Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown

Some members of the Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown team visited the new Heinlenville Park today. We admired Kiki Wu's "Safe and Sound" AR installation, which was recently migrated from its temporary spot in front of the SJ Betsuin to its intended location on the former footprint of Heinlenville. Safe and sound indeed! Uglykiki

Self portrait of the Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown team at the Cool Cafe (Cantor Art Center, Stanford University).

Sign up for walking tours of Hidden Histories augmented reality art! There are four tours scheduled in January, so sign up now!

https://www.jamsj.org/upcoming-events/2023/1/13/113-hidden-histories-augmented-reality-walking-tour

Hidden Histories Augmented Reality Walking Tours — Japanese American Museum of San Jose Lots of people come to the neighborhood for food, shopping, or cultural events. But did you know that San Jose Japantown used to be called “Chinatown” and that its past includes a bustling Filipino business and social community on 6th Street? Come check out the Hidden Histories of San Jose Japan...

Reverend Hiroshi Abiko, passed away on October 6, 2022.
Two years ago, Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown did a video about his time in Hiroshima as a boy after World War II.
In memory of Reverend Abiko, here is the video ...
https://youtu.be/U9BepJN1QXI

Memories of Hiroshima Reverend Hiroshi Abiko served at the San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin from 1971 to 1983. He and Reverend Mike Morizono were two important figures in San Jose...

Haiku is a short poetic art form that originated in Japan and has a deep connection to nature and the seasons. Did you know that there are many haiku societies in the United States with thousands of members? And, did you know that one of the societies began in San Jose Japantown?

Kiyoko and Kiyoshi Tokutomi began the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society, exploring the writing of haiku in English. This is a look at their lives and the forming of the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society.

Click the thumbnail at the end of this post to view the Hidden Histories YouTube video about the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society.

This video only scratches the surface of the history and the people of the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society and haiku. To learn more, visit the Yuki Teikei website https://yths.org or their page https://www.facebook.com/yukiteikei.

Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown is an augmented reality art project of the Japanese American Museum of San Jose funded by the Immersive Technology in the Arts grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in collaboration with Microsoft with support from the California History Center Foundation, De Anza College, the Chinese Historical & Cultural Project, and the Filipino American National Historical Society - Santa Clara Valley. Project directors: Susan Hayase and Tom Izu. AR artistic advisor: Tamiko Thiel. Project managers: Sue Kanegawa Yuen, Maylea Saito and Sabrina Kwong. Supervising community artist: Corinne Takara Okada. Archivist and video creator: Curt Fukuda.

Yuki Teikei Haiku Society: from Japantown to the World Haiku is a short poetic art form that originated in Japan and has a deep connection to nature and the seasons. Did you know that there are many haiku societi...

Did you miss out on getting a copy of "San Jose Japantown - A Journey" the first time around? A reprint of the book will be available in September 2022. As the Japanese American Museum of San Jose is only printing 1,000 copies, pre-ordering is recommended.

The book is written by Hidden Histories documentarian Curt Fukuda and historian Ralph M. Pearce. It chronicles the Japanese, Chinese, Filipino and other ethnicities that contributed to the Japantown community. Essentially a reprint, the book also includes corrections to errors found in the first printing and a few additional photos and information.

The book project is produced by Jim Nagareda, former executive director of the Japanese American Museum of San Jose with Janice Oda (designer) and June Hayase (editor).

To pre-order a copy of the book, visit https://secure.givelively.org/event/japanese-american-museum-of-san-jose/san-jose-japantown-a-journey-book-pre-sale

View a Hidden Histories video promo of the book ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyjGgtDDWDo

Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown is an augmented reality art project of the Japanese American Museum of San Jose funded by the Immersive Technology in the Arts grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in collaboration with Microsoft with support from the California History Center Foundation, De Anza College, the Chinese Historical & Cultural Project, and the Filipino American National Historical Society - Santa Clara Valley. Project directors: Susan Hayase and Tom Izu. AR artistic advisor: Tamiko Thiel. Project manager: Sue Kanegawa Yuen. Supervising community artist: Corinne Takara Okada. Archivist and video creator: Curt Fukuda.

As we approach the 80th anniversary of the signing of Executive Order 9066 that set in motion the racist forced removal and mass incarceration of Japanese immigrants and Japanese Americans, it's time to stop and reflect.

Here is a community program that we produced last year on the "Hidden History of San Jose Day of Remembrance." It's important to remember that, even though DOR commemorations have become institutionalized in our local and dispersed JA communities, the origins of the Day of Remembrance are steeped in the grassroots movement to win redress/reparations for the WWII concentration camp experience.

This grassroots movement called on us to struggle to unite with the very fractured sectors of our community. It required us to meet people and their families and to find out what they were thinking, what their story was. It challenged us to change ourselves and each other. It also rewarded us with the development of friendships and relationships that have strengthened the community as a whole.

https://youtu.be/6Ojel6LGxFw?list=TLGGGBSETpMRp9sxNTAyMjAyMg

Day of Remembrance Show Each year in San Jose Japantown, “Day of Remembrance” commemorates the signing of E.O. 9066 and the WWII forced removal of Japanese Americans. It is a commun...

