The JETAA Toronto photo exhibit, entitled ‘shin‘ for the Japanese symbol for “new,” is our way of marking the start of a decade.
What symbolizes shin?
Perhaps it’s a picture that sums up the way everything felt new to you in Japan when you first arrived. A festival, a ritual, a small cultural difference. Or perhaps it’s a Japan-inspired photo taken back home in Canada that shows the old in a new light.
Selected works will be exhibited March 6 at the Gladstone Art Bar, where we will also have a deejay spinning tracks throughout the night.
Come join us as we celebrate the memories of our time in Japan and enjoy the good music. Drinks will be available on site.
Date: Saturday March 6, 2010
Event: Shin Photo Exhibit: Japan-inspired works by former JET’s
Location: Gladstone Art Bar, 1214 Queen St. W., Toronto, ON, Canada See map
Website: Toronto JETAA Homepage http://toronto.jetaa.ca/cms/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=26
Time: 7 p.m. until the bar’s closing time Cost: $5 entrance fee
Thanks to a post on the JETAA Texoma (Chapter 9) yahoogroup, just found out about JET alum Taylor Chapman, a professional photographer who has a new book out titled People of the 21st Century: A Portrait of Japanese Society. Additionally, Taylor has a book signing coming up in Houston, TX. (Details below.) Meanwhile, if you know of any other JET alums out there with published books, by all means let JetWit know and we’ll post about it here to let everyone know.
Here’s the info from JETAA Texoma:
Hi All,
I am excited to let you know about a book signing by photographer and JET alumnus Taylor Chapman that will take place at the River Oaks Bookstore on Friday, November 27 from 5pm-7pm. Taylor would love to have folks stop by to say hello, even if you haven’t bought his book.
Taylor Chapman spent the last two years living in Kumamoto, Japan with the JET Program, teaching English at a local high school. As his Japanese proficiency grew, he became increasingly fascinated by Japan’s distinctive culture, and decided to embark on a unique photographic project to document Japanese society.
Having pursued photography for ten years now, including extensive study at Yale University, Chapman developed a specific methodology, adapted from a 1930’s German photographer’ s approach. He classified all members of Japanese society by their occupations and societal roles, and set out to create a portrait of Japanese society as a whole by photographing as many of its component parts–in other words, these individuals- – as possible in their natural environments.
In his last six months in Japan, Chapman went out shooting almost every single day, ending up with an archive of thousands of pictures spanning hundreds of individuals and social roles. Included are bakers and butchers, salarymen and snack bar girls, farmers and fishermen, teachers and students.
In July, he held an exhibition of his work in Japan; this Thanksgiving, he’ll be having a book release/signing party at the River Oaks Bookstore in Houston (across the street from Lamar High School, next to Baskin Robbins). Please come! There will be wine and hors d’oeuvres from 5 to 7.
The book (there are mini and deluxe editions available in-store and online: http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/950612 makes a great Christmas present. But please feel free to just drop by, say hi, and have a glass of wine– the author is happy just to share his work and his love of Japan, and there’s no need to buy anything.
If you’d like to get a feel for the work in the book, here are some of the images posted online: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31959446@N07/sets/72157622321556815/
Finally, for any comments or questions, feel free to contact the author at taylor.c.chapman [/at/] gmail [/dot/] com.
JET alum Aaron Woolfolk‘s film The Harimaya Bridge, starring starring Ben Guillory, Saki Takaoka, Misa Shimizu, and Danny Glover, is making its New York debut on Sunday December 6 (with Q&A and cocktail reception to follow) and Sunday December 13 as part of the African Diaspora Film Festival. (See the JetWit post about the upcoming event here for details and ticket info.)
The film had a nationwide theatrical release in Japan beginning in June, and Aaron was involved in a five-week promotional tour in Japan for the film. What is it like for a former JET to go on a five-week promotional tour in Japan? Well, Aaron captured much of it in photographs available on Facebook along with informative and entertaining captions. (FYI, you don’t need to have an account to view the pictures.)
