Make-up assignments

[Anonymous]

I learned so much about Japanese and Chinese gardens during my trip to the Huntington. What I learned that fascinated me the most was learning about the concept of borrowed views. I think this fascinated me so much because the idea of a borrowed view was so foreign to me. When I look at a garden, I look at the garden. I would have never thought to look at the horizon as part of the garden. When this concept was explained to me, it was one of those moments when I couldn’t believe that something so obvious could have escaped me for so long.

I have a backyard that needs a lot of work. Pretty soon we are going to begin to try to tame the wildlife that exists in our backyard. We have a pine tree that provides lots of shade towards the back of the yard. I will make sure to consider the borrowed views when we plan out our landscaping.

[Anonymous]

Where: Skirball Cultural Center
When: Oct. 8, 2015- Feb. 21, 2016
Appropriate for: High School and Middle School Students
Topics Covered: Japanese internment, Civil Rights, WWII, Responses to Injustice

The current Ansel Adams exhibit at the Skirball Center is a valuable resource for teachers, or any person trying to better understand the experience of the more than 100,000 Japanese and Japanese-American citizens that were forcibly relocated to camps along the West Coast during World War II. Adams’ work focuses on one of 10 camps, California’s Manzanar, which was filled with mainly citizens from the Los Angeles area. The exhibit features over 50 of Adams’s photographs, which he took between a series of trips from 1943 and 1944. They show the conditions of the camps, the every day life that occurred, and the attempts at normalcy and continued traditions from the people within them.

What struck me most about the photographs was the interesting conversations happening between Japanese traditions and the “American-ness” of the citizens held in the camps. Ansel Adams was at this point famous for his landscape photography, but he felt compelled to photograph the camps because of the oppression he felt Japanese Americans were facing. When his work in Manzanar was published, he faced a lot of criticism from people who felt he was too sympathetic to a perceived enemy. It’s clear from the photographs that part of his goal was to portray the racial prejudice faced by the people within the camps and attempt to portray just how similar and “American” they were to those outside of them. (For those who can't make the trip, check out some of the images here: http://www.slate.com/blogs/behold/2015/09/15/ansel_adams_photographs_manzanar_war_relocation_center_in_the_exhibition.html)

Also on display is the exhibit 13660: The Art of Miné Okubo. [font=Times]This exhibit[/font] presents a selection of archival material and rare original artwork by California-born artist Miné Okubo (1912–2001), who was among the thousands of Japanese American citizens forced to leave their homes and businesses for incarceration camps during World War II. Following the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941, Okubo and her family first entered the Tanforan Assembly Center in San Bruno, California, and then the Topaz Camp in Delta, Utah. In this experience Okubo’s identity was reduced to a number—13660. In an effort to document the injustice of life the camps, Okubo created nearly 200 pen and ink drawings capturing her everyday life and struggles. The exhibit displays many of the ink drawings from her book, bringing her personal narrative to life, and allowing the viewer to step into the historical narrative.
I highly recommend planning a trip to see the work before it leaves the Skirball Center in February. Any teacher covering World War II or using Farewell to Manzanar as a text will find it invaluable. It would also tie in nicely with any units covering prejudice, oppression, and Civil Rights.

[Anonymous]

Where: The Getty Center
When: Oct. 6, 2015- Feb. 21, 2016
Appropriate for: High School or College Students
Topics Covered: Post-WWII Japan, Feminism, Cost of War

On display at the Getty Center, Ishiuchi Miyako’s Postwar Shadows is a hauntingly beautiful look at life in Japan after World War II. This is the first major collection of Miayko’s work to be displayed in the US, despite having gained fame in Japan for her work in a male dominated field. Miayako was born in 1947, and took up photography in 1975, therefore her work focuses on life in post-war Japan, particularly the tension between tradition and modernity in the lives of Japanese women. He photographs are at times bleak and almost ghostly. The legacy of the war and the human cost paid by the Japanese seems to haunt the still frames of forgotten cities and ruined clothing. The reoccurring images of women and children and their clothing, seem to take a particularly feminist stance on the cost of war. I still can’t shake the close-up shots of weathered hands and scarred skin, that seem to capture the heartache of life after war.

