Blooming Interest
14/04/08 08:34 Filed in: Fort Wayne Cherry Blossom Festival
Origami, anime and kimonos, all part of Japanese way of life, thrive at Cherry Blossom Festival
By Abby Slutsky | The Journal Gazette
Despite the gray day outside, Arts United Center and the Fort Wayne Museum of Art shone with bright colors Sunday during the second annual Cherry Blossom Festival.
The festival offered the hundreds of attendees the chance to experience traditional Japanese cultural elements, such as bonzai, origami, calligraphy and kimonos, and the more modern cultural element – anime.
In a small room at the Museum of Art, children, teens and even adults worked carefully on the art, which is best defined as any animation from Japan.
Jessica Ponko of Warsaw said her daughter brought her to the festival specifically for the anime contest.
Though Ponko participated in the contest, she said it is really something her daughter is interested in.
But the festival itself, she said, “has been quite a learning experience.”
“It’s a great chance to see some art and see some culture,” Ponko said.
While some worked on artwork, other attendees sat in Arts United Center’s theater, listening to the sounds of koto and shakuhachi, traditional Japanese instruments, or watching a kimono show and a traditional Japanese tea ceremony. Outside the building, lines of people waited to get sushi and other Japanese delicacies while others watched women dressed in kimonos perform traditional cherry blossom dances inside.
Noel Knox, a member of the Cherry Blossom Festival committee, said the festival serves two purposes – to celebrate Japanese art and culture and to encourage Japanese-based business ventures in the area.
“There’s been a lot of Japanese investments in this area, and we want to be very welcoming,” Knox said.
Last year’s festival, which took place on what Knox called a “beautiful day,” drew a crowd of about 2,500 people.
This year, many of the events that had been scheduled for Freimann Square were moved inside to the Arts United Center, but the weather did not put a damper on the day’s festivities.
By Abby Slutsky | The Journal Gazette
Despite the gray day outside, Arts United Center and the Fort Wayne Museum of Art shone with bright colors Sunday during the second annual Cherry Blossom Festival.
The festival offered the hundreds of attendees the chance to experience traditional Japanese cultural elements, such as bonzai, origami, calligraphy and kimonos, and the more modern cultural element – anime.
In a small room at the Museum of Art, children, teens and even adults worked carefully on the art, which is best defined as any animation from Japan.
Jessica Ponko of Warsaw said her daughter brought her to the festival specifically for the anime contest.
Though Ponko participated in the contest, she said it is really something her daughter is interested in.
But the festival itself, she said, “has been quite a learning experience.”
“It’s a great chance to see some art and see some culture,” Ponko said.
While some worked on artwork, other attendees sat in Arts United Center’s theater, listening to the sounds of koto and shakuhachi, traditional Japanese instruments, or watching a kimono show and a traditional Japanese tea ceremony. Outside the building, lines of people waited to get sushi and other Japanese delicacies while others watched women dressed in kimonos perform traditional cherry blossom dances inside.
Noel Knox, a member of the Cherry Blossom Festival committee, said the festival serves two purposes – to celebrate Japanese art and culture and to encourage Japanese-based business ventures in the area.
“There’s been a lot of Japanese investments in this area, and we want to be very welcoming,” Knox said.
Last year’s festival, which took place on what Knox called a “beautiful day,” drew a crowd of about 2,500 people.
This year, many of the events that had been scheduled for Freimann Square were moved inside to the Arts United Center, but the weather did not put a damper on the day’s festivities.
Clint Keller | The Journal Gazette
Miki Morgan and the Minyo Dancers perform Sunday afternoon at the Arts United Center during the Cherry Blossom Festival. The festival celebrates Japanese art and culture.