20-year anniversary of the annual Japan Festival
The annual Japan Festival at the University of Iceland will be held for the twentieth time at Veröld - House of Vigdís on Saturday, 27 January, from 1 to 5 pm. The festival is open to everyone and provides guests with the opportunity to get acquainted with Japanese culture. This year the festival includes various exhibitions, workshops, food corners, and informational booths. The highlight of this year's festival is an exhibition by the KROM Kendama group, showcasing their skills and tricks with the Japanese skill toy kendama.
Guests can also participate in a manga drawing workshop held in collaboration with Íslenska Myndasögusamfélagið and receive instruction in two popular board games, shogi and go, both of which have ancient origins. The Ambassador of Japan to Iceland, Ryotaro Suzuki, who is a keen shogi enthusiast, will oversee the instruction. Shogi is also known as "Japanese chess." The Icelandic Go Association invites guests and passersby to engage in go, a game with roots tracing back to East Asia and generally considered one of the oldest board games in the world.
Ambassador of Japan to Iceland, Ryotaro Suzuki, will teach guests the Japanese game shogi, also known as "Japanese chess."
Students and teachers in the BA programme in Japanese language and Culture at the University of Iceland welcome you to the Japan Festival 2024, which now is held for the 20th consecutive year. The festival is organized in collaboration with the Embassy of Japan in Iceland. Like in previous years, various partner associations also contribute to the festival programme.
Programme
House opens at 13:00
Opening remarks, 13:15-13:30, Main Hall
- Welcome by Dean of the School of Humanities
- Opening address by Ambassador Suzuki
Events:
- 13:40-14:00 Aikido demonstration (Main Hall)
- 14:00-15:40 Screening of J-Film “Every Day A Good Day” (room 107)
- 14:00-15:00 Shogi workshop by Ambassador Suzuki (room 104)
- 14:00-15:00 Manga drawing workshop by Íslenska Myndasögusamfélagið (room 108)
- 15:00-16:00 Go workshop by the Icelandic Go Association (room 103)
- 15:30-15:50 Karate demonstration (Main Hall)
- 16:00-17:00 Kendama show (Main Hall)
Ongoing 13:00-17:00
- Go board game workshop (room 103)
- Shogi board game workshop (room 104)
- Origami corner (2nd floor library)
- Manga drawing corner (2nd floor library)
- Japanese toys (2nd floor library)
- Information booths
Further information on the programme can be found on the festival Facebook page.