The exhibit would be most suitable for older high school students. While the images are powerful and haunting, their message may be lost on students who are not familiar with the legacy of World War II in Japan. However, I think the work could be incredibly powerful when the artist’s life is taken into account. Ishiuchi Miyako’s trailblazing work as a female photographer, and refusal to confine herself into the demands of traditional Japanese gender roles would make her a fascinating case study for students to examine. Her exhibit pairs perfectly with a second piece on display at the Getty, called The Younger Generation. This work focuses on a number of young female photographers in Japan, who in the 1990’s got attention by making provocative self-portraits and intimate images of domestic scenes. Challenging the [font=Cambria]status quo[/font] of the male-dominated photography community, their work came to be known as “girl photographs”. This exhibition showcases the work of five Japanese artists who pioneered“girl photography”: Kawauchi Rinko, Onodera Yuki, Otsuka Chino, Sawada Tomoko, and Shiga Lieko. These women continued in the tradition of Ishiuchi Miyako, and together their work sparks a fascinating conversation about femininity in Japanese culture.

[Anonymous]

After the session to the Huntington Library I was very interested to see the gardens and all that my peers had to share about them. I was very impressed by the size of the gardens. I was unable to go on a tour group but through my reading of the available booklets and some research I did online I was impressed to discover how important these gardens are to the history of the Huntington Library. The Japanese Garden is one of the oldest inheritances of the Huntington family and has been apart of the library since it's founding. The many bonsai trees and water structures gave the environment a tranquil feel and a real sense of being away from the rest of the garden. The Chinese garden was still very much under construction but the parts that were open to the public were authentic and paid special attention to detail. I was impressed by the calligraphy and detailed carvings on the structures. The entrance to the Chinese garden makes you feel as if you are entering an entirely different part of the Library. The lake, stones, and botanicals in the garden were all authentic and impressive. I was very pleased to have been able to visit the gardens.

[Anonymous]

The Bowers Museum in Santa Ana has an excellent collection of Asian art. The main exhibit going on now is titled Ancient Arts of China: A 5000 Year Legacy. I find it so fascinating that China has such a rich history and the artifacts to show it. All the way from the Shanghai Museum, you can follow the history through art. I love that the pieces are so versatile and include art, sculptures, as well as silk robes. I had never seen such a detailed piece of clothing in my life. The work that goes into embroidering the silk court robes is what I found most fascinating. What’s even more interesting are the many ethnicities in China that have contributed to China’s fine arts collections. You can see the similarities and differences between the cultures through the art. As I have stated before China was a mystery to me before but now I can make connections within and outside of the culture. When I was reflecting on the art, I found the landscape to parallel a civilizations much like in Mexico. You can go all across the vast land of Mexico and run into all different cultures and ethnicities. The art, music, fashion and languages vary from place to place. As I was browsing the exhibit, I could see how large China is geographically and the many cultures that have made the art what it is.

Something to look forward to is the Asian Lunar New Year Family Festival that is held at the Bowers. I did not have the opportunity to attend last year but this year it is definitely on my to do list. I heard such wonderful things about the dancing, crafts and food there is to experience at the festival.

[Anonymous]

Professors Brown and Campbell did an excellent job in distinguishing the characteristics of Japanese and Chinese gardens. I really like the format of lecture in the morning and discovering the gardens in the afternoon.
The Japanese Garden lecture by Professor Campbell was very intriguing and he was quite engaging as well. I didn’t know that Japanese gardens had been used as status symbols for the rich. I can see why the Huntington has such a large garden now. Also, the empowerment these garden gave women was quite fascinating. Using the gardens as a way to discover and express themselves was crucial to some of these women’s identity. I like how he also mentioned that these gardens were essentially Japanese they were also very much American in their own regard.
The Chinese Gardens presented by Professor Campbell seemed to have much more practical use. The fact that these gardens were more a lived in space says they were less about status and more about family. They were a place of peace and reflection.

[Anonymous]

As many of us, I also attended the Huntington Library Saturday session because I wanted to have a better understanding of Japanese and Chinese gardens. I had no clue of their significance and how important they became in the US as a sign of wealth and sophistication within the most affluent families of the time.
Both of our speakers were unbelievably good, they were extremely passionate about their subject and the information provided was relevant and enriching. What I loved the most was our walk through the garden and our docent's explanation. The calligraphy all over the two gardens was a great piece of art, the cement boat and its meaning of belonging and peacefulness, the meaning of the rocks, and the countless details that were used to recreate a traditional garden made this visit a magical experience. I can't wait to go back and see the Chinese Garden completely finished.

