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」

2020.11.13

イベント情報 (Coleman)

ストリートダンス meets 盆踊り（仮称）

2020.11.06

Facebook更新 (McKinney)

旅はすみか - The Journey Itself Home

2020.10.22

イベントレポート (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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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/.

Nichi Bei Creative Artists team member Yasuyuki Sa

Nichi Bei Creative Artists team member Yasuyuki Sakura is a muralist and artist based in Tokyo. He is the leader of Team Sakura Art Project Inc., a firm that uses painting techniques like fresco, buon fresco, and sgraffito to create original murals for structures and architectural projects. Sakura earned a doctorate in fine arts from Tokyo University of the Arts and won a scholarship to study classical painting techniques and traditions in Italy; his work has also included the creation of Kodomo Energy Summit, an award-winning project that combined arts and creativity with education about green energy production. Learn more at tsap.biz and bit.ly/Sakura_NichiBeiArtists. As Chief Art Director for the Pacific Kids Mural Foundation (@packmf), Sakura helps promote mural art and cultural exchange amongst children of different communities and countries. The Foundation’s core initiative is the @chararimpa Project, through which young people have created public works of art in Japan, California, Mexico, France, and Vietnam. Learn more about the Foundation and Chara Rimpa at packmf.org/about and bit.ly/Mural_Locations. Sakura is working with arts educator and Zen priest Cho Kuwakado, Tokyo photographer Hiroaki Seo, and Philadelphia-based muralist @benvolta on a work of collaborative public art inspired by the accomplishments of notable scientists, educators, and athletes. The presentation of their final project was originally scheduled for Summer 2020, but was postponed until 2021 due to the pandemic; the project will bring together works created by Japanese and American young people to examine how art, innovation, and sport can change the world. 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/.

Recent articles from @thetemplenews and @japanusfr

Recent articles from @thetemplenews and @japanusfriendship explore the development of KATA, a Nichi Bei Creative Artists project that combines Japanese martial arts, original music and innovative technology. Originally scheduled to premiere in Japan this August, the project will instead be presented in summer 2021; the postponement was a “blessing in the chaos” of the pandemic, says composer and Creative Artists Fellow Gene Coleman, since team members will have an extra year to refine the project’s technical complexities and expand its vision. KATA will feature a string quartet and performances by shamisen musician Sansuzu Tsuruzawa and shakuhachi player Akikazu Nakamura, as well as electronic music. As the musicians play, martial artists will perform choreographed karate techniques. The martial artists will wear motion sensors, and the musicians will wear brain wave sensors; the performance data generated by both sets of sensors will be instantly transformed into video projections and electronic sound elements. Composer and Creative Artists Fellow @vidikulous is working with a team of researchers at @templeuniv, where he is an assistant professor of music technology and composition, to develop the technical aspects of the performance. His research team is using the extra time from the project’s postponement to experiment with a variety of methods for translating data from the musicians and martial artists into sound and images. Vidiksis and Coleman are also planning additional filmed, live, and virtual performances of KATA for later this year and next. Read more at bit.ly/TempleNews_KATA and bit.ly/JUSFC_KATA. And to learn more about the Creative Artists Program - made possible with support from @japanusfriendship, @neaarts and @i_house_japan - visit nichibei-artists.org/en/.

Four Nichi Bei Creative Artists team members led a

Four Nichi Bei Creative Artists team members led a recent virtual workshop that explored the power of art to inspire hope, encourage resilience, build connections and mitigate grief. The online gathering was attended by students, writers, musicians, dancers, environmentalists and architects from California, Japan and elsewhere around the world. Presented in both English and Japanese, the workshop included an artistic experiment: participants shared sounds that inspire peace and evoke memories (watch a video excerpt of the experiment at bit.ly/Roundtable_video). The roundtable was hosted by the Fukuoka-Oakland Friendship Association, and led by Nichi Bei Creative Artists team members Sue Mark and Bruce Douglas (who work together as @marksearchoakland), @hiroyukiab, and @natsukaendo. During the event, Endo sketched real-time “visual translation” drawings of the workshop's conversations and interactions. Abe, Endo and marksearch are collaborating on @journeyitselfhome, a project that honors the memory of the 2011 Fukushima disaster through shared stories of resilience and the haiku poetry form. Using a specially-designed artist truck, the team will travel through Fukushima and Tokyo during summer and fall of 2021 in a journey inspired by the legendary poet Bashō. Learn more about the roundtable, and read the conversation from the event’s chatbox, at bit.ly/JIH_Roundtable; follow Journey Itself Home at journeyitselfhome.com and instagram.com/journeyitselfhome. 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/.

@thejapantimes recently featured Nichi Bei Creativ

@thejapantimes recently featured Nichi Bei Creative Artists team member @masayofunakoshi in “Women of Taste,” a monthly series that highlights notable women in Japan’s food industry. The article traces her journey from artistic experimentation to culinary success. Funakoshi originally studied in New York City to be a sculptor, and first approached foodmaking from an artistic perspective; her early works included sculptures made from jello molds and installations featuring lightbulbs tucked inside sausage casings. She later studied to be a chef at New York’s @iceculinary and went on to work at restaurants around the world, before returning to Japan and participating in a number of projects that explored the nexus of food and art. The article also describes the 2018 founding of @farmoon_kyoto, Funakoshi’s Kyoto restaurant, which incorporates art, music, and culinary influences from China, India, and the Middle East. (Read the full “Women of Taste” feature at bit.ly/JapanTimes_Funakoshi). Funakoshi is currently working with California-based Nichi Bei Creative Artists fellow @jesse_____singer to create a temporary, experimental restaurant that examines sustainability through the lens of food and agriculture. Originally scheduled to be presented this year but postponed due to the pandemic, the project will now be shared in the summer of 2021 (learn more via @japanusfriendship, at bit.ly/JUSFC_MeetOurGrantees; and @nichibeiartists, at bit.ly/NB_ArtisticRestaurant). 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/.

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