Ichiro Yokai is an expert polisher based in Takaoka City, Toyama Prefecture, and an award winner in the Sharpening Division of the Contemporary Swords and Artworks Exhibition. In celebration of this achievement, the museum has invited him to give a demonstration of sharpening a Japanese sword. Overview: (1) Sun., Nov. 25, 2018: Shitaji-Togi I The initial steps of shitaji-togi (foundation polishing): a polishing stone known as a kongoto is used to remove any rust and to neaten the shape of the sword. (2) Sun., Dec. 9, 2018: Shitaji-Togi II The final steps of shitaji-togi: a polishing stone known as an uchigumori is used to remove tiny bits of scrap material caught in the rough surface of the stone used in the initial steps. The raised wooden platform used by the polisher for sword-sharpening work is called a togibune. The polisher fills the bucket with water, and sits on a low wooden bench, leaning forward while polishing the sword. The entire process of sharpening and polishing a Japanese sword to a beautiful shine, from shitaji-togi through final finish polishing, involves a number of different polishing stones.

During this event, participants draw one another’s faces, starting with nothing but a blank canvas and colored markers. Artist Hirofumi Adachi provides commentary. After the participants finish their spontaneous works of art, they are placed on display in the 1F Gallery of the museum.

The museum’s current exhibition, Mountains Clad in Autumn, Sleeping in Winter: The Four Seasons in Modern Japanese Paintings, features a number of works depicting animals and nature. At this fun talk event, Shigeyuki Yamamoto, the honorary president of the Toyama Municipal Family Park Zoo, discusses the works on display at this exhibition, and shares anecdotes from his personal life, with a focus on the beauty and wonder of animals and nature. Background Information on Shigeyuki Yamamoto Honorary president of the Toyama Municipal Family Park Zoo. After graduating from Takaoka High School, attended the Ritsumeikan University College of Social Sciences (dropped out). Yamamoto returned to Toyama, drawn by a combination of his interest in participating in the planning of Toyama Municipal Family Park Zoo, and the allure of the Northern Alps. He has been involved in the operation of Toyama Municipal Family Park Zoo and the Japanese Association of Zoos and Aquariums ever since. In April of 2017, he resigned from his role as president of Toyama Municipal Family Park Zoo, and was appointed as honorary president. Regular Publication: “Discussions on Various Topics: People and Animals, in Villages, Mountains, and Hot Springs,” published every Tuesday in Kyodo NEWSmart (starting Apr. 2, 2017)...