Tag Archives: asia society

JAPANESE CINEMA 1960s: THREE OUTLAW SAMURAI

Hideo Gosha’s THREE OUTLAW SAMURAI is part of Japanese Cinema 1960s series at Asia Society

THREE OUTLAW SAMURAI (SANBIKI NO SAMURAI) (Hideo Gosha, 1964)
Asia Society
725 Park Ave. at 70th St.
Friday, November 12, free, 6:45 (advance registration recommended)
Series runs through December 10
212-517-asia
www.asiasociety.org

Screening as part of Asia Society’s Japanese Cinema 1960s series, THREE OUTLAW SAMURAI stars Testsoro Tamba as Shiba, a wandering samurai who comes upon a town mired in chaos. The peasants have kidnapped the magistrate’s daughter (Miyuki Kuwano) to protest unfair taxation, but the magistrate has little time for them. Shiba is soon joined by Sakura (Isamu Nagato) and Kikyo (Mikihiro Hira) as they fight for what’s right. Director Hideo Gosha’s debut film, a classic Eastern Spaghetti Western, is more cerebral than many of its contemporaries, as it often opts for mental battles rather than swordfighting action. Sakura’s transition from a brash killer to a concerned potential lover is inspiring and heartbreaking, while Kikyo learns there’s more to being a samurai than wine and women. But don’t worry; Gosha makes sure we don’t get too bogged down in life lessons and sentimentalism. Tadashi Tsushima’s jazzy score is awesome. The series continues December 3 with Mikio Naruse’s YEARNING (1964) and December 10 with Kihachi Okamoto’s AGE OF ASSASSINS (1967) and Eiichi Kudo’s THE FORT OF DEATH (1969).

YOSHITOMO NARA: WHITE GHOST

Park Ave. median at 67th St.
Park Ave. median at 70th St.
Through November 5
Admission: free
www.artproductionfund.org
67th st. slideshow
70th st. slideshow

In conjunction with his upcoming exhibit at the Asia Society, “Nobody’s Fool,” which opens September 9, Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara has installed “White Ghost,” two giant fiberglass-and-steel statues on the Park Ave. mall, one in front of the Asia Society on 70th St., the other in front of the armory on 67th St., where he recently held an open studio as he constructed “Home” for the show. A joint venture of the Asia Society, the Art Production Fund, and the Sculpture Committee of the Fund for Park Ave., the sculptures depict an enormous white girl, the one on 67th looking north, the other looking south, like sentinels or guards called komainu, both smiling slyly.

Yoshitimo Nara’s “White Ghost” sculpture still has umbilical cord connected to its head during installation (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

The sculptures were installed on September 4 by Dun-Rite and SRI; it was especially exciting watching the head being added to the body as the sun shined down on the glistening work. (One of our three videos can be seen above.) The two girls will continue watching over Park Ave. until November 5.

YOSHITOMO NARA + YNG: OPEN STUDIO

Friday is last chance to see Yoshitomo Nara’s work-in-progress in the Park Ave. Armory (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Park Avenue Armory
643 Park Ave. at 67th St.
Through Friday, August 27, free, 4:00 – 7:00
www.armoryonpark.org
www.asiasociety.org
“Home” slideshow

In preparation for “Nobody’s Fool,” his major exhibition opening at the Asia Society on September 9, Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara and his design team, YNG, are constructing a special installation this week in the cavernous Wade Thompson Drill Hall in the Park Ave. Armory. When it’s finished, “Home,” a one-story living environment, will be transferred a few blocks uptown; in the meantime, visitors are invited to get a free sneak peek at the work-in-progress every afternoon from 4:00 to 7:00 through this Friday. The fifty-one-year-old Tokyo-based Neo Pop artist is most well known for his paintings, sculptures, and drawings of wide-eyed childlike characters who are not quite as cute as they first appear, evil and danger lying not too far below the surface. Nara’s punk-rock influences are evident at the armory, where a glassed-in room holds dozens of his drawings, many of which include musical elements, from a young girl playing air guitar to a Ramones postcard. Meanwhile, music blasts as workers continue building “Home” right out in the open. Don’t look too hard for Nara himself; the shy artist has done a good job of avoiding being in the spotlight so far this week. In order to enter the hall, visitors must wear closed-toe shoes, shoulders must be covered, and yellow hard hats will be given out. Be sure to pick up a card that offers two-for-one admission to the upcoming show; in addition, Nara and curator Miwako Tezuka will be at the Asia Society on Friday night for a Q&A and discussion following a screening of Koji Sakabe’s 2007 documentary, TRAVELING WITH YOSHITOMO NARA. Tickets are also now available for such related events as an artist talk with Nara and Hideki Toyoshima on September 10, a live performance by Shonen Knife on September 25, and a screening of Lewis Rapkin’s documentary about the contemporary Japanese indie music scene, LIVE FROM TOKYO, on October 29.

