Carleton was pleased to welcome dynamic and captivating Kami-Kiri artist Mr. Hayashiya Imamaru to Richcraft Hall last night for an evening of freehand paper-cutting co-sponsored by the School of Linguistics & Language Studies and the Embassy of Japan.
After greetings from Embassy Second Secretary Mr. Yuki Ochiai, School Director Dr. David Wood, and Japanese instructor Elizabeth Sowka, Mr. Hayashiya took to the stage.
Moving delicately side to side as if in some sort of martial arts display, Mr. Hayashiya and his bouncing scissors cut out shapes of lions and dragons and couples under the cherry blossoms in response to requests from the audience. Once completed “…and finish!” he would place the silhouettes onto the overhead projector for everyone to see.
In addition to requests from the crowd, Mr. Hayashiya invited audience members up onto the stage to cut out their own shapes, like hearts or Mount Fuji with clouds floating overhead. He also snipped out people’s profiles and pictures of them hard at work, like the scholar Dr. Wood, seen below.
It was a charming evening that wrapped up with Mr. Hayashiya answering audience questions in Japanese and English about both the craft of freehand paper cutting and about how he had discovered his intricate and lifelong passion.
Photos by: Mami Sasaki, Japanese Instructor (Carleton University)