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May 23,
2003
1942:
Luggage From Home to Camp Project Quilt Garners Award
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SAN JOSE
The Japanese American Museum of San Jose (JAMsj) is proud to
announce that the 1942: Luggage From Home to Camp project quilt
was awarded third place in the My Favorite Quilt of Show category
by viewers at the Santa Clara Quilt Association Show held May
3 and 4.
Amy Higuchi
of San Jose led a team of quilters – Judy Azebu, Betty
Hagiya, Jane Hayashi, Tina Higashi, Clara Ichikawa, Mary Ishimaru,
Kiyoko Kamiya, Martha Kawakami, Laura Kinoshita, Taye Kitazono,
Esther Oda, Ann Saito, Kathleen Shimada, Eiko Shimizu, C. Sprague,
and Tina Urata – to create the quilt, which commemorates
what Japanese American internees packed for camp during World
War II.
Each quilter
created a square containing the name of a specific camp and
a suitcase to represent the internees at the 10 camp sites –
Tule Lake and Manzanar in California, Minidoka in Idaho, Topaz
in Utah, Poston and Gila River in Arizona, Heart Mountain in
Wyoming, Granada in Colorado, and Rohwer and Jerome in Arkansas.
The quilters
will be receiving their award at the May 29 meeting of the Santa
Clara Quilt Association.
In January,
JAMsj asked Amy and her team to design and make the quilt, using
drawings by Jiro Saito, to accompany an upcoming exhibit 1942:
Luggage From Home to Camp, which will open on July 1 at the
Japanese American Museum in San Jose's Japantown.
1942: Luggage
From Home to Camp is collaboration with Sunnyvale mixed media
artist, Flo Oy Wong. The exhibition will be on view for one
year. The opening reception for 1942: Luggage From Home to Camp
will be Thursday, Aug. 7, from 5 to 7 p.m.
The exhibit
will feature the stories of what six Japanese Americans from
San Jose – Lola Tanaka Abe, Elsie Mayeda Honda, David
M. Sakai, Eiichi Edward Sakauye, Esau Shimizu, and Misao Yamano
Shiotsuka – took to camp.
Their stories
will be featured in a display of suitcases with art by Flo Oy
Wong. The suitcases were actually used at Poston, Heart Mountain,
Topaz, and other internment camps. The works will be housed
in a replica of a former internment barrack designed by Jimi
Yamaichi, JAMsj Museum director and curator.
1942: Luggage
From Home to Camp is supported by the California Civil Liberties
Public Education Program, Applied Materials, the California
Council for the Humanities, the San Jose Mercury News, Union
Bank, Yosh Uchida, Stephen Nakashima, Duncan Iwagaki, and others.
Members of the 1942 Steering Committee are Joe Yasutake, JAMsj
president, Ken Iwagaki, JAMsj founder, and Jimi Yamaichi, Museum
director and curator.
The Japanese
American Museum of San Jose (JAMsj), located in San Jose's Japantown,
was established in 1987 to collect, preserve and make widely
available, information about the culture and history of Japanese
Americans, particularly in Santa Clara Valley.
JAMsj is
a nonprofit, community based organization funded by membership
dues, contributions and grants.
JAMsj is
staffed entirely by volunteers. JAMsj is open Tuesday through
Friday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and is closed on Saturday
and Monday. Admission is free.
For more
information please telephone (408) 294-3138 or visit www.jamsj.org
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