JANM’S KOKORO CRAFT BOUTIQUE SET FOR OCTOBER 6

Los Angeles, CA—The 11th annual Kokoro Craft Boutique, organized by volunteers at the Japanese American National Museum, will take place at the museum on Sunday, October 6, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Harpist Audrey Kato will perform throughout the day and Yuujou Daiko, a taiko performance group based in South San Gabriel, will perform at 11:15 a.m. Admission to the boutique is free.

Kokoro Craft Boutique will feature 50 vendors selling unique jewelry, kimono fabric fashions, Giant Robot merchandise, handbags, ceramics, origami and glass art, pet accessories, and more. Six of this year’s vendors are new to the boutique, including one offering hand-painted shirts.

Proceeds from the boutique will benefit JANM’s education programs. Those who make a boutique purchase of $25 or more will receive free same-day admission to the museum and a 10% discount at participating Little Tokyo restaurants during the month of October (one-time use only, restrictions apply).

For more information, visit janm.org/events, call 213.830.1883, or email kokorocraft@gmail.com.

About the Japanese American National Museum (JANM), a Smithsonian Affiliate
Established in 1985, the Japanese American National Museum promotes understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the Japanese American experience. Located in the historic Little Tokyo district of downtown Los Angeles, JANM is a hybrid institution that straddles traditional museum categories and strives to provide a voice for Japanese Americans as well as a forum that enables all people to explore their own heritage and culture. Since opening to the public, JANM has presented nearly 100 exhibitions onsite and traveled 20 of its exhibitions to locations around the world, including the Smithsonian Institution and the Ellis Island Museum in the United States, and several leading cultural museums in Japan and South America.

JANM is located at 100 N. Central Ave., Los Angeles. Museum hours are Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursday from noon to 8 p.m. General admission is $16 adults, $7 students and seniors, free for members and children under age five. Admission is free to everyone on Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and every third Thursday of the month from noon to 8 p.m. General admission prices and free admission times may not apply to specially ticketed exhibitions. Closed Monday, 4th of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. For more information visit janm.org or call 213.625.0414.

NOW ON VIEW AT JANM:

At First Light: The Dawning of Asian Pacific America
Through October 20, 2019
At First Light: The Dawning of Asian Pacific America is a multi-media exhibition that explores and celebrates the emergence of a politically defined Asian Pacific American consciousness and identity. A co-production of Visual Communications (VC) and the Japanese American National Museum, At First Light chronicles the transformation of the un-American categorization of “Oriental” to the political identity of “Asian Pacific American” that rejected racist stereotypes, stood up for human rights, recovered lost histories, and created new cultural expressions. The exhibition draws from the collections of VC, the first Asian Pacific American media organization in the country, which formed in Los Angeles in 1970 to capture and cultivate the newfound unity that was Asian Pacific America. The resiliency and resistance embodied in At First Light serve as a reminder—as well as a call to action—of what can be accomplished when people unite as a community with commitment.

Fighting for Democracy: Who is the “We” in “We, the People”?
Through January 5, 2020
     We, the people, shape democracy;
     I, too, can shape democracy;
     Those who have struggled for freedom and equality have extended democracy’s reach for all.
Fighting for Democracy: Who is the “We” in “We, the People”? is an experimental exhibition based on these fundamental principles. It features seven real people and traces their stories throughout the prewar, World War II, and post-war periods as examples of the millions of Americans whose lives were affected by the war and how each sought equal rights for their families and communities.

Common Ground: The Heart of Community
Ongoing
Incorporating hundreds of objects, documents, and photographs collected by JANM, this exhibition chronicles 130 years of Japanese American history, from the early days of the Issei pioneers through the World War II incarceration to the present. In commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, the final section of Common Ground has been reimagined to further emphasize the redress movement, the landmark passage of the Act, and its relevance today.