Youth Taiko Workshop takes place Jan. 24 – Feb. 28, 2011. If you are 8 to 17 years-old and interested in learning taiko, then e-mail Peter Matsudaira at: [email protected].
Sogetsu School of Ikebana (Japanese flower arrangement) teacher Mitsuko Hakomori will offer two five-week classes from Jan. – March at Community Center at Mercer View. For details, contact Shirley Hill at (425) 558-0889 or e-mail [email protected].
The Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission works with the National Endowment for the Arts to sponsor the U.S./Japan Creative Artists Program. Up to five outstanding contemporary and traditional artists from the U.S. from various genres can spend a three-month residency in Japan to pursue their individual and artistic goals. A month stipend and money for transportation and language lesions is provided. Deadline is Feb. 1, 2011. Go to www.jusfc.gov/creativeartists.asp for details.
The Ethnic Art Gallery was established by a coalition of City of Seattle employees to showcase emerging and established artists of color. For general questions, go to: [email protected]. Asian & Pacific Islander artists can call (206) 386-0043 or e-mail: [email protected].
Artworks on or of paper are wanted for an exhibit in Budapest. Work must fit into a 9 x 12 envelope. Deadline is Jan. 30, 2011. For more information, visit: www.hungarian-multicultural-center.com. Or, e-mail Beata Szechy, Hungarian Multicultural Center Director at [email protected].