[Anonymous]

Ishiuchi Miyako’s Postwar Shadows currently on display at the Getty Center, resonates as the images of Miyako’s work bleeds from one frame to another. Her specific perspective, as she was born in 1941 and started photographing in 1975, presents a dismal and ghostly view of a neglected city. Left in the wake of World War II, are deserted buildings, empty streets, and the semblance of death in the stained clothing. These images repeat on each wall, suggesting what life may have been present. And even in the images of life – close stills of scars – remind viewers that war has a lasting and dire effect.

This exhibit would be useful in a unit based on John Hersey’s Hiroshima. Miyako’s are powerful and students would be able to draw personal lessons that the written text could not afford. Additionally, the examination of how Miyako presents her images and the subjects in which selects would be an excellent study in an author’s tone and style. Especially as the first question in the AP English Language and Composition exam includes graphics and images, students would better understand how to interpret and utilize each graphic.
edited by crhude on 1/23/2016

[Anonymous]

I visited the Pavilion For Japanese Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) last weekend, and had a wonderful time. The nice thing about this particular venue is that the displays rotate every few weeks or so. The main and lower floors (as you follow the exhibit, the main floor gently descends, so that by the end of the display, you find yourself on the bottom floor) consisted entirely of screen and hanging silk/parchments, many of them so delicately rendered that it was hard to make out the depth of the works... the lighting was quite bad, I’m afraid to say. I believe the poor lighting was meant so as not to damage the delicate pieces on display, but I would have sincerely enjoyed see them in the daylight. The third floor had some extremely impressive examples of Shogun-era pottery, a set of Katana (Samurai blades) and a full suit of armor. I had seen the armor many years previously, but had forgotten how intricately constructed it was, silk bindings holding together ceramic tiled armor heavily accented in bronze. For me, being an armor enthusiast, this was the highlight of the Pavilion display. Finally, there was a humorous (to me, anyway) display of several theatrical masks, all sporting very big noses. Apparently large noses were both comical and insulting to the Japanese, and these masks were made either as a warning, a punishment, or simply a theater costume.

In addition to the Pavilion, there was a very nice collection of prints from the Barbara S. Bowman Collection, entitled “Living For The Moment”. For some reason, this collection, which consisted of prints covering four walls of one room, was not located in the Pavilion, but another building entirely... I almost walked right by it, focused as I was on reaching the Pavilion. I enjoyed these more than what was displayed in the Pavilion, to be honest. Most (probably all) of these works were from the Edo period, circa 1615 to 1870. Despite this, the colors on many were still fairly vibrant... you could also see them up close, unlike a lot of the Pavilion’s display. Many of these works had a subliminally (and with some, not so) sexual theme, and featured concubines and such, all beautifully rendered.

It was an afternoon very well-spent!
edited by gwhitley on 1/26/2016

[Anonymous]

I visited LACMA this weekend, and had the opportunity to see a variety of Japanese prints. There were many collections on display that featured Japanese prints, but one in particular stood out to me. The exhibit featured 4 waterfalls painted by Katsushika Hokusai, the same artist who painted The Great Wave Off Kanagawa. It was great to have the opportunity to see some of his artwork that was new to me, because I was able to appreciate it more than a piece that I have been exposed to hundreds of times. The four waterfalls that were on display were part of a collection that totals 8. It was interesting reading about the pieces, because the plan had originally been to paint many more. Hokusai stopped short of his goal because the subject matter proved to be too difficult for him to fully capture. I thought this point was particularly telling about Japanese art. Hokusai was trying to capture more than just an impressionist or expressionist view of waterfalls. As a Japanese artist, his aesthetic was to capture the volume, extremity, and true feelings that a person has when seeing a waterfall.

Another piece in this exhibit that I found really captivating was a large (over 10 feet tall and at least 20 feet wide) sculpture. It was made of a synthetic material produced in Japan, which can be shaped when wet, but dries solid. The form was free-flowing and looking like it was still pliable. The whole piece was white, and looked like paper, or a soft fabric. In reading about this piece, it was an homage to the use of paper in Japanese art. I found it fascinating that an artist chose to dedicate a whole art piece to paper, as a way of honoring the fact that the medium has made so many other art pieces possible.