Hidden Histories New January and February Walking Tours! - https://mailchi.mp/b4b3543bb1b3/new-guided-walking-tours-5621047

Did you know that San Jose Japantown once had its own hospital? The historic Issei Memorial Building was originally built as the Kuwabara Hospital in 1910 by the Nishiura Brothers, who were farmers in Mountain View.

Discover the hidden stories of San Jose Japantown through the magic of Augmented Reality art provided by the Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown project. You can visit on your own, or for a limited time, you can sign up for a guided tour with Hidden Histories team members.

Tours are available through December 11, 2021. Visit https://hiddenhistoriesjtown.org/ to sign up for a tour and download the mobile app to view the art. Space is limited so put in your reservation as soon as possible.

Japantown Hidden Histories Tours Available Now! Did you know that San Jose Japantown once had its own hospital? The historic Issei Memorial Building was originally built as the Kuwabara Hospital in 1910 by...

We are pleased to announce that we have received a grant from the City of San José's ABIERTO program to do walking tours of our exhibit during the months of November and December. Capacity is limited, so be sure to sign up!

Hidden Histories Walking Tours Please click the link to complete this form.

Hidden Histories is now featured in the Rotating Exhibit Area at the Japanese American Museum of San Jose! Our exhibition features historic videos of the Chinese, Japanese, and Filipino communities that established Japantown. In addition, you’ll see artifacts from Heinlenville (San Jose Chinatown), videos of the Hidden Histories artists, and information about the augmented reality art installations.

Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown Exhibit Experience the immersive augmented reality art of the Hidden Histories project from the sidewalks of San Jose Japantown. In addition, you can visit the accom...

Join us today at Viva CalleSJ! We'll be at the Japanese American Museum of San Jose booth. Come pick up a map and explore J-Town! https://www.vivacallesj.org/

Join us today at Viva CalleSJ! We'll be at the Japanese American Museum of San Jose booth to talk about Hidden Histories and demo our AR! Come pick up a map and explore J-Town! https://www.vivacallesj.org/

Viva Calle San Jose

Tamiko Nimura is an award-winning Asian American writer and local historian of the Japanese American community in Tacoma, WA. We were very lucky to have caught her eye in this article that she wrote for Discover Nikkei.

The Redress Origins of the Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown: A Conversation with Susan Hayase and Tom Izu A bunch of little kids at the test/press event, shown in a screenshot of part of one of the artworks by Takeshi Moro (it’s part of an animation of Chinese American kids in Heinlenville Chinatown riding go-carts.) Carp flags (koinobori) are floating in front of me, their mouths open. Tanza...

Thank you to KALW's Katherine Simpson for this wonderful piece about our project! Follow the link below to hear to her interviews with Hidden Histories advisor Robert Ragsac and artist Takeshi Moro, as well as a bit of J-town soundscape. https://www.kalw.org/arts-culture/2021-08-17/japantown-art-project

An Art Project Explores The 'Hidden Histories' of San Jose’s Japantown A digital art project strives to uncover the “Hidden Histories” of San Jose’s Japantown neighborhood. Despite the name, the area was what former resident Robert Ragsac calls a “rainbow neighborhood,” home to flourishing Filipino, Chinese, and Japanese immigrant communities.

“We’re going on a picnic,” the Filipino father would announce to his family. Back in the 1930s through 1960s, this often meant “We’re going to so-and-so’s ranch and I’m going to watch the chicken fights.” Excluded from mainstream activities and events, the first generation Filipinos (the Manong Generation) had to create their own entertainment. For many of these hard-working farm laborers, this included chicken fights.

Isidoro “Izzy” Arevalo, Leo Escalante Jr., Sally Regala, Ben Villarruz, Helen Ragsac Sanchez, and Albert “Corky” Bueno recall the Manong Generation and their enjoyment of chicken fights.

Click the link below to view the video on the Hidden Histories YouTube channel.

Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown is an augmented reality art project of the Japanese American Museum of San Jose funded by the Immersive Technology in the Arts grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in collaboration with Microsoft with support from the California History Center Foundation, De Anza College, the Chinese Historical & Cultural Project, and the Filipino American National Historical Society - Santa Clara Valley. Project directors: Susan Hayase and Tom Izu. AR artistic advisor: Tamiko Thiel. Project manager: Sue Kanegawa Yuen. Supervising community artist: Corinne Takara Okada. Documentarian and video creator: Curt Fukuda.

For information about Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown: www.hiddenhistoriesjtown.org/

The Manong Generation and Chicken Fights “We’re going on a picnic,” the Filipino father would announce to his family. Back in the 1930s through 1960s, this often meant “We’re going to so-and-so’s ra...

This fortune cookie was a memento from the inaugural showcase of the augmented reality (AR) artpieces created for the Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown project. That quote is a comment by historian Connie Young Yu, a descendant of Heinlenville Chinatown, the author of "Chinatown, San Jose," and one of the incredible advisors to our project which reveals the lives of the people of Chinatown, Japantown, and Pinoytown -- a proto-Asian American community nestled together just north of downtown San Jose.

