‘The Open Mind of Lafcadio Hearn in New York’ will display 25 pieces which were exhibited in Matsue, 2 pieces from the American College of Greece, and 2 of Hearn’s cherished personal items from the Lafcadio Hearn Memorial Museum Matsue. The Nippon Club was established in 1905 by Dr. Jokichi Takamine and currently boasts 1,100 members. Although Hearn and Takamine didn’t actually meet, they were both enthusiastic about the New Orleans Exposition, and when Takamine returned to Japan, he took the opportunity during his lectures to call on the Japanese government to give precedence to people such as Hearn who showed compassion for Japan, and would introduce Japan to the world.
There will be a display of over 20 beautifully bound first editions of Hearn’s books, mostly published by New York publishing houses such as Harper & Brothers, Houghton, Mifflin & Co. and Macmillan & Co. (The Efstathiou Family Collection)
Hearn was the first author to disseminate the word ‘Tsunami’ to the west. Deeply moved by the human suffering of the Great Sanriku Tsunami of June 1896, it wasn’t long before he put pen to paper and produced his next story, ‘A Living God’, which was posted in the December issue of the ‘Atlantic Monthly’ By viewing a first edition of ‘A Living God’ at this exhibition, visitors may see Hearn’s unprecedented curiosity and awe for natural disasters as well as the importance of this visionary man who passed these things on to succeeding generations.
By the sheer power of his penmanship, Hearn increased awareness of natural disaster response throughout the world, including New York. This exhibition aims to offer support to those affected by the Eastern Japan earthquake.
The Open Mind of Lafcadio Hearn
Mr. Takis Efstathiou, a Greek art coordinator, along with Mr. Masaaki Noda, a New York based artist, have been cherishing this project since 1996. A monument produced by Mr. Noda and titled by Mr. Efstathiou was installed on the campus of The American College of Greece in October 2009. An art exhibition under the same title, featuring works from all over the world, was held in the ACG Art Gallery. Noda Masaaki once more donated a monument of the same design, which was erected this time on the shore of Lake Shinji. Takis Efstathiou continues to play a part in increasing awareness of Hearn’s open minded philosophy by giving others the opportunity to view his enviable collection of valuable editions of Hearn’s works.
Artists
Stanwood Badger (1904-1970)
Demosthenes Agrafiotis
Mitsumasa Anno
Izumi Ayaki
Stacia Blake
Debra Bowden
Tamiko Kawata-Ferguson
Christos P. Garoufalis
Ynez Johnston
Vassiliki Koskiniotou
Michael Michaeledes
Minoru Kurasawa
Shigeru Mizuki
Nicholas Moore
Masaaki Noda
Michael Ross
Jessica Speckhard
Seiho Wada
Yumiko Yoneda
Constantin Xenakis
Shiro Sano
Mariko Yano
Kiyoshi Koizumi (1899-1962)
Kazuo Koizumi (1893-1965)
Books (1st edition)
collection of The Efstathiou Family
Gleanings in Buddha-Fields, 1897, Boston & New York: Houghton, Mifflin & Co.
Gombo Zhebes: Little Dictionary of Creole Proverbs, 1885, New York: W. H. Coleman
La Cuisine Creole: A Collection of Culinary Recipes, 1885, New Orleans: F. F. Hansell & Bro., Ltd (2nd Edition)
Chita: A Memory of Last Island, 1889, New York: Harpers & Brothers
Youma, 1890, New York: Harpers & Brothers
Two Years in the French West Indies, 1890, New York: Harpers & Brothers
Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan vol. 1 & vol. 2, 1894, Boston & New York: Houghton, Mifflin & Co.
Kokoro, 1896, Boston & New York: Houghton, Mifflin & Co.
Exotics and Retrospectives, 1898, Boston: Little, Brown & Co.
In Ghostly Japan, 1899, Boston: Little, Brown & Co.
Shadowings, 1900, Boston: Little, Brown & Co.
A Japanese Miscellany, 1901, Boston: Little, Brown & Co.
Kotto, 1902, New York: Macmillan Co.
Kwaidan, 1904, Boston & New York: Houghton, Mifflin & Co.
Japan: An Attempt at Interpretation, 1904, New York: Macmillan Co.
Japanese Fairy Tales, 1898‒1922, Japan: T. Hasegawa Publisher
The Planning Committee for The Open Mind of Lafcadio Hearn in New York Matsue City
Co-Organizer:
The Nippon Club
Sponsors:
New York Shimane Kenjin-Kai HANKYUHANSHI EXPRESS Co., Ltd. The San-in Godo Bank, Ltd. New York Representative Office
Supported by
J.C.C. Fund of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of New York, Inc. Shimane Prefectural Government Consulate General of Japan in New York JETRO New York The Japan Foundation, New York
Special thanks:
Takis Efstathiou
Coordinator:
Shoko Koizumi
Designer:
Kiyoharu Ishikawa
Commemorative Reception
Tuesday, October 4, 2011 7:00pm - 8:00pm Please RSVP to yhonda@nipponclub.org With Lecture by Bon Koizumi, Great Grandson of Lafcadio Hearn 6:00pm - 7:00pm