It is common knowledge that the United States is a melting pot of many cultures, ethnicities, backgrounds, etc and Southern California, in particular, is a place where many people coexist. The Japanese influence in this area is one that is most certainly prevalent.
Recently, I got the chance to visit a few Japanese-centered sites within the Hollywood region, which represent Japanese culture in unique ways. The first being Japan House, a project put in place by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs whose aim is focused on bringing awareness and appreciation for Japanese art, design, innovation, and more on a global level.
Japan House Los Angeles is surprisingly located within a touristy shopping complex alongside Hollywood Boulevard. I say “surprisingly” due to the fact that the exhibit neighbors retail shops, kitschy chain restaurants, and community play parks and seating. Not to mention, that the Hollywood Stars Walk of Fame lies directly on the street level outside the exhibition. It is ironic in so many ways.
The modern architecture and artful exhibit doesn’t necessarily mesh well next to its cohort, but when asked why this location and not something a little more prim and proper for an exhibition, the director explained the millions of people that flood through the Ovation Hollywood entertainment complex annually. Thus, this exhibit would be seen and exposed to the masses, which is the main goal of the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Currently, Japan House Los Angeles is housing the Chikuunsai exhibit - a traditional bamboo weaving art form that is both immersive and educational for its visitors. The artist, Tanabe Chikuunsai IV, is a fourth-generation bamboo artist who put forth this exhibition called “LIFE CYCLES” to represent the natural cycles of Japan’s bamboo forests in a creative form. He uses Japanese bamboo which he sustainably harvested from the woods of Kochi in Shikoku, Japan. In fact, Chikuunsai IV recycles each piece of bamboo in his projects. This project, like most of his others, is quite impressive due to the lack of glues, nails, and really any extra materials that would keep the bamboo strips sturdily connected to one another. It is solely just bamboo strips being woven together to create a larger than life installation.
Chikuunsai’s “LIFE CYCLE” art piece highlights the connection between humans and nature and the importance of conserving the bamboo forests for future generations. He aims to bring different cultures together through his installations which is successfully done at this location in Hollywood.
This highly discrete exhibit lies within the chaos of Hollywood, connecting the peoples of Los Angeles to the traditional Japanese art form of bamboo weaving. While many attend museums to educate themselves about cultural art forms, this exhibition is independently located, which allows for a different draw of customers and art goers. A place like Japan House is easily accessible and is a “once in a lifetime experience” due to the fact that there are rotating exhibitions. During “normal” times aka non-COVID times, Japan House actually serves food alongside their art forms in their restaurant upstairs. Sadly, LIFECYCLES is not accompanied with Japanese cuisine, however the last exhibit, which focused on the niche art forms of the Japanese ramen bowl, allowed for visitors to experience authentic Japanese ramen after their tour through the exhibition room.
Overall, I believe that Japanese culture is highly under-appreciated in places like Southern California. And more importantly, there are very few places surrounding Japanese art and design that are inviting and interesting enough to attend, especially when one lies within the college age demographic. However, Japan House Los Angeles is the perfect combination of art and entertainment, which reflects in their immersive exhibitions and rooftop restaurant accommodations. That is a win, win in my eyes, however it is up to all of you to go test out the waters at Japan House Los Angeles to determine if that statement is true.
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This was a great read and I completely agree with you saying that Japanese culture is under appreciated. Nevertheless, two aspects of the culture that I know are well appreciated is in anime and their classic JDM cars (especially in SoCal). Anime itself has started to become more and more popular throughout the last few years. Southern California is also known for having a very big car appreciation scene. Classic Japanese cars like the Toyota Supra or Nissan GTR, specifically the R32 and R34 are some examples of how much Japanese automobiles are admired and loved, especially the old classic ones.
From what I've observed, a lot of Japanese architecture and culture is very herded and packed together in LA. You can go anywhere to find pieces of a lot of other cultures that make up the cultural mosaic of this city, but you have to go to very specific locations in LA (Little Tokyo, Huntington Gardens, La Brea) in order to experience a more commercialized (and arguably fetishized) version of the Japanese aesthetic in opposed to simply driving around the city and viewing in a more casual setting.