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Add Some Artistry to Your Holidays – Japanese Gift Wrap

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Japan is famous for its culture of craftsmanship, and one of its most important crafts is paper. So it’s no surprise that the intersection of Japan’s rich culture of gift giving and its love and reverence for paper would be intricate and beautiful gift wrapping. The art of gift wrap, or tsutsumu, is an important part of any exchange of gifts. The paper you choose, the contrast of colors and textures, the ribbon, string or bows you add, and the folds, pleats and designs you create with the wrapping let the …

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From the Speaker: David Jackson on His Japanese Cabinetry Lecture

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If you haven’t had the chance to check out our current exhibit Japanese Design for the Senses, or if you have and you want to learn more, may we suggest making a night of it? Next week, Morikami will host David Jackson, Japanese furniture craftsmen and expert in tansu, for the first lecture of our 2014-2015 Speaker Series. Jackson has spent years studying, writing about and creating Japanese tansu (or storage chests) and Morikami is proud to bring you his lecture on the history, craftsmanship and influence of Japanese furniture …

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Hallowed Trees: The Furniture of George Nakashima

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Guest Blog by Susanna Brooks, Curator of Japanese Art “I’m essentially a druid. I believe that there are ghosts in trees, and in a very deep sense the tree is more God-like than man….There is a spirit in tree, bouncing up and down in the grain of a tree.“ Opening this autumn at Morikami Museum is Japanese Design for the Senses: Beauty, Form, and Function, an exhibition that brings together a wide array of works that explore elements of form in Japanese design. Included in this exhibition are four furniture pieces …

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What is Obon? Exploring One of Japan’s Most Important Holidays

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During the summer observance of Obon, families in Japan reunite to give homage and thanks to their ancestors, who have returned for a brief visit to the living. Many families set up special altars in their homes decorated with food offerings for these visiting spirits, which may include vegetables, dango (rice dumplings), noodles, and fruits. Candles, special paper lanterns called bon chochin, and incense may also be placed on the Bon Altar. Vegetable animals – a horse made from a cucumber or an ox made out of eggplant – serve …

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Guest Post: Four Masterpieces Joined by the Spirit of Water

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Water 水 falls from above, and from below, 水 falls Four Masterpieces Joined by the Spirit of Water By Susanna Brooks, Curator of Japanese Art It is summer, and the rainy season is upon us at Morikami. Rain falls practically every afternoon. The sky becomes dark and the rain falls fast and heavy, culminating into torrential downpours that draw everyone to the windows to take in the stunning, mesmerizing view of water falling from the sky and cascading down the rain chains, nourishing the plants, and dislocating the pebbles in …

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