Upcoming events
KOHO Japantown Film Festival
The three films in KOHO’s first film festival will focus on the Japanese American experience today:
Reparations by Jon Osaki, Executive Director of the Japanese Community Youth Council (JCYC), award-winning filmmaker and social justice activist.
Benkyodo, The Last Manju Shop in JTown, produced by eryn kimura, features the 115 year old family owned Japanese mochi confectioner which closed its doors in 2022.
Like the Cherry Blossoms, produced by Greg Villoria speaks to the feeling of belonging in an ever evolving cultural community.
Shop at our KOHO vendor marketplace featuring crafts and goods from Japanese, Japanese American, and AAPI creatives.
Open House (Tuesday 3/12)
KOHO has the honor of stewarding 1675 Post Street as a community gathering space for the SF Japantown Community in partnership between Japantown Task Force/Japantown Cultural District.
Come take a sneak peek at one of our two open houses:
Sunday, Mar 10 - 11am - 4pm
Tuesday, Mar 12 - 11am - 2pm
Open House (Sunday 3/10)
KOHO has the honor of stewarding 1675 Post Street as a community gathering space for the SF Japantown Community in partnership between Japantown Task Force/Japantown Cultural District.
Come take a sneak peek at one of our two open houses:
Sunday, Mar 10 - 11am - 4pm
Tuesday, Mar 12 - 11am - 2pm
Benign Neglect
BENIGN NEGLECT
Historic Japanese American Bonsai
Benign Neglect: Historical Japanese American Bonsai
2023
San Francisco, California
Benign Neglect features sixty bonsai photographs that were cultivated by Issei (first generation) and Kibei (born in the U.S., educated in Japan, and later returned to the U.S.) Japanese Americans. These bonsai were started after the Japanese Americans returned from WWII American concentration camps. Some of the plants were likely started from seeds.
Dennis Makishima, a bonsai and aesthetic pruning master, inherited the bonsai after the initial creators of the bonsai passed away. He took care of them for over thirty years, trying to honor the style envisioned by the original practitioners. By the time Dennis received these historic bonsai, many were in poor condition. He dealt with dead branches, forms that were far from ideal, and some that were just barely alive. Dennis resuscitated them and called them “old fashion style” in contrast to the “contemporary style,” which is more common today.
Aside from the living descendants of the Issei and Kibei generations, the 60-70 year old bonsai are likely all that remain alive from that period. In 2022, Dennis retired and donated his entire bonsai collection. The bonsai have likely dispersed all over the state and country, flourishing, just like so many other aspects of Japanese American culture.
Exhibition at Presidio, San Francisco
September 16th – October 22nd, 2023
Open on weekends from Noon to 5 pm
General Admission is $10, Veterans and children under 12 are freeVery limited parking; consider arriving via Muni 30
Conversation and Book Signing
w/ Dennis Makishima and Kenny Murakami
September 24, 1:30pm
Military Intelligence Service Historic Learning Center
640 Mason Street, San Francisco, CA 94129
Tickets (free): https://www.eventbrite.com/e/benign-neglect-tickets-698183203757
pass: takeshi
BonPOP, Japantown's Community Obon 2023
BonPOP, a reimagined Obon Odori Japantown event, features a vibrant blend of taiko drumming, live folk music, and Bon Odori dancing showcasing the rich heritage and talent of our local Japantown artists, and cultural practitioners.
Join KOHO and the Japantown community under the Pagoda on the iconic Peace Plaza.
Lavender Cinema Lounge: KŪKULU, Protecting our Sacred Lands and Empowering Our Next Generations
An evening of indigenous wisdom with Activist Pua Case, Mauna Kea Education and Awareness, and Run4Salmon will include a traveling art exhibition from Hawai’i Island, Kūkulu, The Pillars of Mauna ā Wākea, and two films, Beyond Recognition, and Standing Above the Clouds.