ASIA IN AMERICA

LAW & ORDER: SVU’s BD Wong will star in new musical as part of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

Asia Society (unless otherwise noted)
725 Park Ave. at 70th St.
May 21-29, $15-$30
212-517-asia
www.asiasociety.org

The Asia Society’s celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month continues on May 21 as the Balinese music and dance ensemble Gamelan Dharma Swara will present a preview of their fall tour, preceded by a lecture about the engaging art form ($20, 7:00). From May 24 to 26, BD Wong will star as a fortune hunter in the new musical HEADING EAST, with music by Leon Ko and lyrics by Robert Lee ($30, 8:00). On May 26, Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh, author of the new book DELIVERING HAPPINESS: A PATH TO PROFITS, PASSION, AND PURPOSE, will discuss his life and career ($15, 6:30). The inventive dance team of Eiko and Koma will perform “Retrospective Project I: Regeneration” May 27-29 at Danspace Project, with each evening followed by a Q&A with guest speakers ($18, 8:00). And today is the last day to check out the AsiaStore Asian American Designer Series, with special appearances by Rita Chung and Rose Ajmera.

JOURNEY INTO BUDDHISM: VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET

Thangka Festival in Drepung is one of the many highlights of VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET (photo by John Bush/Direct Pictures)

THE YATRA TRILOGY: VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET (John Bush, 2006)
Asia Society
725 Park Ave. at 70th St.
Friday, May 7, free, 6:45 (free tickets available beginning at 6:00)
212-517-asia
www.journeyintobuddhism.com
www.asiasociety.org
www.vajra-sky.com

The Asia Society’s presentation of John Bush’s Yatra Trilogy concludes on May 7 with VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET: JOURNEY INTO AN ENDANGERED WORLD, a reverential documentary that examines the history of the Tibetan people, focusing on the long-standing battle with China. In 1959, the fourteenth Dalai Lama was forced into exile, finding safe haven in India. Although many Tibetans escaped with him, many stayed behind, where they practice their faith under the sharp watch of the Chinese government, which would like to name their own Dalai Lama in time. VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET is the third part of the Yatra Trilogy by producer/director John Bush, following DHARMA RIVER and PRAJNA EARTH, as Bush completes his Buddhist pilgrimage that previously took him to Southeast Asia. Bush, a Western Buddhist himself, gained remarkable access to some of Vajrayana Buddhism’s holiest palaces and sites of worship, including Jokhang Temple in Llasa, the Potala, and the Norbulinka. Bush winds his way through the Drepung Festival, traveling with a Tibetan guide whose name he can’t share because of possible reprisals. Bush narrates much of the film, along with Tenzin L Choegyal, the nephew of the current Dalai Lama, and Dadon, a popular Tibetan singer. The meditative score is by David Hykes and the Harmonic Choir, supplemented with devotional music by Dadon and other Himalayan musicians. Although it often plays too much like a travel show on PBS or the Travel Channel, VAJRA SKY, which has been personally endorsed by the Dalai Lama, is an illuminating look into a fascinating culture that is in serious danger of disappearing. “Tibetan civilization,” writes the Dalai Lama as the film begins, “forms a distinct part of the world’s precious common heritage. Humanity would be the poorer if it were to be lost.” For nearly ninety minutes, with beautiful cinematography, captivating music, and gorgeous settings, Bush, who will introduce the Asia Society screening in conjunction with the exhibit “Pilgrimage and Buddhist Art,” takes you deep inside a mysterious, peaceful, and threatened world that you will not soon forget.

