NichiBei Creative Artists

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Artistic restaurant exploring sustainability

Artistic restaurant exploring sustainability

Artistic restaurant exploring sustainability

Artistic restaurant exploring sustainability

Artistic restaurant exploring sustainability

空手× デジタルテクノロジー「KATA」

2021.01.15

イベントレポート (Coleman)

ストリートダンス meets 盆踊り（仮称）

2020.12.22

Kizuna Dance TV開設

旅はすみか - The Journey Itself Home

2020.12.05

Facebook更新 (marksearch)

サステナビリティを探究するアートレストラン

2020.10.09

Facebook更新 (Schlesinger)

日米キッズ・パブリック・アートプロジェクト

2020.11.17

Facebook更新 (Volta)

Introduction

日米芸術家交換プログラムは、日米友好基金（The Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission）と全米芸術基金（The National Endowment for the Arts）の主催のもと、日本の文化庁と国際文化会館の協力を得て、1978年より実施されています。

以後41年間に渡り、毎年米国を拠点とするアーティストが選出され、日本で文化・芸術の研修が行われてきました。2020-21年のプログラムでは発足以来初の試みとして、日米のアーティストがチームを組んで作品をつくり、2021年のオリンピック・パラリンピック開催時期に合わせて東京で展示・上演します。アートを通して長きに渡る日米の友好関係を象徴し、東京オリンピック・パラリンピックを記念する特別企画です。

Projects

01

空手 × デジタルテクノロジー「KATA」

日時：2021年7月30＆31日

場所：渋谷文化総合センター

02

ストリートダンス meets 盆踊り（仮称）

日時：2021年夏

場所：シアターX（カイ）

03

旅はすみか The Journey Itself Home

日時：2021年夏

場所：世田谷美術館他

04

サステナビリティを探究するアートレストラン

日時：2021年夏

場所：世田谷美術館他

05

日米キッズ・パブリック・アートプロジェクト

日時：2021年夏

場所：TBA

News

2020.08.09: 短編ドキュメンタリー公開
2020.08.06: メディア掲載 (Japan Forward)
2020.06.22: ウェブサイトリニューアル公開
2020.04.09: COVID-19感染拡大によるプログラムの方針変更について

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@studioahead, a San Francisco-based artist and des

@studioahead, a San Francisco-based artist and designer collective, recently featured an interview with Nichi Bei Creative Artists fellow @jesse_____singer in its monthly journal. The article describes Schlesinger as “an artist, craftsman, and farmer whose work explores the materiality of wood and stone, earth and plant,” and discusses his background, education and methodology. Schlesinger learned carpentry from his father and worked on an organic farm before graduating from California College of the Arts. His practice encompasses sculpture, architecture, drawing, furniture-making, and photography, and he collaborates with other artists across genre and geography. “I am very fortunate to have a broad network of talented craftspeople and artisans that I work with, both in the Bay Area, and on my projects in Japan,” he said in the interview. “I am indebted to their generosity, their dedication to their craft, and their willingness to work together.” Read the full Artist Spotlight article at bit.ly/Schlesinger_StudioAhead. For more examples of Schlesinger’s art, visit www.jesseschlesinger.com; and learn more about Studio AHEAD at www.studioahead.com. For his Nichi Bei Creative Artists project, Schlesinger is collaborating with Kyoto-based chef @masayofunakoshi to examine sustainability through the lens of food and farming; the culmination of their project, an experimental and temporary restaurant, will be presented this summer at Tokyo’s Setagaya Art Museum. Learn more about their work together at bit.ly/JUSFC_Sustainability and bit.ly/NB_Sustainability. For more information about the Nichi Bei Creative Artists Program - made possible with support from @japanusfriendship, @neaarts and @i_house_japan - visit nichibei-artists.org/en/.

