Date & Time：Tuesday, September 28
6:30 pm – 8:00 pm（EDT）
Venue：High Line Nine
507 W 27th Street, New York, NY Gallery 4 (View Map)

It’s around this time of year that the signs of autumn are deepening, and the cool days will continue. We hope you are doing well.

Although the pandemic is still ongoing, the city of New York is gradually opening events and theaters, and it seems that it is showing signs of reopening, albeit little by little.

At the Nippon Club and JCCI, over the past year, our events have shifted online mainly through webinars. The resumption of in-person events has not begun as all the rooms of the club hall still aren’t open. Therefore, we are planning to hold this at an outside venue.

On Tuesday, September 28th, we will invite members of the Nippon Club / JCCI to the “High Line Nine” gallery, an art exhibition space in the Hudson Yards district, for a private appreciation event where you can view the masterpieces of Mr. Makoto Fujimura. He is a well-known artist born in the United States who has Japanese roots and is highly acclaimed by the New York Times. He will interact with guests while sharing commentary on his works and Mariko Anraku, harpist of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, will perform. Please enjoy the wonderful time.

This event was made possible with generous support and cooperation from Mitsui Fudosan America and ITOCHU International Inc. Please join us for this special event. Due to the size of the gallery space and Covid-19 safety measures, the number of participants is very limited at 40, so please apply as soon as possible.

※Participants are required to show proof that 14 days or more have passed since the completion of vaccination on the day. Please present your vaccination certificate and ID for identity verification (the one that matches the name of the vaccination certificate) at the entrance when you come to the venue. (Wearing a mask is also recommended.)

Walking on Water – The Eye of the Storm
36×56”, 2021, Pulverized Azurite and Malachite on Polished Canvas (photo for Id only)
Copyright ©MakotoFujimura

Walking on Water – Glacier
7 x 12′, Azurite and Malachite on Polished Canvas, 2020
Copyright ©MakotoFujimura

About “Re-membrance”
High Line Nine is honored to present “Re-membrance”, a monumental solo exhibition by Makoto Fujimura. Fujimura is an American-born artist of Japanese roots whose refractive surfaces using the traditional Nihonga (Japanese style painting) materials, fused with space-age materials form a uniquely contemporary expression. Fujimura is a leading figure in the “slow art” movement, with his work being described by David Brooks of the New York Times as “a small rebellion against the quickening of time”.

In this “Re-membrance” exhibit, Fujimura presents three new major works of transcendent beauty created out of traumas of our times: the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001 (marking its 20 year anniversary this September), the 3/11/2011 Great Tohoku earthquake, tsunami and ongoing nuclear meltdown, and the Columbine High School massacre in 1999. Follow Makoto Fujimura at @iamfujimura

About High Line Nine
High Line Nine is a not-for-profit multi-disciplinary collection of nine skylit exhibition spaces located in the heart of Chelsea’s premiere gallery district providing an innovative home for art in all its forms and stages.

Working closely with the city’s top cultural institutions, High Line Nine presents a wide array of rotating exhibitions, provides publicly visible studio space to up-and-coming to renowned artists and produces rich educational programming and ongoing performances free and open to the public. High Line Nine is committed to celebrating and promoting the flourishing of all the voices of its colorful community.

Follow High Line Nine at @thehighlinenine and learn more at highlinenine.com

Makoto Fujimura

Makoto Fujimura is a leading contemporary artist whose process driven, refractive “slow art” has been described by David Brooks of New York Times as “a small rebellion against the quickening of time”. A Presidential appointee to the National Council on the Arts from 2003-2009, Fujimura served as an international advocate for the arts, speaking with decision makers and advising governmental policies on the arts. In 2014, the American Academy of Religion named Makoto Fujimura as its “2014 Religion and the Arts” award recipient. He has had numerous museum exhibits including Tikotin Museum in Israel and Gonzaga Jundt Museum. Robert Kushner, in the mid 90’s, wrote about Fujimura’s art in Art in America: “The idea of forging a new kind of art, about hope, healing, redemption, refuge, while maintaining visual sophistication and intellectual integrity is a growing movement, one which finds Makoto Fujimura’s work at the vanguard.” Fujimura has authored 4 books, and his new book Art+Faith: A Theology of Making (Yale Press) has been called by poet Christian Wiman “a tonic for our atomized time”.

Educated bi-culturally between the U.S. and Japan, Fujimura graduated from Bucknell University in 1983 and received an M.F.A. from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music with a Japanese Governmental Scholarship. His thesis painting was purchased by the university, and he was invited to study in the Japanese Painting Doctorate program.

Fujimura is married to Haejin Shim Fujimura, the Managing Partner of Shim & Associates, P.C. and the CEO of Embers International, Inc. They work together to connect creation of beauty with bringing justice into the world to end human trafficking in our generation.

Mariko Anraku
(Harpist, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra musician)

Mariko Anraku, active as a soloist, chamber and orchestral musician, is hailed as a “masterful artist of intelligence and wit” (New York Times) and “a manifestation of grace and elegance” (Jerusalem Post). Since 1995, she has held the position of Associate Principal Harpist of the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. Since her debut as soloist with the Toronto Symphony led by Sir Andrew Davis, Ms. Anraku has appeared with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra and New Japan Philharmonic among others. As a recitalist, she has performed in major concert halls including Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Jordan Hall in Boston, Opera Comique in Paris, Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome and the Casals, Kioi and Oji Halls in Tokyo. Her impressive list of awards includes First Prize at the First Nippon International Harp Competition, First Prize at the Concert Artists Guild Competition in New York, the Pro Musicis Foundation International Award, as well as Third Prize and the Pearl Chertok Prize for the best performance of the required Israeli composition at the 11th International Harp Contest in Israel. Ms. Anraku’s strong commitment to expanding the boundaries of contemporary harp repertoire has included invitations to premiere works by Toshio Hosokawa at the Donaueschingen Musiktage in Germany and the Wien Modern in Austria. She also gave the US premiere of Jean-Michel Damase’s Concerto “Ballade” with the Cincinnati Chamber Orchestra. She has recorded exclusively for EMI Classics, including 3 solo albums and “Beau Soir” a duo album with eminent flutist Emmanuel Pahud. Ms. Anraku is a faculty member at the Manhattan School of Music and PMF (Pacific Music Festival). She often serves as a jury member at competitions, most recently at the 20th International Harp Contest in Israel. She holds Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees from the Juilliard School and is a recipient of an Artist’s Diploma from The Glenn Gould School in Toronto. Her teachers have included Judy Loman, Nancy Allen, Lanalee deKant and her aunt Kumiko Inoue. She also studied Oriental Art History at Sophia University in Tokyo and enjoys playing community service concerts at hospitals, drug rehabilitation centers and other venues.

Christina Maxwell
(Executive Director, High Line Nine Gallery）

Christina Maxwell currently works for Related Companies as the Executive Director of High Line Nine Galleries and as a leader on Art & Culture Special Projects throughout the Related portfolio. Experienced in many facets of the arts sector, Maxwell is a published writer, singer, actress and public speaker. Most recently, Maxwell performed with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra musicians on EDGE for the 4th of July, and can currently be seen on television as the new face and voice of the HUMIRA National commercial campaign. Maxwell also serves as a Pediatric Oncology Arts Therapist for the New York City nonprofit, RipRap, providing one-on-one music and art sessions to children battling cancer. During her undergraduate studies at the University of Michigan, Maxwell was awarded the prestigious UMS 21st Century Artist internship and Actors Equity Association Award, and founded Music at Mott, an outreach program bringing hope to patients at Mott Children’s Hospital.