JOURNEY INTO BUDDHISM: PRAJNA EARTH

PRAJNA EARTH takes viewers to spectacular temples in Cambodia, Bali, and Java (photo by John Bush / Direct Pictures)

THE YATRA TRILOGY: PRAJNA EARTH (John Bush, 2005)
Asia Society
725 Park Ave. at 70th St.
Friday, April 30, free, 6:45 (free tickets available beginning at 6:00)
212-517-asia
www.journeyintobuddhism.com
www.asiasociety.org

The Asia Society’s presentation of John Bush’s Yatra Trilogy continues on April 30 with PRAJNA EARTH: JOURNEY INTO SACRED NATURE, the best of the three films that travel to sacred Buddhist locations in Southeast Asia. Screened in conjunction with the exhibition “Pilgrimage and Buddhist Art,” PRAJNA EARTH takes viewers to Cambodia, Bali, and Java, where Bush focuses more on the people, including male and female monks on pilgrimage and Balinese dancers, than he does in the other two films (DHARMA RIVER and VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET), although he also investigates some of the most remarkable spiritual structures on the face of the planet. Prajna, narrator Sharon Stone says, means “radiant wisdom,” and the places Bush visits are radiant indeed, from the amazing Angkor Wat and Angkor Tom in Cambodia to the stunning Saraswati Temple in Ubud to the massive mandala-shaped Borobudur and the breathtaking Prambanan in Java. Stone discusses various interconnected aspects of Buddhism, Hinduism, and animism, including nature, the spirit, and light and darkness, as Bush’s excellent camerawork reveals rarely seen hidden treasures, especially gorgeous interstitials that link the three primary stops. David Hykes’s harmonic chant score is supplemented with songs by Krishna Das. Bush will be on hand to introduce the free screening and will be back May 7 when the trilogy concludes with VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET (2006).

JOURNEY INTO BUDDHISM: DHARMA RIVER

DHARMA RIVER begins John Bush’s Yatra Trilogy at the Asia Society on April 23 (photo by John Bush / Direct Pictures)

THE YATRA TRILOGY: DHARMA RIVER (John Bush, 2004)
Asia Society
725 Park Ave. at 70th St.
Friday, April 23, free, 6:45 (free tickets available beginning at 6:00)
212-517-asia
www.journeyintobuddhism.com
www.asiasociety.org

In conjunction with the exhibition “Pilgrimage and Buddhist Art,” the Asia Society is presenting John Bush’s Yatra Trilogy, three films that journey to sacred Buddhist locations, revealing little-known, seldom-seen sites to Western audiences. The free series begins April 23 with DHARMA RIVER, in which Bush, who will introduce the screening, travels to remarkable temples and shrines in Laos, Thailand, and Burma. He uncovers treasures in Wat Po in Bangkok, Wat Phra Singh in Chiang Mai, Swedagon Pagoda in Rangoon, and Pak Ou Cave and Wat Xieng Thong in Luang Prabang, among other stops. Bush’s narration places the fascinating iconography in proper Buddhist context, avoiding oversimplification while not getting too deep into the intricacies of the different philosophies in each country. His trip along the Mekong River is particularly memorable. From 1970 to 1972, Bush studied Buddhism in India, first spending several months learning vipassana meditation in a Burmese monastery, so DHARMA RIVER is, for him, “a flowing revelation linking a personal past with an intimate present.” The film is accompanied by a beautiful soundtrack by David Hykes with the Harmonic Chant Choir. The trilogy continues April 30 with PRAJNA EARTH (2005) and concludes May 7 with VAJRA SKY OVER TIBET (2006); the Asia Society is free on Friday nights from 6:00 to 9:00, so there should also be time to pay quick visits to the exhibitions “Pilgrimage and Buddhist Art” as well as “Arts of Ancient Viet Nam: From River Plain to Open Sea.”