As 2020 winds to a close, Nichi Bei Creative Artis

As 2020 winds to a close, Nichi Bei Creative Artists team members are commemorating the year’s end with compelling photos and videos. California woodworker and artist Jesse Schlesinger honored the Winter Solstice with an image of trees and sky, describing the event as “another opportunity to consider the earth, the cosmos, and our place within it” (@jesse_____singer). Schlesinger’s Nichi Bei Creative Artists project partner Masayo Funakoshi, a renowned chef and founder of the Farmoon restaurant in Kyoto, also marked the Solstice with an image of a candlelight meal shared on Awaji Island in the Seto Inland Sea (@masayofunakoshi). For their Creative Artists project, Schlesinger and Funakoshi are creating a temporary, experimental restaurant that will explore sustainability through the lens of food and agriculture; learn more via the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission - JUSFC at bit.ly/JUSFC_MeetOurGrantees. Meanwhile, members of the Nichi Bei Creative Artists project Journey Itself Home shared a time lapse video showing new plans being mapped out for their collaboration in the new year (@journeyitselfhome). Created by Oakland-based artist team @marksearchoakland and Tokyo artists Natsuka Endo and Hiroyuki Abe, Journey Itself Home will honor the memory of the Fukushima 311 disaster through a collaborative work of poetry and sound; learn more at journeyitselfhome.com. And Sayo Homma, principal dancer for @toru_official's Dance Barbizon, recently shared a gravity-defying photo and holiday greetings (@sayohomma). For their Creative Artists project, Shimazaki and New York choreographer Cameron McKinney are crafting a work of contemporary dance that will feature members of Dance Barbizon as well as McKinney’s @kizunadance company. Learn more at bit.ly/Dance_JUSFC. For more information about the Nichi Bei Creative Artists Program - made possible with support from @japanusfriendship - JUSFC, @neaarts and @i_house_japan - 国際文化会館 - visit nichibei-artists.org/en/.

Nichi Bei Creative Artists fellow Cameron McKinney

Nichi Bei Creative Artists fellow Cameron McKinney is the founder and artistic director of New York City’s @kizunadance. This month, the company is launching Kizuna Dance TV, a new educational initiative that will offer a range of free dance instruction resources and content. Videos will include guidance on performing beginner dance techniques like basic floor slides, tutorials for more advanced dancers, performances, films, and more. Watch short preview videos and keep up with the latest on Kizuna Dance TV at instagram.com/kizunadance and facebook.com/kizunadance. For his Nichi Bei Creative Artists project, McKinney is working with renowned Japanese choreographer @toru_official on a collaborative work of dance that will feature an international group of Japanese and American dancers; the work draws inspiration from the performers’ personal histories and celebrates the bond of friendship between Japan and the United States. McKinney’s and Shimazaki’s project was originally intended to premiere in summer 2020, but will instead debut in summer 2021 at Theater X in Tokyo. Learn more about the project at bit.ly/NB_Dance and cameronmckinneydance.com. And for more information about the Nichi Bei Creative Artists Program - made possible with support from @japanusfriendship, @neaarts and @i_house_japan - visit nichibei-artists.org/en/.

Last year, Nichi Bei Creative Artists Fellows Sue

Last year, Nichi Bei Creative Artists Fellows Sue Mark and Bruce Douglas were profiled in “The Art of Cultural Diplomacy,” a feature article published by the National Endowment for the Arts (bit.ly/marksearch_NEA) that highlighted the artists' past and future work in Japan. The article described how Mark and Douglas - a married couple who collaborate as the creative team marksearch (marksearch.org) - focus their art practice on preserving the memories and cultural practices that societies and communities share. After winning their first Creative Artist Fellowship in 2016, marksearch traveled to Japan to interact with artists and learn about the country’s approach to cultural preservation. Their work in Japan included building a mobile art studio, creating clay tiles with textures found in the town of Onishi, and using those resources to encourage communal storytelling. The NEA article also previewed marksearch’s current Nichi Bei Creative Artists project, which was originally planned for this year, but later postponed to Summer 2021 in order to coincide with the rescheduled Tokyo Olympic Games. Entitled "Journey Itself Home," the project is “a poetic act of radical caring” that marks the 10th anniversary of the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Inspired by 17th-century Japanese haiku master Bashō, marksearch and their colleagues (Japanese artists Hiro Abe and Natsuka Endo) will work with the public to create a collaborative memorial that commemorates the 3/11 disaster. For more on the project, visit journeyitselfhome.com. To learn more about the Nichi Bei Creative Artists Program - made possible with support from Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission - JUSFC, National Endowment for the Arts and International House of Japan - 国際文化会館 - visit nichibei-artists.org/en/.

