Come join us for the Garden’s O-Shogatsu celebration!
O-Shogatsu is a time of celebration for the start of a new year and hopes of happiness and prosperity to come. At Portland Japanese Garden, we honor the most important holiday in Japan twice: once in appreciation for our members only on New Year’s Day and then again on January 12 with traditional decorations and activities.
The Garden will celebrate the beginning of 2025, the Year of the Snake, or hebi in Japanese, from 10:00am to 2:30pm with family-friendly activities and performances. Guests can also admire kadomatsu, or traditional arrangements of pine, bamboo, and plum branches, made by our gardeners.
Schedule:
Many programs will be taking place at various times and locations around the Garden. Please see the program below for an overview:
9:30 AM -10:00 AM (Exclusive to Members): Sumi-e, Japanese ink-wash painting (Yanai Classroom)
10:00 AM – 2:30 PM: Sumi-e, Japanese ink-wash painting in the Yanai Classroom. Beginning at 10am, the public is welcome to join our members to honor the year of the snake through ink-wash painting. (Yanai Classroom)
10:30 AM and 1:00 PM: Edo Kotobuki Jishi, the celebratory traditional lion dance of Tokyo, performed by Portland Shishimai Kai (Miller Living Room)
Throughout Japan, shishimai has been used for hundreds of years to bring good luck and chase away evil spirits. During this performance, the shishi (lion) will go into the audience and gently bite people’s heads to offer good luck for the rest of the year. It is common in Japan to see audiences waving bills of money to attract the shishi to come in their direction. Shishimai is typically performed during New Year’s celebrations, weddings, company functions, parties, and other festive occasions.
11:30 AM: Performance of Ryomen Odori (double-masked dance) (Miller Living Room)
Ryomen Odori is the traditional double-mask dance. It features two cheerful characters portrayed by one dancer. The female mask is called Okame, a famous Japanese character with a round face, small nose, and puffy cheeks. The male mask is called Warai, meaning laughter, and provides a comedic element to the performance.
About Portland Shishimai Kai
Portland Shishimai Kai is a group dedicated to performing and teaching the traditional celebratory lion dance of Tokyo, the Edo Kotobuki Jishi. The group also performs Edo Bayashi (traditional festival music of Tokyo) and the Ryomen Odori (double-masked dance). Under the close mentorship of Kyosuke Suzuki of Wakayama Shachu, we aim to preserve its history and culture by offering good luck to businesses, organizations, and anyone who celebrates in the presence of the shishi. Membership to the Portland Shishimai Kai is open to anyone interested in helping to introduce and deepen appreciation of this art form to a wider audience.
About Eien Hunter-Ishikawa
Eien Hunter-Ishikawa is a musician based in Portland, Oregon and is the founder of Portland Shishimai Kai. Eien started learning Edo Kotobuki Jishi in 2001 under the instruction of Kenny Endo, continuing on to study with Kyosuke Suzuki, a longtime member of Wakayama Shachu (Nationally Designated Important Intangible Cultural Asset of Folk Arts). Since 2011, Eien has coordinated Suzuki sensei’s United States performance and teaching tours, providing translation and organizational assistance. He has been granted approval to teach all four parts (mai, taiko, shinobue, atarigane) of Wakayama Ryu Edo Bayashi, Ryomen Odori, and Kotobuki Jishi.
Longtime partner of the Garden, Portland Coffee Roasters, will be preparing and serving complimentary coffee to visitors during this event outside the Lemelson Studio. (While supplies last.) Thank you, Portland Coffee Roasters!