Drew McManus

Zenmi – A Taste of Zen: Nantenbō’s Letter

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My coworkers and I recently got an inside look at our newest exhibit, Zenmi – A Taste of Zen: Paintings, Calligraphy, and Ceramics from the Riva Lee Asbell Collection from Veljko Dujin, our Curator of Collections. Before the opening, we simply observed the whirring curatorial staff through three weeks of installation.  The exhibit, though, is four years in the making.  Veljko worked with Riva Lee Asbell, the exhibit’s lender, to collect and select the art destined to become part of Zenmi – A Taste of Zen.  Historically, Zenmi is the second …

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Two Zen Masters Come from Japan for Zenmi – A Taste of Zen Exhibit

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The Morikami’s staff curated the exhibition Zenmi –A Taste of Zen: Paintings, Calligraphy and Ceramics from the Collection of Riva Lee Asbell, which opens October 18th.  Curator of Collections, Veljko Dujin, collector Riva Asbell and I began to plan and research educational programs to accompany the exhibit one year ago. We will welcome two Zen masters to Morikami who have agreed to come from Japan.  Shōdō Harada Rōshi is a highly-respected Zen teacher and well-known calligrapher. He will travel from Sogen-ji Zen Monastery in Okayama, Japan where he is the …

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Nadeshiko

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On Wednesday, July 20, millions of people watched the Japanese women’s team, nicknamed Nadeshiko Japan, prevail in a dramatic victory at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.  This win lifted the spirits of the Japanese people from the turmoil of the March 11 tsunami and nuclear disaster.  Not many Americans are familiar with the word nadeshiko, but the Japanese know that it describes a women’s group. Nadeshiko is a plant that is often called “Wild Pink” or “Fringed Pink” in English.  It grows in temperate zones of the Northern hemisphere.  While …

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Flowering Tea Plant

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Before I came to America, I lived in Uji City, southern Kyoto Prefecture.  Uji is famous for its fine tea production.  On my way to and from school I could see undulating tea bushes stretch over the hillsides.  The smell of fresh tea drifted from the tea shops alongside of Byodo-in Temple Street. Japanese tea became ever more popular with the vast development of Japanese Sushi restaurants in America.  People drink Japanese tea as a health drink because it contains catechin, a natural antioxidant.  There is a tea plantation in …

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Yamato: More Than Just a Colony

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by Reiko Nishioka, Director of Education Have you ever thought about how towns or roads are named? When you travel across the country from Florida to Maine, you must find many unusual names. Yamato Road is one of them. I was thrilled and very moved to find a Japanese word when I moved to Florida. Because I knew what Yamato meant being Japanese, and living far from own country, I got emotional. Why? Yamato was originally the area around Nara Prefecture, Japan. When I was in elementary school, I lived …

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