Japanese Calligraphy Kana Shodо̄ | Image Gallery
Japanese Calligraphy Kana Shodо̄: The ‘Women Hand’ Kana Characters and Empowerment of Women
Workshop
Image Gallery
Women’s empowerment and the fourth-wave feminism in the 21st century is gaining steam by social media and new communication methods. However, it is not widely known that there was an era in Japan a millennium ago, when women enjoyed their freedom by expressing and sharing their ideas freely with new communication tools they acquired.
Kaoru Akagawa is a master of traditional Japanese calligraphy, kana shodо̄, and an artist who merges traditional calligraphy with new techniques in a style she’s named ‘kana art’. In this event Kaoru Akagawa reveals the story of kana, or traditional Japanese characters called on’nade (女手) (literally translated ‘women hand’) utilised in kana shodо̄ and its influence on Japanese culture and aesthetic. A workshop on writing traditional kana shodо̄ work will follow this lecture.
Find out more about the Japan 2021 – Humanities Cultural Programme here.
With special thanks to the Bagri Foundation for their support for this event.
We are also grateful to the Pitt Rivers Museum for hosting this special event in the Museum.
Images: Suzy Prior