Photo by V'k' Yamashta.

The augmented reality Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown art is live. You can view it anytime using your mobile device and the AR-vos application (link below for downloading the app).

Pictured are the Hidden Histories artists at the June 19 showcase event. Left to right (back row) Na Omi Judy Shintani, Anna Wong, Lucien Kubo, Takeshi Moro, and Maylea Saito. Left to right (front): Kelly Nishimura and Tamaki Fujino. No pictured: Kiki Wu and Rochelle Mae Gatus.

Thank you to everyone for making the event a great success!

To download and install the free AR-vos app: ar-vos.com

Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown is an augmented reality art project of the Japanese American Museum of San Jose funded by the Immersive Technology in the Arts grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in collaboration with Microsoft with support from the California History Center Foundation, De Anza College, the Chinese Historical & Cultural Project, and the Filipino American National Historical Society - Santa Clara Valley. Project directors: Susan Hayase and Tom Izu. AR artistic advisor: Tamiko Thiel. Project manager: Sue Kanagawa Yuen. Supervising community artist: Corinne Takara. Documentarian and video creator: Curt Fukuda.

For more information: www.hiddenhistoriesjtown.org/

We're in Sal Pizarro's column in the The Mercury News!

Take an augmented reality tour of San Jose’s Japantown “Hidden Histories” uses AR technology to explore the diverse cultural past of Japantown.

A very timely story from Adhiti Bandlamudi on KQED's Bay Curious. Heinlenville stories will return in augmented reality this weekend! Join us for our opening celebration. Saturday, June 19th, 4-6pm at Art Object Gallery in San Jose Japantown.

San Jose Had 5 Chinatowns. Why Did They Vanish? | KQED San Jose has been home to five Chinatowns throughout its history, so why doesn't it have a Chinatown today? The answer lies in the city's dark and racist past.

Are you READY for our Inaugural Showcase? (Or more specifically, is your mobile device ready?) To optimize your enjoyment of our Augmented Reality (AR) artwork we recommend the following:

- Download the AR-vos app to your mobile phone. It's easier to do over your home WiFi, and will save you some time when you arrive. The app can be found both in the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store.
- Bring a portable battery charger and your charging cable, as well as earphones/earbuds (some pieces have audio tracks).
- Prepare for the heat! Remember to bring your sunscreen, hat, and water bottle.
- Wear good walking shoes. The AR artwork is scattered all across Japantown. There is a lot to see and you will probably not see everything in one day. Please plan for a return visit!

Please remember that Hidden Histories is a community art experiment. More-recent smartphones (three years old or newer) should have no problem viewing the exhibit. Some older phones will also work. For best results, we are recommending that you come with family and friends and be sure that someone in your party has a newer phone. On the day of the exhibit, we will also have roaming docents available with devices that can see the AR art. See you there!

It's now easier to sign up for Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown's updates.

“We’re living in the world, but there are a lot of things we don’t know. And, now we have a virtual world, waiting for us to explore. That is part of my inspiration—the virtual world, the physical world, and the spiritual world.” — Kiki Wu

Discovering that San Jose Japantown developed out of Heinlenville (Chinatown), artist Kiki Wu chose the Chinese community’s Da Jiu festival (honoring past ancestors) for her augmented reality art. Her work taps into the vitality and cultural richness of the celebration that brought together the Chinese over a hundred years ago in San Jose. https://youtu.be/G5FjFsh_aRg

Meet the Hidden Histories Artists: Kiki Wu “We’re living in the world, but there are a lot of things we don’t know. And, now we have a virtual world, waiting for us to explore. That is part of my insp...

“You know, my grandfather once got a hit off Victor Starffin of the Tokyo Giants,” remarked Jeff Hayamizu to author/historian Ralph M. Pearce. Ralph was surprised to learn that Hayamizu’s grandfather, Joe Jio, wasn’t playing in Japan at the time. He was playing against the Tokyo Giants at the Asahi Baseball Field in San Jose’s Japantown.

This Hidden Histories video covers the historic 1935 baseball game where the San Jose Asahi played against the formidable Tokyo Giants (now the Yomiuri Giants). Experience the excitement of a game that took place over eighty-six years ago.

Click the image below to view the video on the Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown YouTube channel.

Opening in mid-2021, Hidden Histories of San Jose Japantown is an augmented reality art project of the Japanese American Museum of San Jose funded by the Immersive Technology in the Arts grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in collaboration with Microsoft with support from the California History Center Foundation, De Anza College, the Chinese Historical & Cultural Project, and the Filipino American National Historical Society - Santa Clara Valley. Project directors: Susan Hayase and Tom Izu. AR artistic advisor: Tamiko Thiel. Project manager: Sue Kanegawa Yuen. Supervising community artist: Corinne Takara Okada. Archivist and video creator: Curt Fukuda.

For more information: www.hiddenhistoriesjtown.org/

San Jose Asahi vs Tokyo Giants “You know, my grandfather once got a hit off Victor Starffin of the Tokyo Giants,” remarked Jeff Hayamizu to author/historian Ralph M. Pearce. Ralph was surp...