Closing Reception at Armstrong Theater, Torrance

The public is invited on Friday, November 21, to a closing reception for the art currently on exhibit in the lobby of the James R. Armstrong Theater at the City of Torrance Cultural Center, which will be held from 4:00 pm  to 7:30 pm. The exhibit features work by artists in response to the history of 125,000 persons of Japanese ancestry being removed and incarcerated by the U.S. government during World War II. (See the previous event blog post about this art exhibit and the participation of PADA member Beth Shibata.)

The exhibit is part of fundraising efforts for the project called, “World War II Camp Wall,” which will be constructed in Columbia Park, Torrance. “The Wall,” will stand as a permanent monument featuring names derived from the Ireicho Project, a physical book that carries the names of all those removed and imprisoned for “looking like the enemy.” 

This reception coincides with the “Fall of Freedom,” a national campaign for artists to activate “a nationwide wave of creative resistance” in protest of threats to democracy and freedom of speech and free expression. Recognizing that art stands as a threat to counter fascism, propaganda, and disinformation, a number of art institutions, including libraries, museums, galleries, and theaters among others will be staging events nationwide November 21 & 22.

The artists exhibiting at the Armstrong Theater are Chiho Harazaki, Hatsuko Mary Higuchi, Eileen Oda Leaf, Lynn Mikami, Beth Shibata, Alvin Takamori, and Margaret Tan.

James R. Armstrong Theatre, 3330 Civic Center Dr., Torrance, CA 90503

Presented by the City of Torrance, and the WWII Camp Wall, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization

The George and Sakaye Aratani CARE Award and UCLA’s Asian American Studies Center co-sponsor the WWII Camp Wall project.

Guarding Ghosts by Beth Shibata