[Anonymous]

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China’s one child policy is the longest ongoing running social experiment (35 yrs). It began in 1980. Some exemptions to the policy depend upon residential provinces, cities, and counties, if one is an ethnic minority, work in a dangerous job such as fisherman and coalminer, or if one is handicapped. If one has a high family income, one can pay for additional children, and the fees are based on residential location. Rural areas also allow more children for labor. Rules of the policy were very hard too understand, but China was very clear that one child policy was in response to future economic and agricultural issues.

Some side effects of the one child policy are: (1) There are too many males. In fact, there will be over 30 million surplus males by 2030; a large part of this is that socially speaking, males are favored over females; (2) China has a large older generation. The average expected age of life expectancy is 80. By 2050, ¼ Chinese will be a retiree. Retirees will be able to form one of three of the world’s largest population; now the ratio of working adults to retirees is 5 :1. In 20 years, it will be 2 working adults to 1 retiree

Interestingly enough, there is a high degree of female suicides in China. In fact, it is the highest in world. Many females do not want to stay on the farm because farm life is hard. Pesticide is the chief agent used by suicidal victims because it is easily accessible on the agricultural field. Nowadays, suicide rates for women are a lot lower. Many women from the country go to work in a city factory, and they don’t return to the country. They earn more money than working on a farm.

Ironically, in the past, a dowery was given for a male to marry, but because of the female shortage as of late, as male children are often preferred, there has been an uptick in the dowery for females. Due to the shortage, women from surrounding countries like Vietnam and Russia have been transported like goods to China to marry.

Men must have a vasectomy after having their 1 child. Some men tried to reverse vasectomy so they can have anther child, especially if they have lost a child. However, the idea of older parents are not welcomed.

Society does not generally recognize childless families. You are considered an adult when you are married. There is a fear that as the elderly age, families would cling to neighbors, to borrow things, or get help because they do not have a child to care for them. There is a loss of status, a feeling of vulnerability if you are childless. It is difficult to get into nursing home and buying burial plots for who will authorize payments if one has no child to bear responsibilities for elderly family members?
A child represents financial security. A child is equal to one’s social status.
To combat this problem, some couples are considering adoption. Some are coming to the US to get babies through surrogacy because surrogacy is illegal and IVF is not available in China. Single woman have limitations to carry a child in China.

The Little Emperor Generation is an interesting phenomenon . These children are generally characterized as being less generous, less optimistic, not having friends, self-absorbed, but are creative. The 4-2-1 phenomenon is described as 1 child having 2 parents and 4 grandparents to love the one child, but the one child will also have the burden to take care of the 2 parents when they age.

There is a general idea to breed a population of bright children by bringing like-minded singles together. Singles’ clubs are pretty popular for singles to get together to support these mixers. Some companies like GE and Bai Du have sponsored mixers to support such thinking. To further encourage like-minded bright professionals to marry, China recently has encouraged overseas Chinese to come back in hopes of marrying and keeping projected financial gains in the country. China doesn’t want a brain drain. To combat this, the idea of a “red card” immigration to given to overseas Chinese to establish permanent residency.

Since 2015, families are now able to have two children. This is generally for economic purposes. Some companies favor hiring individuals who have siblings so that they can be committed to work and not have the sole responsibility to tend to aging parents.

“Left-behind” children are those in the country who are being tended to by grandparents. There is a huge migration of young people and couples to city, and their household residency in country. Therefore, their child must be educated in the country and do not have the rights that city families do. All parents must register their child. There was some corruption with family planning officials seizing children and selling them to orphanages. China became a huge supplier of female children with orphanages receiving $3k for each child adopted out.

[cgao]

You need to make up missed sessions by completing a homework assignment:

-Attend an event (lecture/meeting/discussion panel, etc.) that focuses on issues related to East Asia or visit a museum exhibition or performance relating to East Asia. The U.S.-China Institute offers at least one public event each month.
-Submit a 150-200 word summary of what you learned, and post it as a new thread on the seminar web discussion forum.
-Please note that the two Saturdays count as two sessions each. If you miss a Saturday, you will need to submit two make-up assignments.

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