Cultural Presentations
Below are the cultural presentations for last year’s Japan festival, until new details are released for 2012, this will remain for historic purposes.
RECITAL HALL |
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| 11:00 – 12:00 | Koto Workshop |
| 1:30 – 2:30 | Japanese Samurai Armor Presentation |
| 2:45 – 3:45 | Kimono Demonstration |
| 3:45 – 4:45 | Cosplay contest meeting |
| 5:00 – 6:00 | The Art of Origami – Ms. Nancy Bjorge |
Hudson Auditorium |
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| 1:30 – 3:00 | “The Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear Disaster of March 11 from the Inside and Out” – Panel Discussion |
| 3:15 – 4:00 | Anime Presentation – Members of Naka-Kon |
“The Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear Disaster of March 11 from the Inside and Out”
The Greater Kansas City Japan Festival is proud to bring two distinguished presenters discussing one of the most momentous events in recent Japanese history – the tragic earthquake and tsunami of March 11th, 2011 and the ensuing nuclear power disaster. The panel will be moderated by Mr. David Albrecht.
We’ll offer two very different perspectives but equally interesting viewpoints on the disaster. Dr. Chris Kuehl, economist and international affairs specialist, will review the aftershocks of the tsunami in an economic sense – what did the earthquake do to Japan, and what did it do to the world’s finely tuned supply chain, financial and business systems. Takao Shibata will speak as a Japanese native, and as someone with intimate knowledge of his country’s history and politics. He will address issues of shock, psychology, political reaction and what the road to recovery looks like just past the six-month anniversary of the greatest challenge to confront Japan since the end of the Second World War. Your questions will be welcome at this moderated forum.
Samurai Armor Presentation – Tora Lawson
J.M. Tora Lawson sensei, will give a presentation on Japanese Samurai Armor, covering the construction and application of armor in samurai combative units, armor being functional in a practical sense as well as a status symbol to the domain of the warrior it represented. Also, he will discuss the relevance of armor and various armor styles to the many different feudal domains of ancient Japan, including a chronological history of the evolution of armor from the days of the initial formation of the Samurai class, through the end of the warring states period “Feudal Civil Wars.
The Art of Origami – Ms. Nancy Bjorge
Ms. Nancy Loo Bjorge was born in Shanghai and raised in Hong Kong. She received her studio art education from Eastern Michigan University She completed an MA and an MFA at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Her work has been exhibited in one-person shows nationwide. In 2004 she had a solo exhibition in Eutin, Germany. She has also been invited to show her work at art organizations such as the Lawrence Art Center in Lawrence, Kansas, where she currently resides.
Ms. Bjorge did not receive any classroom instruction in paper folding, but instead continued to develop her artistic expressions in paper by learning from adults and other children. After high school, she came to the United States for college, and majored in mathematics, the precision of which can still be seen in the clean planes and intricate geometry of her colorful creations.
