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Japanese calendars 2000 fair opens

KARACHI: A significant change and a certain openness in the attitude of the traditional Japanese nation was well reflected in some 100 Japanese calendars '2000, put on display here at the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi on Thursday.

The four-day exhibition organised by Japan Cultural Centre, Karachi was jontly inaugurated by the Consul General of Japan, Kazumi Dekiba and Vice-President, Arts Council, S H Hashmi.

The wide range of calendars produced by different industrial, social and cultural organisations of Japan could be broadly categorised into six different themes including art, photography, children, women, animal and sports.

Each organisation had, however, also preferred to adopt a specific theme for its respective calendar for the year 2000. The range was as wide as technology and nature, flora and fauna, ray and shades, seikado collection, human friends eternal symphony, women and the millennium, modern architecture and soforth.

The art segment catered the highest number of calendars as they not only had to depict the typical but breathtaking beauty of Ikebana (the flower arrangement), Hatika Dolls. Reprinting of selected master pieces by both Japansese, European and the US painters was perhaps the hallmark of the event. They were picked up from almost all the major art galleries around the world.

The Japanese entrepreneurs, keeping in view the growing interest of their youth in the work of contemporary painters, mainly from the third world, had also included series of work by artistes from Latin American and Asian countries.

Students from local schools of art, however, seemed to be much impressed by the work done by pupil of Rinpa School of Printing, Tokyo. Ancient architecture, a series of photographs by famous photographer Taikhi Ire was also a centre of attraction for the locals.

The photographs selected as the best in different photo contests held within Japan as well as abroad were also printed in the calendars produced by companies like Minolta, Canon, etc.

The growing interest of the Japanese in the natural beauty as well as inhabitants of South Asian region was also a major theme of a few calendars, on display.

These also reflected diverse interest and life pattern of the Japanese people enabling non-Japanese to have certain inkling of the former. APP