IN-PERSON LECTURE AND CONVERSATION WITH DR. KENDALL BROWN

Cranbrook Art Museum de Salle Auditorium

39221 Woodward Avenue Bloomfield Hills, MI 48304

Before the lecture, from 3:00 to 4:30pm, Center Director Gregory Wittkopp and Cranbrook Japanese Garden Designer Sadafumi Uchiyama (now based in Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan) will be welcoming visitors in the Cranbrook Japanese Garden and discussing its ongoing rejuvenation.

Lecture Admission:
$20 for Adults and Seniors
$15 for Cranbrook House & Gardens Auxiliary Members
$10 for Full-time Students and Cranbrook Alumni

Seating is Limited; Advance Registration Required

Presented by Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research

• REGISTER HERE

ABOUT THE LECTURE

The Cranbrook Japanese Garden is among the oldest Japanese-style gardens in North America. Created in 1915 as part of the country estate of Cranbrook’s founders, newspaper publishers George and Ellen Booth, the one-acre, pond-style strolling garden is undergoing a transformative rejuvenation, which includes the newly completed New Entrance Garden designed by Sadafumi Uchiyama.

 This illustrated lecture, by Dr. Kendall Brown from California State University Long Beach, explores the context for the Booths’ Japanese garden at Cranbrook. It first traces the illustrious history of Japanese gardens on estates across the United States—from Isabella Stewart Gardner’s pioneering landscape at Green Hill, her 40-acre estate in Brookline near Boston, through those at long vanished country homes—to show the uses and abuses of Japanese garden culture. The lecture then charts the transformation of estate gardens into heritage institutions, focusing on the gardens for the Rockefellers at Kykuit (Sleepy Hollow, New York), Isabel Longdon Stine at Hakone (Saratoga, California), and Henry Huntington (San Marino, California). It concludes by suggesting some ways that Japanese gardens, including the Cranbrook Japanese Garden, can maintain their relevance and help them flourish.

Dr. Kendall Brown first lectured at Cranbrook in April 2016. His presentation and conversations led to the Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research’s commitment to the rejuvenation of the Cranbrook Japanese Garden and the selection of Sadafumi Uchiyama as the designer of the garden’s Master Plan (2018) and the New Entrance Garden (2025).

Open to the public with DIA Museum admission

Annual Dinner Sponsorship Opportunities

Link for Sponsorships

Join us for JAPAN DAY and to celebrate the Japanese tradition of Children’s Day.

The Museum and Village are where visitors from around the world come to experience the incredible story of American innovation.

See you at 9:30 for ticket distribution

9:30 - Museum Opens

10:00 - Welcome in the Anderson Theater

10:30 - 1 hour introductory tours available in Japanese and English

Japanese language materials and interpreters await you!

10:30 - 5:00  - Spend the day visiting the Museum & the Village including several options for lunch

Ticket prices include admission to both The Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, and parking. There is no charge for children under 5.

Paid tickets can be deducted from an annual membership begun on the same day.

For overnight guests a list of local hotels is provided below.

CLICK ON THE IMAGE OR THE LINK BELOW TO BUY YOUR TICKETS TO BE PICKED UP ONSITE ON JAPAN DAY

Discover how Japan's spirit of technological progress is woven into this history. Eiji Toyoda gained insights into mass production techniques at the Ford Motor Company Rouge Plant and Thomas Edison's early light bulbs used bamboo filaments from Kyoto Prefecture, and see HONDA Job 1, the 1st car produced outside of Japan, and a 1966 Toyota Corona Sedan. Take a look at Isamu Noguchi's important role in modern design.
Explore iconic artifacts like the Wright brothers’ airplane. Step into Greenfield Village, where historic homes, working farms, and skilled artisans bring the past to life in an interactive, open-air setting. Visit Thomas Edison’s actual laboratory transported from Menlo Park, New Jersey, take a ride on a train powered by a huge steam locomotive to an antique carousel and taste the famous Greenfield Village frozen custard.   

Experience a unique presentation on American Craftsmanship for the US 250th Anniversary Year - and investigate how craftsmanship persists in Modern Industry.

HinaMatsuri 2026 Girls’ Day Celebration

Come by the Detroit Institute of Arts on Sunday, March 1st, 10:00AM-5 PM for a celebration of Japanese Girl's Day, HinaMatsuri, with demonstrations of the tea ceremony, calligraphy, stories, games and musical performances. Presented by the Japan Business Society of Detroit, Japan Cultural Development, and Japan America Society.

Free for Museum visitors

Join Japan America Society Members’ reserved theatre section to welcome world-acclaimed pianist Maki Namekawa for a performance of contemporary masterpieces by Philip Glass, Keith Jarrett & Chick Corea.

Stay for the Afterglow Artist’s Reception with sake and refreshments - in the new Valade Jazz Center at Wayne State University, in the historic Hillberry Theatre Building.

Convenient Parking Structure Directions Link :

Forest Avenue Parking Garage at 91 West Forest Ave., Detroit

Free Registration:

Space is limited to the first 100.

Cocktails and Tours of the Mansion - Wishlist Silent Auction and Gourmet Dinner

6:30 pm Cocktails, Tours of the Mansion, and Silent Auction

7:45 Gourmet Dinner with Holiday Chorus with White Pine Glee Club

9:00 Cordials and Liqueurs Bar

$300 per person  

$2300 corporate table of 8

Non-Member Dining Room $325 per person

All inclusive.