Here’s the link: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=124235&id=833564815&l=9d23bf0eb9
And here’s Aaron’s intro commentary on the photos along with a couple samples of what you’ll see:
Five weeks in Japan in May and June of 2009, traveling all around the country doing promotion in the run-up to the June 13th nationwide opening of “The Harimaya Bridge.” Most days were spent doing loads of media interviews and promotional appearances. This here is just a small sampling, as I wasn’t able to come anywhere close to capturing everything with a camera. It was hectic and exhausting…but talking to the media and connecting with audiences only reaffirmed my desire to live my life telling stories via film, television and theater. :-)
*******
JET alum Francis Lee took a whole bunch of great photos from the JETAA NY Softball Tournament, held last Saturday, September 12. The winners in the two divisions were Kintetsu and Docomo. (Though JETAA NY was one error away from holding the lead in that game! :-) Special thanks to JETAA NY Vice-Prez Monica Yuki for organizing, to Liz Wanic for captaining the JETAA NY squad and cheering with extreme genki-ness, to Ito-en for once again providing cold, yummy tea drinks, and to all the teams for coming out, having fun and keeping the tradition alive!
Teams (in no particular order):
- JETAA New York
- Japan Local Government Center (JLGC) + Consulate General of Japan in New York (i.e., the parent organizations of JETAA)
- Columbia’s Center on Japanese Economy & Business (ably managed by Jennifer Olayon)
- Kintetsu
- Mitsubishi (featuring Zack Ferguson)
- Docomo
- QUICK USA
- TV Japan (starring Scott & Keiko Hiniker :-)
Dozo shyashin wo mite kudasai!
http://www.columbia.edu/~fl104/Softball
Via JETAA DC:
Greetings JETAA DC members!
We are proud to announce plans to hold a JETAA photo exhibit entitled, “Japan Through Our Eyes: Photographs by JET Program Participants,” which will be held at the Embassy of Japan’s Japan Information & Culture Center (JICC) this December. This exhibit will highlight the works of current and former participants as a way to celebrate Japan and give JET Program participants an outlet for sharing their favorite memories of their time on the JET Program.
The objective of “Japan Through Our Eyes: Photographs by JET Program Participants” is to educate the public about Japan via the eyes of current and former JET participants.
To make this possible, we need YOUR photo submissions! We are now accepting photographs taken in Japan. Full submission guidelines are listed below. Make sure to send your photos by September 12th in order to be considered!
This exhibit is coordinated by JETAA DC, JICC, the JET Program office at the Embassy of Japan, and the Center for Professional Exchange (CEPEX).
I’m very excited that we’ve been given the opportunity to exhibit our photography at the Embassy of Japan. Let’s show the DC area our images from Japan! I look forward to seeing everyone’s submissions.
With best wishes,
Heather McDonald
Ad Hoc Chair
jetaadc_photos [at] yahoo.com
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
NOTE 1: Please limit your submission to no more than 3 photos.
NOTE 2: By entering your submission you are deemed to have accepted Terms and Conditions provided in the Group Rules, below. Read More
David Flynn (Osaka, 1987-88) has shared links to three galleries of photos taken in Japan.
A little context: David was one of the winners of the 2007 JETAA Kintestu Essay Contest and went on the free trip to Japan in December 2007 along with the other contest winners. What made David’s perspective somewhat unique was that he was not only the only winner from the first year of the JET Program, but at the time of his trip his daughter was also a JET!
- JET photos 1987-88
- December 2007 Kintetsu JETAA Essay Winners trip (during which he visited his daughter who was in Japan as a JET)
- Pictures of Japan
NY-based JET alum Carol Elk was in D.C. on Tuesday to see the cherry blossoms and was kind enough to share some of her hanami photos.
Thanks to JET alum Francis Lee, we now have photos–really good photos–from last Thursday’s JETAA NY Meishi Exchange networking event, which was held at Aja on 6th Ave. between 9th & 10th Sts.
Many thanks to JET alum Vlad Baranenko for capturing the JET Alumni Author Showcase in photographs. Click “Read More” below to see all the photos.
What’s the connection between JET alumni and the NY art scene? It turns out that a JET alum, Matt Schlecht (Akita-ken, 1998-99), is the editor of NY Art Beat (www.nyartbeat.com), an online art review and listings site, which grew out of Tokyo Art Beat. Matt says they’re always looking for writers to contribute to the NY Art Beat blog, which features reviews, interviews, and photo reports. So if there are any JET alums out there looking to gain exposure for their writing or photography, please feel free to get in touch with him.
