This comprehensive survey, dedicated to the art of Allen Say features fifty-five original watercolor paintings and pen-and-ink drawings, including works from Says Caldecott award-winning book Grandfathers Journey, and paintings from his newest book, The Sign Painter, due for release this fall.
The exhibition which opened on July 28, runs through February 11, 2001 and is presented in the Manabi and Sumi Hirasaki Family Theater Gallery in the Museums Historic Building.
Represented in the unique medium of the childrens book, Say presents art that is highly accessible to diverse audiences. The amalgamation of simple prose, complex themes and exquisite illustrations, provides a glimpse into this artists own life and journey, reflected through artistic expression, cite co-curators Kaleigh Komatsu and Maria Kwong. Core to this exhibition, they say, is the belief that Says early life plays an integral part in the artist and author we see today.
Born in Yokohama to a Japanese American mother and a Korean father, Allen Say began his art training in both Japanese and Western styles before immigrating to the United States as a teenager. Following a successful career in commercial photography, Say returned to his first love: drawing and painting. From memories of his home in Japan, family photographs and experiences of his life in America, Say transforms and interprets these images into real-life experiences for both young and older audiences.
In addition to the fifty-five drawings and paintings, Allen Says Journey features preparatory drawings and sketches, as well as photographs and artifacts, which explore creative sources and the artistic process essential to this artist.
Presented in the exhibition will be works from: Allison, Bicycle Man, Boy of the Three Year Nap, Dr. Smiths Safari, El Chino, Emmas Rug, Feast of Lanterns, Grandfathers Journey, How My Parents Learned to Eat, Lost Lake, Lucky Yak River Dream, The Sign Painter, Stranger in the Mirror, Tea with Milk, Tree of Cranes and Under the Cherry Tree.
Say is best known for his childrens books, combining elegant watercolors and powerful stories, which throughout his career have garnered him critical acclaim and numerous awards.
Say has been recognized by the Boston Globe, American Library Association and received two Newbery Caldecott Medals, one for The Boy of the Three-Year Nap and in 1993 for Grandfathers Journey. Beginning in 1988 with the book A River Dream, Say began writing and illustrating his own works exclusively.
In a review of Says 1991 book Tree of Cranes, the New York Times wrote, "The simplicity and the complexity are contained in each other, so that the satisfaction yielded at the end of the first reading and gazing (for the pictures here enrapture) reverberates with the promise of what is sensed though not yet understood." In another review of Grandfathers Journey, one critic observed, "As in the best childrenաs books, the plain understated words have the intensity of poetry. The watercolor paintings frame so much story and emotion that they break your heart."
For additional information on the exhibition, visitors to the Museum can refer to the Hirasaki National Resource Center in the Pavilion.
The Museum is located at 369 East First Street in the historic Little Tokyo section of Los Angeles. For more information about this exhibition, call (213) 625-0414. Museum hours are Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday & Saturday: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Thursday: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Scheduled Public Programs in Conjunction with
Allen Say Journey: The Art and Words of a Children Book Author
July 28, 2000 through February 11, 2001

2nd Saturday Program: A Day of Comics
Saturday, September 9, 2000

Explore the world of comics, cartoons, animation and book illustration through workshops and discussions. In conjunction with the Museum exhibition on children book author and illustrator Allen Say, who began cartooning at an early age, activities include an animation movie workshop; flipbook making; a book illustration workshop; comic strip workshop and storytelling. There will also be discussions on the topic of how comic strips can help in children literacy.

Anatomy of a Children Book
Sunday, October 8, 2000

What makes a good children book? How do the illustrator and author work together to create a better story? How do you get your children interested in reading these books? An afternoon of interesting discussion for adults and fun activities for kids.

Watercolor Workshop
November 4 December 9, 2000
5 Saturday sessions

Discover the excitement of watercolor! Students in the workshop will have the opportunity to learn various watercolor painting techniques and will also increase their visual awareness in the perception of objects.

All programs take place at the Japanese American National Museum
369 East First Street in the Little Tokyo section of Los Angeles
For more information call: 213-625-0414