Art
ⓀⓁⓂUeno Shipyard: Reed Boat Project on Shinobazu Pond
Katsuhiko Hibino, Yousuke Kaifu, and Jin Ishikawa
Back to ProgramShinobazu Pond (Boating Pond); Bentendo Square; others
11.10(Fri) ~ 11.19(Sun) 11:00-17:00
Experience the wonder of shipbuilding in Ueno, brought to you by co-hosts artist Katsuhiko Hibino, anthropologist Yousuke Kaifu, and explorer Jin Ishikawa. Enjoy a display of the “Comprehensive Reproduction of Seafaring 30,000 Years Ago” Project that Yousuke Kaifu leads, and watch Jin Ishikawa building a reed boat designed by Katsuhiko Hibino. Scheduled to include workshops, talks and also a launching ceremony for the completed reed boat.
Katsuhiko Hibino, Yousuke Kaifu, Jin Ishikawa, and Fumihiko Sumitomo
Ueno Shipyard Talk: Creating Waterborne Stories
Date: Friday 10th November, 20:00-21:30
Venue: Tokyo Bunka Kaikan
Capacity: 50 people
Advanced reservation required
Conducted in Japanese * admission now closed
Ueno Shipyard Workshop
Dates: Saturday 11th, Sunday 12th, Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th November, 13:00-16:00
Venue: Bentendo Square
Advance registration not required – just show up and join in!
Reed Boat-Building Workshop with Jin Ishikawa
Dates: Friday 10th to Sunday 19th November, 11:00-17:00
Venue: Bentendo Square
Capacity: Around 6 people per day (priority given to those who can attend multiple days)
Advanced reservation required（→here）
Conducted in Japanese
Reed Boat Launching Ceremony
Date: Sunday 19th November, 11:00-12:00
Venue: Ueno Park Boating Pond
Advance registration not required – just show up and watch!
Katsuhiko Hibino
Born in Gifu Prefecture in 1958. Earned a Master’s degree from Tokyo University of the Arts in 1984. Won the Japan Graphic Exhibition Grand Prix in 1982. Won the Minister of Education Award for Fine Arts in 2015. Employs local elements in his art. Currently Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts at Tokyo University of the Arts and professor of Intermedia Art.
Yousuke Kaifu
Doctor of Science, born in 1969. Head of the Human Evolution Division at the Anthropology Department of the National Museum of Nature and Science. Leads the “Comprehensive Reproduction of Seafaring 30,000 Years Ago” project. His field of expertise is human evolution and diaspora studies in Asia across the past two million years. He was awarded the 9th Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Prize. His books included Nihonjin ha dokokara kita no ka (‘Where Did First Japanese Come From?’) and Jinrui ga tadottekita michi (‘Human Tracks’)
Jin Ishikawa
Explorer and maker and sailor of kusabune (reed boats). Born in 1967. Has studied the culture of indigenous peoples through various kinds of fieldwork. Participated in the official UN project Expedition Mata-Rangi to sail a reed boat 13,000km across the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. He was the first in Japan to sail on the open seas in a reed boat, travelling from Kochi Prefecture to the Izu Islands. In 2019, he plans to cross the Pacific Ocean in a reed boat from the West coast of America.