Anime--Japanese cartoons and animated movies.

Asian--Refers to the ethnicity of a person.

Gyotaku--In Japan, fishermen would make Gyotaku to preserve records of their catches. The oldest Gyotaku was found in Japan, dating back to 1862. Lord Sakai of the Yamagata prefecture made a big catch one night, and to preserve the memory, prints were made of large red sea bream. While the Gyotaku was commissioned by Lord Sakai, the actual artist is unknown.

Hanami--Literally means "viewing flowers," but almost always refers to either viewing the cherry blossoms during the Cherry Blossom Festival or, sometimes, plum blossoms.

Kamishibai--Literally "Paper Drama." Kamishibai is a form of mobile storytelling which consisted of a man on a bicycle who went to various towns and told stories by showing sequential, art-covered panels while narrating and providing sound effects. The Kamishibai storytellers made their living by selling candies and such as they went from town to town. Kamishibai was popular from the 1920s till the 1950s. In fact, Kamishibai was so popular that the Japanese word for television was originally "Denki Kamishibai," meaning "Electric Kamishibai." However, as television became more popular the Kamishibai storytellers nearly vanished and many later turned to manga and anime creation. Kamishibai has experienced a revival recently as people gather again to perform stories, sometimes creating their own. Kamishibai had its origins in temples in the 9th or 10th Centuries, when it was used to convey the Buddhist doctrine to audiences using illustrated scrolls and narration--though the Kamishibai stories of the 1900s were usually folk tales instead of religious teachings.

Manga--Japanese comic books. Everyone from small children to businessmen read manga, and their subject matter is much more varied than that in American comics. Examples of manga genres are school stories, romance, historical drama, sci-fi, fantasy adventure and even action stories not unlike the familiar superhero story--although in manga, the superhero is as likely to be a young girl as a heavily muscled man. Depending on the author or target audience, the art styles in manga also vary greatly; from flowing hair to plastic-looking, spiky hair and from simplistically drawn, caricatured faces to very realistic faces or faces with huge, incredibly detailed eyes. The paneling styles also vary quite a bit--some authors prefer to draw very square, regular frames, while others use a more abstract, less defined technique.

For more on manga, see below

Matsuri--"Festival."

O-Inori--A prayer. In Shinto shrines, prayers are often written on strips of white paper, which are sometimes then thrown into rivers. It is thought that as the paper prayer disintegrates, the prayer is being sent to the Kami (God). Japanese prayers, especially at festivals, tend to be much more day-to-day than we usually think of prayers to be. Praying for things such as good grades or good weather is common.

Oriental--Refers to inanimate objects (furniture, chopsticks, fortune cookies).

Origami--The Japanese art of paper folding.

Sakura-- "Cherry blossom."

Sakura Matsuri--Literally "Cherry Blossom Festival."

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About Manga: A Short History: MANGA

The Manga Exhibit comprises works from the personal collection of the Cernak family.  With the help of their research associates and the use of the facilities at the Manga Museum in Kyoto, Japan, the Cernaks were able to create a group of significant Manga books dating from the 1930s to the present.

The word manga was coined in the early 19th century, although its origins date back to the Heian period c. 794-1192. Japan's comic book craze really took off in the 1960s. The publishers at that time came up with the marketing brainstorm of targeting the teenage set. Many Japanese cartoons today have, in a sense, grown up, and unlike American comics they include long, involved stories and relatively realistic artwork. This format has proved so versatile and resilient in Japan that manga are now read by children, grandparents, grocery clerks, OLs (office ladies), and corporate CEOs. If you want to reach a large Japanese audience, manga is the ideal medium and the message can span just about any topic. The most unlikely nonfiction subjects, for instance, are addressed in cartoon form. For example, there is a graphic novel on foreign aid published by the Japanese ministry. There are also manga on how the Tokyo stock exchange works, an employee handbook of a major automobile company and even comic book guides for the legal profession and realtors.

With an average newsstand price of a few dollars per copy, and with enormous circulation, Japanese comics have become so lucrative that most of their publishers have licensed them in the U.S. and many other countries. Americans can now subscribe to Mangajin and Shonen Jump, magazines of Japanese serial cartoons translated into English and published monthly. Skeptics used to question whether the Western world would ever acquire a taste and large audience for this Japanese style manga, but that doubt is rapidly fading. An immense English language market for manga is here and growing and Japanese graphic novel characters are gaining equal stature with such American staples as Superman and Spider-man.

The art style of manga itself is radically different from American comics. Instead of superheroes with huge muscles, some of the men and boys are almost completely androgynous (although some comics do feature large muscles and superhero-esque powers). In manga, the way the background is shaded and the shape of the word balloons have meaning and help set the mood of the page. The backgrounds are not restricted to different nuances of shading, either -- sometimes they are patterned (often comically), have blooming flowers to add a romantic feeling or are just 'normal backgrounds' -- the street the character is walking down or their classroom, for instance. Though many characters are drawn with huge, detailed, unrealistic eyes (girls, especially, are drawn this way) and somewhat out of proportion bodies (for instance, overly elongated legs), in some comics the art style is much more realistic, with smaller eyes and more normal proportions.

The stories in manga also cover a wide range of subjects, from school stories to romance to action-adventure to what could be considered, maybe, the Japanese equivalent of a superhero story -- although these often feature young girls with magical powers instead of male superheroes.

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Artist Profile: W. Eugene Burkhart, Jr.

W. Eugene Burkhart, Jr. is presenting several lectures, displays and workshops. On Sun.,  April 13, he will teach visitors to the GoggleWorks how to create an Oshibana bookmark. Oshibana is the Japanese art of flower pressing. On Sat., April 19 and Sun., April 20, he will lead workshops on creating Oshibana post cards.

In 1997, Burkhart was the keynote speaker for the 1st International Pressed Flower Art Exhibition. The exhibition was held at the White Ring where the figure skating competition took place for the Olympic Games in Nagano, Japan. During his visit he received private lessons from the Master Mr. Sugino. During the exhibition Mr. Sugino named Eugene as the Best Pressed Flower Artist in the world.

Also, Burkhart is creating an Ikebana floral arrangements display. This display will be on the first floor of the GoggleWorks. Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arranging. Eugene received private lessons in this art form, while in Japan. These arrangements will be for sale and will benefit the GoggleWorks Center for the Arts. Many of the containers will be made by GoggleWorks artists. Burkhart will also present several lectures at the Ikebana display.

Burkhart will be at the Reading Museum on Fri., April 18 for the Sushi and Saki event. Those attending will have the opportunity to create their own Ohsibana-- pressed floral art.

Contact: Gene Burkhart. 610-898-1927