ART & CULTURE - LEVEL

This is a series of workshops designed by Azumi Uchitani to explore Japanese culture through the art of calligraphy and language. We will meet bi-weekly, slowly moving from season to season and uncovering new characters, rituals, concepts and beliefs deeply rooted in Japanese lifestyle. Each event we will centre around a new symbol: we will learn its meaning, discuss a poem about it, meditate and experience the power of the concept through calligraphy practice.

### Emotional bond: 友情 (yūjō)

In our next Japanese Calligraphy workshop, we’ll dive into the warm and enduring concept of 友情 (yūjō)—the deep emotional bond between friends, built on mutual support, trust, and shared understanding. Composed of the kanji 友 (tomo – friend) and 情 (jō – feeling/emotion), yūjō captures the heartfelt connection that transcends words and time.

In Japanese culture, friendship is often quiet and steady, grounded more in shared experiences and mutual care than in verbal expression. Yūjō represents a type of relationship where presence, reliability, and unspoken support speak volumes. It’s the friend who walks beside you in silence when words aren’t enough, the one who notices when you’re struggling without being told, and the connection that stays strong despite distance or time apart.

During this session, we’ll reflect on the beauty of friendship as we bring this concept to life through brush and ink. Writing 友情 invites us to slow down and think about the people who support and shape us—and how we can embody those qualities for others.

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A selfie with your best friend is nothing new. This talk explores friendship in early modern Europe (1400-1800) through portrait painting. We’ll see the personalities and relationships of Europeans in art and come to understand why they wanted to be painted together. The act of making an image that connected people was a powerful declaration of personal connection. The talk will look at different subcategories of the portrait to explore the many facets of friendship: from diplomatic agreements to brotherly and romantic love, souvenirs of a good-time-had-by-all and dedications of devotion. We’ll gain insight into how some historic people built their friendship networks, sometimes profoundly shaping history in the process. The purpose is to see how much or little we have changed in relationship to how we desire to build and sustain friendship.

Please, note:

This is a series of workshops designed by Azumi Uchitani to explore Japanese culture through the art of calligraphy and language. We will meet bi-weekly, slowly moving from season to season and uncovering new characters, rituals, concepts and beliefs deeply rooted in Japanese lifestyle. Each event we will centre around a new symbol: we will learn its meaning, discuss a poem about it, meditate and experience the power of the concept through calligraphy practice.

### Connection, fate - 縁 (en)

In this special Japanese Calligraphy workshop, we’ll explore the kanji 縁 (en)—a rich and deeply spiritual concept in Japanese culture, often translated as connection, fate, or bond. While friendship is usually thought of as something we choose, en suggests that some connections are destined—woven by invisible threads that bring people together across time and space.
縁 is a word full of nuance. It speaks to the mysterious ties that link us to others, to encounters that seem coincidental but feel meaningful, and to relationships that grow quietly, shaped by timing, circumstance, and shared experience. In Japanese thought, en is not just about meeting people—it’s about recognizing and honoring the connections that life offers us.
Through the mindful art of calligraphy, we’ll reflect on how 縁 shapes our friendships and lives. As we brush each stroke, we’ll tune into the quiet power of presence, connection, and the relationships that form the fabric of our shared journey.

Please, note:

In the early 17th century 2 admired painters teamed up to profit from each other’s strengths: Peter Paul Rubens painted the figures while Jan Brueghel the Elder the landscapes, flora and fauna. Join Mariska as she discusses this fruitful partnership and looks at some of their most mesmerising works of art.

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