Meanwhile, at the JET Alumni Author Showcase earlier today, a JET alum named Alan (I didn’t get his last name) mentioned that he’s an artist in NYC and would be interested in organizing a JET Alumni Artist Showcase one of these days. He inquired about the best way to go about making this happen, and after additional thought my suggestion would be…
- Someone should start a JET Alumni Art group, either on GoogleGroups or Facebook or whatever medium you prefer.
- Let me know about it so I can post info about it on JetWit
- Let JETAA NY and other chapters know about it so they can mention it in their announcements to their members (I can help with this part too)
JETAA Art Exhibit
Showcasing Japan-inspired art by former JET English teachers
JETAA Toronto is has put together a terrific event that both taps the JET alumni community’s talent and shows off the wonderful accomplishments as well.
When: Saturday, March 28 (7:30 pm) & Sunday, March 29 (1:30 pm)
Where: Gladstone Art Bar, 1214 Queen St. W., Toronto, ONFeeling sentimental about the land of rice and the rising sun? Never been and interested in an artistic adventure?
Come join Toronto’s JET Alumni Association for our first ever art show on Saturday, March 28. The art exhibit, titled Natsukashii (Japanese for sentimental), will feature a wide range of Japan-inspired art by our talented alumni members.
Have a drink with us as you admire their creativity, listen to tunes spun by a deejay and reminisce about the good times you had teaching Japanese kids the difference between Rs and Ls.
Those not members of JETAA are also welcome.
Doors at the Gladstone Art Bar, located on 1214 Queen St. W., open at 7:30 p.m. Cover is $5.
For questions, please email Amber Hildebrandt at jetaatoronto.sports@gmail.com.
More info on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/reqs.php#/event.php?eid=55540550813&ref=nf
Thanks to JETAA Pacific Northwest for sharing this link to an amazing Obama sushi spread. Also make sure to check out the second page for the full behind-the-scenes view.
Sean Sakamoto is a JET alum currently embedded in Gifu Prefecture. The following is a post from his blog “I’d Rather Be…In Japan“.
Godzilla never looked so good. One of the joys of living in a foreign country is that I don’t take things for granted that everyone around me sees as normal. In this case, I’m talking about plastic food. Everywhere in Japan, restaurants put replicas of their dishes in the windows of their restaurants.
The first time I saw this, I thought it was hilarious. Then I was glad, because I could not actually read the menu. For me the fake food samples are really helpful. But what about Japanese people? Do the samples help you choose your dinner?
As it happens, I now live in the birthplace of the fake food replica. Gujo Hachiman is where the phony baloney, ramen, and even
Click here to read the rest of the post “Faking it in Hachiman”
JETAA Pacific Northwest recently held its bounnenkai which apparently included a trivia game contest. Photos from JETAA PNW’s Treasurer/Webmaster Shun Endo can be seen on the JETAA PNW site at the link below.
Hi Alumni,
I hope everybody is staying positive in this unstable economy. Reach out, get support, and maintain hope! You’re not alone.
I finally got around to posting the pictures that I took at the PNW JETAA Bounenkai. There are a lot of fun pictures, including a nice group shot! check them out!
http://www.pnw. jetalumni. org/?p=549
Shun
There are few more quintessentially American experiences than volunteering on Thanksgiving. Here’s a nice photo of Fumitake “Fumi” Saijo and Koki Kimoto from the Japan Local Government Center (a/k/a
CLAIR New York) working in the kitchen with Kia Cheleen (CIR, Aichi-ken 1996-98, ALT 1998-1999) (not pictured) to prepare Thanksgiving meals through a project run by the Grand Central Neighborhood Social Services Network.
JET alum professional translator Philip Schnell happened to be in Japan at the time of Obama’s presidential victory, decided to drop in on Obama-shi and stumbled into the surreal experience of a Japanese Obama watch/victory party.
Click here to see more of his photos.
Kinokuniya Book Store (6th Ave between 40th & 41st Sts.) will be hosting the George Hirose: Night Light – Images from Japan, New York exhibit from December 5-30, with a special reception and book signing on Friday, December 5 from 5:30-8:00 p.m.
The reception will also feature a live performance of traditional Okinawan music by KOSSAN (who plays for the popular and exuberant chindon band HappyFunSmile for which George has done photography work and is a big fan.)
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