kip fulbeck: part asian, 100% hapa is an exhibition of portraits by artist Kip Fulbeck, who traveled the country photographing more than 1,000 Hapa of all ages and walks of life. Originally a derogatory label derived from the Hawaiian word for half, the word Hapa has been embraced as a term of pride by many whose mixed-race heritage includes Asian or Pacific Rim ancestry. Fulbeck's work seeks to address in words and images the one question that Hapa are frequently asked: "What are you?"

kip fulbeck: part asian, 100% hapa is an artist's attempt to explore Hapa--who now number in the millions--and it offers a complex perspective on an increasing reality of contemporary America.

Join award-winning filmmaker and artist, Kip Fulbeck, as he discusses his new book part asian, 100% hapa. This book was created as a forum in word and image for Hapa to answer the question they're nearly always asked: "What are you?"

Fulbeck's frank, head-on portraits are paired with the sitters' own statements of identity. A work of intimacy, beauty, and powerful self-expression, part asian, 100% hapa is the book Fulbeck says he wishes he had growing up.

Book signing to follow.

part asian, 100% hapa is available for sale through the Museum Store Online or by calling 888.769.5559.

Join us for a Party on the Plaza! In celebration of the opening of kip fulbeck: part asian, 100% hapa, enjoy a lively evening of DJ sets and spoken-word artists. Special evening book signing with Kip Fulbeck (Museum Store open until 8PM). Food vendors and no host bar.

Spoken word artists include:
Armando Alvarez
Austin Cho
Alison De La Cruz
Melanie Hensch
Jenille Narvaez
Daniela Schonberger
Mike T
Michael Velasquez

This event is free and open to the public. Free admission to the National Museum that evening.

A Staged Reading by East West Players Writer's Gallery

A Los Angeles native, Henrietta Chico Nofre is an alumnus of the East West Players' David Henry Hwang Writers Institute. Nofre's short stories are included in the anthology Going Home to a Landscape: Writing by Filipinas. Driving In L.A. is the second place winner of the East West Players Got Laughs? 2005 competition.

Big Drum: Taiko in the United States is being adapted for display at the Oregon Nikkei Legacy Center (ONLC) in Portland, Oregon, from June 16 to August 27, 2006. Graphic and text panels as well as the exhibition's media pieces will be included in this display, which will be supplemented with materials curated by ONLC representing Oregon taiko history and groups. The exhibition will open during the Fifth Regional Taiko Gathering, which brings together taiko groups from Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and British Columbia.

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Relive history and learn about present-day Little Tokyo with National Museum docents on this historic walking tour.

$8 for National Museum members and $13 for non-members, includes Museum admission. Reservations along with comfortable walking shoes and clothes are recommended. Weather permitting.

In 2004, when the Ted Tanouye Memorial was dedicated in Torrance, California on the sixtieth anniversary of his heroic action on Hill 140, eight ethnically diverse high school students began to research and piece together his story and that of his family incarcerated in Jerome, Arkansas. What starts as a quest for the history of their local (and national) hero of the highly decorated 442nd Regimental Combat Team quickly develops into a universal story about how a people's struggle for acceptance as Americans and one man's action sixty years earlier can profoundly affect the lives of today's youth.

The National Museum presents a special screening of Citizen Tanouye, the award-winning documentary that follows the three-day journey of these eight students as they uncover the lost story of local World War II hero and Medal of Honor recipient Technical Sgt. Ted Tanouye. Following the screening students, veterans, and historians will share their experiences.

Create fascinating orchids in bloom with the art of sumi-e. $8 for National Museum members and $13 for non-members, includes supplies and Museum admission. Reservations are recommended.

Madame Yoshu Miyahara, Director of Sogetsu Ikebana School in Los Angeles, leads a special demonstration on how flower and plant materials can be transformed into sublime tributes to nature. Witness the creation of elaborate three-dimensional artistic expressions.