Earlier this year, a work of public art created by

Earlier this year, a work of public art created by Nichi Bei Creative Artists fellow @benvolta was named one of the Top 100 Finalists in the global @codaworx Awards, an annual competition that celebrates outstanding public, interior, and architectural art from around the world. Volta, a muralist based in Pennsylvania, created “Thoreau’s Ensemble” to adorn the Colts Neck Road underpass in Reston, Virginia. The work was inspired by miles of winding pathways in Reston, and a quote from iconic poet Henry David Thoreau that encourages readers to “Pursue some path, however crooked and narrow, in which you can walk with love and reverence.” Volta asked members of the public to interpret Thoreau’s quote as drawings; he then incorporated over 700 community-sourced artworks into the final design of the overpass. The CODAawards jury selected “Thoreau’s Ensemble” as a finalist out of hundreds of submissions from thirty countries. Learn more about Volta’s work on the project at codaworx.com/projects/thoreaus-ensemble and via the @fairfax_county_times (bit.ly/FairfaxTimes_Volta), Reston Now (bit.ly/RestonNow_Volta), and @connectionnewspapers (bit.ly/Connection_Volta). For his Nichi Bei Creative Artists project, Volta is working with educator and Zen priest Cho Kuwakado and muralist Yasuyuki Sakura to create a collaborative work of public art that incorporates contributions from young Japanese and American artists. The project, which draws inspiration from the accomplishments of distinguished Japanese and Americans in sports, science, and education, will be displayed in Japan in Summer 2021. To learn more about the Nichi Bei Creative Artists Program - made possible with support from @japanusfriendship, @neaarts and @i_house_japan - 国際文化会館 - visit nichibei-artists.org/en/.

Last year, renowned choreographer and Nichi Bei Cr

Last year, renowned choreographer and Nichi Bei Creative Artists team member Toru Shimazaki (@toru_official ) contributed three works to the 30th anniversary celebration of 舞蹈空間舞團 Dance Forum Taipei. His ensemble @team_shimazaki Star Dance collaborated with dancers from Dance Forum Taipei to perform Shimazaki’s pieces “South,” an introspective work inspired by Taiwan’s indigenous arts and culture; “Zero Body,” which reviewer Diane Baker described as a “wonderful... rippling pattern of movements”; and “In the blink of an eye,” an intense and propulsive piece set to music by @radiohead, Tom Waits and Murcof. According to @taipei_times, the program was “as exhilarating to watch as it must have been exhausting to perform.” Read the full review at bit.ly/Shimazaki_Review, see photos of the performances at bit.ly/Shimazaki_Taipei_Blog, and follow the choreographer online at www.toru-shimazaki.com. For his Nichi Bei Creative Artists project, Shimazaki is collaborating with New York dancer and choreographer Cameron McKinney on an original work of contemporary dance that will be performed together by American and Japanese dancers; the piece will weave together personal stories from the performers and examine the friendship and values both countries share. Originally scheduled for this year but postponed due to the pandemic, McKinney’s and Shimazaki’s project will now be performed in Summer 2021 at Theater X in the Ryogoku district of Tokyo. Learn more about the project at bit.ly/Dance_JUSFC. And for information about the Nichi Bei Creative Artists Program - made possible with support from @japanusfriendship, @neaarts and @i_house_japan - visit nichibei-artists.org/en/.

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