Sunday, July 20, 2008

KICA seeks entries for bilingual essay contest

The Kyoto International Cultural Association is seeking contestants for its essay contest on Sept. 28.

Residents of Japan whose mother tongue is not Japanese can apply with an essay in Japanese or English on the theme: "Japanese Culture, My View." The Japanese essays must be between 4,000 and 6,000 characters in length and the English ones must be between 2,000 and 3,000 words. The presentations for the six best essays will be held Sept. 28.

Applications should arrive by Aug. 3. The forms can be found at kicainc.jp/contest/applicatione2008.pdf

Full details about the essay contest can be found at kicainc.jp/contest/contest2008e.htm

For more information, contact the organizer at (075) 751-8958, fax (075) 751-9006, or e-mail office@kicainc.jp

SIETAR to host lecture on African conflicts

The Kansai Chapter of Society for Intercultural Education, Training and Research (SIETAR) will host the lecture "An Introduction to African Conflicts" from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday in Nishinomiya City.

Takehiko Ochiai, professor of International Relations at Ryukoku University, will speak in Japanese about the wars and armed conflicts that have ravaged the continent.

The venue is Nishinomiya-shi Daigaku Koryu Center on the sixth floor of the ACTA Nishinomiya East building, which is a two-minute walk from the north exit of Hankyu Nishinomiya Kitaguchi Station.

Participation is ¥500 for SIETAR members and students, and ¥1,000 for nonmembers.

For further information, contact the organizer at terryabc@gol.com

Otani museum to offer free clarinet concerts

Otani Memorial Art Museum in Nishinomiya City will host free clarinet concerts on July 27 and a tea ceremony on Aug. 3.

In the July 27 concerts, clarinet player Kozo Ishibashi will perform twice, at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., accompanied by pianist Kinuko Yoshiki.

Admission to the concert is free, but ¥300 is required to enter the museum. The first 100 people will be accepted for each concert on a first-come, first-served basis via advance application.

The tea ceremony will be held four times in the museum's Japanese room, from 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 2 p.m., and 3:30 p.m.

Participation for the tea ceremony costs ¥500, again with ¥300 required to enter the museum. Twelve people will be accepted for each session on a first-come, first-served basis via advance application.

Those participating in both events can also enjoy its current exhibition, "Adventures in Contemporary Art," which features various works by contemporary artists, such as Kazuo Shiraga (1924-2008), one of the leading figures in Japanese action painting.

Advance applications are required by fax for both events.

For applications, send a fax to the museum at (0798) 33-1699 bearing your name, telephone number and the time for the event or events you wish to attend.

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