Register online or to MAIL-IN an RSVP please use the form below.

Bid on hockey and basketball event club tickets, exclusive experience and gourmet packages, and specialty gift items.

Business and Holiday Attire

Meadow Brook Hall 350 Estate Drive Rochester MI 48309

248 364 6220

This form is for mail-in payments. If you are buying tickets online please use the 'ADD TO CART' button on this page instead, the form below is not required for online reservations, it is only for mail-in reservations.

Introducing the Michigan-Japan HR Conference, brought to you by the Japan America Society of Michigan and Southwestern Ontario. This will be a half-day conference for HR executives/management at Japanese companies in Michigan. 

Learn from experts about the fast-changing policies and how to improve your current HR strategies, policies, and processes. Topics will cover immigration, expatriate programs, local hiring options (inc. the Feb 2026 Japanese Job Fair), talent management, job description legalities, and pertinent advice from legal and practical business perspectives.

Michigan-Japan HR Conference

November 21, 2025 (Fri) 12:30 PM - 5:00 PM

Novi Civic Center (45175 W 10 Mile Rd, Novi, MI 48375)

Agenda

12:00-12:30 PM: Registration and networking

12:30-2:00 PM: Keynote presentation

- Introduction by Consul General Hajime "Jimmy" Kishimori 

- Dickinson Wright: Top Employment Issues HR Cannot Ignore: Immigration, Trade, Job Descriptions, and Other Legal Must-Knows

2:15-3:15 PM: Talent planning and recruiting

- Plante Moran: Strategic Talent Planning with Clarity: Aligning People, Purpose, and Networks

- QUICK USA: US Job Market Updates and Standing Out in the Recruiting Process

3:30-5:00 PM. Focusing on local talent

- HIROTEC: A Local Untapped Resource to Support US-Japan Business Efforts

- Japan America Society: The US-Japan Government’s Efforts to Connect Young Professionals and Industry

- 2026 Japanese Job Fair introduction

Exact times and presentation titles are subject to change. Please note that lunch will not be provided at this time.

Free with registration for HR executives and HR managers working at Japanese companies

Note: The registration form will close upon reaching the maximum capacity for this in-person event (approx. 100 attendees). This conference will be held in the English language.

This event is sponsored by the City of Novi, JETRO Chicago, Consulate General of Japan in Detroit, Japan Business Society of Detroit, Paris Baguette, JAS Young Professionals, and Ikigai Connections.

If you are unable to complete the Google Form below, please email kasia (at) ikigaiconnections.com.

Enjoy an afternoon of Japanese festival music, tea ceremony and flower arrangement, try your hand at Japanese calligraphy, origami, and kimono dressing. Watch performances of Taiko Drumming, Traditional Dance, and Martial Arts.

Fun for the whole family including children’s games and Japanese food vendors.

Admission and parking are free.

Japanese Taiko Drumming and Bon Dance

Free Admission

#MIBON2025 is a Community Project presented by the Great Lakes Taiko Center and hosted by Cranbrook Center for Collections and Research. Tour the Cranbrook Japanese Garden, enjoy cultural activities provided by JACL Detroit (Japanese American Citizens League) botanical displays by Ikebana International Detroit (Detroit Chapter 85) and the Ann Arbor Bonsai Society.

Please use the link below to register online:

Chinese EV North America Entry Strategy

Chinese Auto Companies Entering the US & Canadian Market via Mexico.

Flavio Volpe, president of Canada's Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association, will address the concerning trend of Chinese auto companies utilizing Mexico as a gateway to penetrate the lucrative United States and Canadian automotive markets.

*PRESENTATION IS STILL OPEN FOR REGISTRATION

*TOUR IS SOLD OUT

Register Here

Please use the link below to register online:

Demonstration and Exhibition of flower arrangements.

Experience the centuries-old comic Japanese folk art of rakugo in a rare performance by master storyteller San’yūtei Ponta, who studied under master rakugoka San’yūtei Kōraku. Rakugo is performed by a single storyteller, who uses only a paper fan, tenugui cloth, and his own voice to tell three epic funny (or ghost) stories with multiple characters.

Each character is brilliantly depicted through a change in pitch, tone, or a slight turn of the head. Ponta has prepared three stories for his Detroit visit: Chōtan (Long and Short), Tengu sabaki (Trial by Tengu), and Shinigami (Grim Reaper).

The performance will be in Japanese with projected English subtitles. (60 min.)  

Sponsored by the Japanese Business Society of Detroit.

Students and Job Seekers will have the opportunity to hear Consul General Shindo’s presentation, to network with company representatives, and to submit their resumés to select companies. 

Companies interested in recruiting new employees please contact Cheryl McGinnis, Director of Corporate Relations at cmcginnis@oakland.edu.

Free and open to the public with advance registration: https://bit.ly/jarrrte

Doors open at 12:30

Oakland University Campus

Golf Pavilion, Rochester, MI

Free parking: Lot P51

Business casual attire

Sponsors: Great Lakes JETAA, Oakland University, Japan America Society of Michigan and Southwestern Ontario, Japan Business Society of Detroit

Develop your ‘elevator pitch’ with guest speaker: Jane Lee of Sales Xceleration. Free with registration via the QR code below.

Click this Link to Register

Join Oakland University's Plattenberger-sensei to learn how to transform your future during this free life-changing career planning event!

Oakland University Campus North Foundation Hall • Room 156 • FREE PARKING • LOT P01