Sunday, April 20, 2008, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm
8th Annual Spring Festival
Call 559-582-4915 for more details or download the flyer here.

Sunday, April 13, 2008, 2:00 pm
"Collecting 'Japan' - Nineteenth Century to the Present"
Lecture by Princess Akiko of Mikasa, PhD cand., University of Oxford, UK
Admission for members is free; $5 for non-members. Reservations required.

Sunday, April 6, 2008, 2:00 pm
Members’ Opening Lecture and Reception
Director/Chief Curator Andreas Marks introduces the new exhibition. Reservations required.

Saturday, April 5, 2008, 1:00 pm
Exhibition Opening:
Traces of China: The Japanese Transformation of Chinese Themes and Techniques
April 5 through August 2, 2008

Thursday, April 3, 2008, 5:30 pm
Docent Training
For those interested in assisting with gallery tours, please join us.

Sunday, March 30, 2008, 2:00 pm
"New Horizons of Ceramic Sculpture: The Clark Collection of Works by Fukami Sueharu"
Lecture by Maezaki Shinya, PhD cand., SOAS, London, UK
The artist Fukami Sueharu will be attending the lecture.
Admission for members is free; $5 for non-members. Reservations required.

The Lee Center Cultural Education Series

Past events

Many of these events made possible by the support of the James Irvine Foundation in conjunction with other local sponsors.

Treasured Tales from Old Japan: Shinnai Narrative Song and Kuruma Ningyo Puppetry
October 13-14, 2007 Click here for details

Members' Opening Reception
Sunday, December 10, 2006, 2:00pm

Curator Daniel McKee introduces the winter exhibition. RSVP required. Please RSVP to 559.582.4915, or by e-mail to info@shermanleeinstitute.org

The Lee Center is pleased to present a series of special programs designed to introduce the public to the rich heritage of Japanese arts and culture. All events are open to the public, but attendance will be limited for many events. Please see individual listings for ticket and reservation information.

Upcoming Events

Annual Japanese New Year Festival
Saturday, January 20, 2007
11:00am-4:00pm
Open to the public free of charge.

The Lee Center hosts an afternoon of traditional New Year activities, featuring mochi rice cake pounding, koto performance, the ritual 108 strikes of a bell, card games, calligraphy, and much more.

This event is made possible by support from the Union Bank of California and Target.

In conjunction with the Hanford Bonsai Society, the Lee Center now houses a growing collection of legacy trees. Join docents from the Hanford Bonsai Society as they discuss the features of the growing collection.

Saturdays, December 2, 2006 and January 20, 2007
1:00pm-5:00pm

Admission to the Bonsai exhibits is free.

Japanese New Year Festival 2006
Saturday, January 21
11am - 4pm
Don't miss the Lee Center's third annual Japanese New Year Festival. The gallery, library, and outdoor tents will be filled with traditional Japanese activities from pounding mochi rice cakes to card-matching games, calligraphy activities, koto performances, kimono-dressing demonstrations, and children's games such as hanetsuki (a badminton-like game) and fukuwarai (like "pin the tail on the donkey"). Activities are repeated throughout the day. Bring your friends; bring the kids. Taste New Year's treats and learn about the many traditions associated with this special time of year. Open to the public free of charge.

This event is made possible by support from Union Bank of California and Koda Farms.

Sunday, November 6, 2005 at 2:00 pm
KOKESHI
Slide Lecture and Book Signing
by Michael Evans and Robert Wolf
Authors of Kokeshi (Vermillion, 2005), Michael Evans and Robert Wolf will introduce the Japanese traditional folk art of the wooden doll, kokeshi.
Non-members $7, members free with advance reservations.
This event is made possible by Sue and Michael Tharpe.

Saturday, November 5, 2005, 10:00 am
Teacher Training Workshop for Middle and High School Teachers
In conjunction with the completion of a second curriculum unit based on the Lee Center collection, the Stanford Program for International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE) will host a special session for 7th to 12th grade teachers of art, Japanese history and culture or social studies to introduce the unit "Japanese Art in the Edo Period." The workshop is limited to practicing teachers only. There is no cost to attend but reservations are required. All attendees receive a free copy of the unit for their schools. This project is made possible by a grant from the Japanese Irvine Foundation.

Sunday, December 11, 2005
Winter exhibition opening lecture
by Sharon Takeda, Senior Curator and Department Head, Costumes and Textiles, Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Sunday, September 11, 2005 2:00 pm
Fall exhibition opening lecture
"Talented and Beautiful, Virtuous and Sexy: Picturing Women in Edo Period Japan" By Laura Allen, PhD

May 7, 2005
"Ballads of Love and Death: a lecture/demonstration of shinnai, Japanese narrative song"
by Living National Treasure Tsuruga Wakasanojo XI
click here for details

April 17, 20005
Fifth Annual Spring Festival
A full day of performances, workshops, and activities for visitors of all ages!
click here for details

January 22, 2005
11:00 am to 4:00 pm
Japanese New Year Festival
click here for details

November 21, 2004
2:00 pm
An Afternoon of Classic Japanese Film
Akira Kurosawa's "Seven Samurai" at the Hanford Fox Theatre
click here for details

June 19, 2004
Nihon Buyo — Japanese Classical Dance performance
By Master Goto Nobuko (stage name Izumi Obu) and students, Shizuoka, Japan

April 18, 2004
Annual Spring Festival and Open House

March 13, 2004
The Art of Japanese Paper-Making with Joyce Kierejczyk
Slide lecture: 11:00 am (seating is limited, please RSVP to reserve your space) Paper-making demonstrations on-going throughout the afternoon 1-4 pm

February 8, 2004
Micah Schwaberow Woodblock Print Artist Lectures, 12:00-2:00 pm, 3:30-5:30 pm, Trunk sale, 2-3 pm

January 17, 2004
Japanese New Year Festival
Over 375 visitors came to this, our first ever New Year's celebration. They were treated to traditional Japanese games, calligraphy activities, pounding mochi rice cakes, a koto musical performance, and kimono demonstration. Even though it was a cold day, much fun was had by all.