Shojo Manga! Girl Power! September 6, 2006

The Japan Foundation, Toronto presents:

Shojo Manga! Girl Power!
GIRLS' COMICS FROM JAPAN

September 6 - October 4, 2006

The Japan Foundation, Toronto
131 Bloor Street West (Bay subway station)
2nd Floor of the Colonnade building

Opening Reception and Lecture by Curator Dr. Masami Toku: September 6, 6:30 - 8:30 PM
RSVP Required: 416-966-1600, ext. 600 or rsvp@jftor.org

Gallery Hours: Monday - Friday, 11:30 AM - 4:30 PM & Thursday until 7:00 PM
Special Saturday Openings: September 9, and 16 Noon - 5:00 PM
Closed: Sundays and all other Saturdays

Free Admission

TORONTO (August 15, 2006):

The Japan Foundation, Toronto presents the exhibition Shojo Manga! Girl Power! Girls' Comics From Japan curated by Dr. Masami Toku of California State University. The exhibition will be on display from September 6 - October 4, 2006 at the Japan Foundation, Toronto. In conjunction with the exhibition, curator Dr. Toku will present a lecture entitled "The Power of Shojo Manga: Its Value and Contribution to Visual Culture and Society" on September 6, 2006.

Featuring more than 200 works by 23 artists, this exhibit is the first of its kind to explore the unique styles of female manga artists and examines their contributions to the development of Shojo Manga. The exhibit is divided into three main periods: 1) The dawn of Shojo Manga, 2) The diversity of Shojo Manga, and 3) The new generation and new directions in Shojo Manga. In a sense, Shojo Manga serves as a commentary and a narrative of the lives of Japanese girls and women as they negotiate their changing social roles, aesthetics, and societal expectations. Interpersonal relationships, love, sex, and women's self-representation are amongst some of the many themes found in Shojo Manga.

Overall, this touring exhibition is a comprehensive introduction to newcomers and an in depth exploration of the evolution of themes and expressions in Shojo Manga. It provides convincing explanations for manga's enviable role in Japanese popular culture and its increasing international appeal.

Shojo Manga! Girl Power! is part of an international touring exhibit that has traveled to California State University, Chico, University of New Mexico, Columbia College Chicago and The Pratt Institute, Brooklyn.

Dr. Masami Toku is an Associate Professor of art education at California State University, Chico. Her research interest is the cross-cultural study of children's artistic and aesthetic developments in their pictorial world and how visual popular culture influences children's visual literacy. In her lecture, Dr. Toku will provide an overview of the works exhibited in the current exhibit and examine more closely the individual creators of Shojo Manga, providing a deeper look into the development and impact of this form of visual pop culture. For more on Dr. Toku see www.csuchico.edu/~mtoku/vc

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Official Website: http://www.japanfoundationcanada.org/