In 2006, over 4,900 people from around the world attended the 4th Worldwide Uchinanchu Taikai Festival in Okinawa to reconnect with their heritage and culture. The Center for Migration Studies at the University of the Ryukyus surveyed these participants and will present their findings revealing how Okinawans connect beyond the island borders.

Join us for this special event, the first in a new program series presented by Discover Nikkei. FREE with Museum admission. Light reception to follow which includes special cultural performances. Please check Discover Nikkei for updated program info.

RSVP required to 213.625.0414 ext. 2227 or rsvp@janm.org. Limited spaces available, so please reserve early!

FREE ALL DAY
Celebrate shared traditions and family fun activities within the Asian American community.

Generously sponsored by Target, these special Saturdays are filled with fun activities giving families unique ways to learn, play, and grow together.

Gallery talk with curator Karin Higa and artists Anna Sew Hoy and Mari Eastman.

Top:Mari Eastman
Bird on Flowering Spray: Porcelain Cup, Chieng-lung Period (1736–1750)
2004
Acrylic on canvas
40.5 x 43.5 in.
Collection of Rosette Delug
Photograph by Robert Wedemeyer, courtesy of Karyn Lovegrove Gallery

Bottom: Anna Sew Hoy
Haiku
2006
Polyurethane foam, mirror, knives, wood, plastic
Approx. 3 x 3 x 3 ft.
Collection of the artist
Photograph by artist, courtesy of the artist

Three special performances: 2 pm, 7 pm on March 8 and 2 pm on March 9.

Ten artists of different faiths and spiritual paths boldly jump into the swirling waters of interfaith collaboration in this work-in-progress performance of personal stories, dance, poetry and song.

Come witness their plunge into the deep as they question:

How can multi-dimensional religious identities live side by side?

How do we navigate religious conflicts with intelligence and compassion?

How can we create progressive and respectful visions for the future?

Creator/performers: George Abe, Aisha Cain, Saria Idana, Danielle Licht, Ameena Mirza, Shyamala Moorty, Waliya Perkins, Marie-Francois Theodore, Monk Turner, Carla Vega.

Project Director/Lead Mentor: Dan Kwong
Co-facilitator: Young Ae Park
Producer/Artistic Director: Nobuko Miyamoto
Production Assistant: Luke Patterson

Guest mentors: Shishir Kurup, Andrea Hodos, Dorit Cypis, Krishna Kaur, Yuval Ron
Co-sponsors: Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress, Council on American Islamic Affairs Three Cousins, Metivta, PJA, MPAC, Hyphen Magazine

Suggested donation $5

Q & A follows each performance

RSVP 213/250-8800 or email Clara@greatleap.org

LEAPS OF FAITH is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, Los Angeles County Arts Commission, Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department, Southern California Edison, Northrop Grumman Corporation, Japanese American Community Services, Cecilia Nakamura Fund, Hyphen Magazine, and individual donors.

Karin Higa, exhibition co-curator, will lead gallery tours of One Way or Another: Asian American Art Now.

2 pm. Please see March 8 for program details.

As a thank you for your support of the Japanese American National Museum you are invited to a special Members-only event…

Please join us for a special performance of Dawn’s Light: The Journey of Gordon Hirabayashi
(An abridged Theatre for Youth production)
By Jeanne Sakata
Directed by Jessica Kubzansky
With Martin Yu as Gordon Hirabayashi
Based on a true story.

During WWII in Seattle, University of Washington student Gordon Hirabayashi agonizes over U.S. government orders to forcibly remove and imprison all people of Japanese ancestry on the West Coast. As he fights to reconcile his country's betrayal with his Constitutional beliefs, Gordon journeys toward a greater understanding of America's triumphs and failures.

Saturday, March 15, 2008
Two Performances: 1:00 pm or 3:00 pm
Each performance is approximately 45 minutes.

At the Democracy Forum
of the National Center for Democracy
Located on the National Museum’s campus
369 East First Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012

FREE for all Member cardholders + 1 guest
(guests must be accompanied by the Member cardholder)

Space is limited.
Reservations are required and will be accepted until 5:00 pm on March 15, 2008 or until space becomes filled.

Reservations: 213.625.0414 ext. 2222
Please specify which performance you will be attending.

Thank you for supporting the Japanese American National Museum.

REDRESS REMEMBERED
(Part 2 of 2)

Our second Redress Remembered program will begin with a special screening of Resettlement to Redress. Following the screening, there will be a discussion with Adam Schrager, the author of The Principled Politician: The Ralph Carr Story.

The film and book are currently available in our Museum Store. Schrager will be signing copies following the program. In addition, there will be a special tour of Common Ground with Prof. Art Hansen at 1:30 and 3:30.

Walkthrough of One Way or Another: Asian American Art Now.

Relive history, learn about present-day Little Tokyo with National Museum docents. $8 Members; $13 non-members, includes Museum admission. Comfortable walking shoes and clothes recommended. Weather permitting.

Gallery talk with curator Karin Higa and artists Kaz Oshiro and Glenn Kaino.

Left: Glenn Kaino
Graft (salmon)
2006
Shark skin, thread, salmon skin, plastic
36 x 12 x 4 in.
Collection of the artist
Photograph SJK, courtesy of The Project, New York

FREE!
Enjoy new quartet music from Southeast Asia juxtaposed with the exciting Mozart Hunt Quartet. Part of a three-year cultural exchange project between Southwest Chamber Music Music and the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh, Cambodia and the Hanoi National Conservatory in Vietnam.

Visit their website