Cultural Exhibits

The San Francisco Urasenke Association held its annual Mugenki memorial tea ceremony on Aug. 10 at the Nichi Bei Kai Cultural Center Kansoan tea room in San Francisco.

Hosting the event on behalf or the Urasenke organization were Soryu Bratton, Sokyo Inouye and Sosetsu Kuramoto, with 65 members and guests in attendance.

San Francisco chanoyu instructors Soko Takechi and Sokyo Tiscornia have announced the following tea-related events for September.

A wagashi Japanese sweet- making class will be held on Friday, Sept. 5, from 7 to 9:30 p.m.

This class will feature sanshoku ohagi and yamamichi. Sanshoku (three-color) ohagi is made with sweet rice and has various outer coatings. Included will be aonori (green powdered seaweed), kinako (roasted soy bean flour) and an (sweet bean paste).

The National Japanese American Historical Society (NJAHS) announced that its next exhibit, “Transforming Kami: The Art of Origami,” will be on display from Sept. 6 to Dec. 31 at the NJAHS Gallery, 1684 Post St. between Laguna and Buchanan in San Francisco’s Japantown.

To celebrate the opening, a reception with light refreshments will be held on Saturday, Sept. 6, from 2 to 5 p.m. Admission is free.

SAN MATEO — The San Mateo Bonsai Club presents the 45th annual Autumn Bonsai Exhibit at Central Park Recreation Center, 5th Avenue and El Camino Real in San Mateo.

The event takes place Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 20-21, with displays, demonstrations and sales. There will also be drawings for prizes after each of the demonstrations.

The event runs from 12 to 5 p.m. on Saturday, with a 2 p.m. demonstration by Yone Suruki and Kiyomi Ishii; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, with a demonstration at 2 p.m. by Stephen Prevost and Fred Shimo.

OAKLAND — The Golden State Bonsai Federation will offer a juniper bonsai workshop for beginners on Sunday, Sept. 28, from 1 to 3 p.m. at the GSBF Bonsai Garden.

The collection is located in Oakland’s Lakeside Park, 650 Bellevue Ave. in Oakland, past the Garden Center on the left and approximately opposite the boat house on Lake Merritt. For directions, visit http://web.mac.com/ltferzoco/GSBF/Sep__Demo.html.

The workshop is free. The cost of materials is $5. Students will go home with their own bonsai.

OAKLAND — The Golden State Bonsai Federation Collection North will offer a bougainvillea workshop on Sunday, Aug. 24, from 1 to 3 p.m.

Participants will make small bougainvillea bonsai plants or start them from one-gallon nursery stock. A bougainvillea will be provided for $8 or you can bring your own.

SAN LORENZO - The Northern California Chapter of Ohara Ikebana School will hold its monthly workshop on Saturday, Aug. 16, at 10 a.m. at Eden Community Center, 710 Elgin St.

The subject is single-material arrangement (either Moribana or Heika) and participants will use the materials of their choice. The instructor will be Suiyo Fujimoto.

A board meeting will follow at 1 p.m. Board members are asked to bring their own lunch.
Guests are welcome. For more information, call Suiko Maruyama at (510) 494-8220.

The San Francisco Suiseki Kai will present its 27th annual exhibition on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 3-4, from 10 a.m. at the Union Bank of California Hospitality Room, located in the Japan Center's Miyako Mall, Post and Buchanan streets in San Francisco (enter from Peace Plaza).

Suiseki are stones that suggest natural scenes, such as mountains, lakes, plateaus or waterfalls. The stones should not be modified and are displayed as found in nature, although in practice sometimes a single cut is made to enhance the proportions and balance of the stone.

SARATOGA — The Hakone Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the Japanese-style Hakone Gardens in Saratoga, announced this month that Masato “Marty” Matsuo will serve as chairman and Connie Young Yu as vice chairman.

It is the first time in the foundation’s 93-year history that the two positions will be held by a Japanese and a Chinese American, respectively.

BERKELEY — Berkeley Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple will hold its annual bazaar on Saturday, July 26, from 4 to 8 p.m. and Sunday, July 27, from 12 to 6 p.m.

The event will feature Japanese food, children’s games and homemade crafts. Admission is free.

The temple is located at 1524 Oregon St. (at Sacramento). For more information, call (510) 843-6933.