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Celebrating Louis Braille's Bicentennial The Universe of Braille Ten-Ten-Ten (An Exhibition (ten) of a Universe (ten) of Points (ten))

A mere combination of six dots, Braille is used to express numbers, letters, and sounds, along with Japanese phonetics. Braille letters do not follow the logic of those who can see words expressed by lines; rather, they are suitable for those who read and write by touch. The power of Braille lies in its intense creativity that gives birth to letters from scant material and supple conceptions that are not ensnared by common sense. From one dot in your heart a majestic universe is about to unfold!

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Major Exhibits

?The Tactile Possibilities Braille Presents:
Commemorative stamps of Louis Braille from around the world, Helen Keller’s Braille library, the Gunsho Ruijū (a multi-volume anthology of classical Japanese literary and historical texts), Braille devices from around the world, Braille plates, textbooks written in Braille from World War II, atlases, and Braille picture-books.

Portrait of Louis Braille, the creator of Braille
Braille’s childhood home in the suburbs of Paris, which is now a museum
The Perkins School for the Blind, founded in 1832, the oldest school for the blind in the United States (Boston)
Helen Keller, who learned how to read via Braille at the age of 12 at the Perkins School for the Blind
Louis Braille systemized the dots in Braille one dot at a time using a Braille plate.
Helen Keller wrote enormous manuscripts using a Braille typewriter.
Today, the visually impaired take notes using an electronic Braille notebook.

?Tactile Art Brought Alive by the Power of Points (The beauty of handwork you can touch and enjoy):
The bird carvings of UCHIYAMA Haruo, the sekisōga (stone pictures) of EDA Takahiro, and the tsugite (joined wood) art of M. Y. Yokoyama.

A sekisoga (stone picture) of the fresco in the Takamatsuzuka tomb
A crested ibis carved from wood
A bench made by tsugite (traditional wood-joining technique) from 32 pieces of wood

Related Events

[Finished] Learn More About Braille and the Exhibits “An Invitation to the Culture of Touch: Experience and Enjoy Braille”

[Finished] “Decoboco (凸凹) Workshop: Making a Tsugite Pendant to Join You with Someone Special”

Tsugite is the traditional technique of joining pieces of wood together without using nails or glue, so that the joined pieces look like a single piece of wood. In this workshop, we will use clay made from natural wood and try our hands at making tsugite pendants in the shapes of deco (凸) and boco (凹). You can also include a simple message in Braille on your pendant.
What kind of a “connection” will you make, and with whom?

In addition, on the fourth Saturday between September and November, Minpaku Museum Partners will hold exhibit explanations during the afternoon.

[Finished] Minpaku Weekend Salon “The Braille Universe”: Why ‘Ten-Ten-Ten’ instead of ‘Ten- Ten’?

[Finished] Sekisōga Workshop: Making Pictures Using Stone

Sekisōga, also known as “stone pictures” is a method of creating pictures seen nowhere else in the world. In this workshop, you will experience creating your own sekisōga in the shape of a dog or a cat. First, you will make a dog- or a cat-shaped figure, and then rub a paint mixture made of stone, pigment, and cement onto it. Next, you will take it home and polish it with water-resistant paper five days later. Then, your sekisōga piece will be finished.

[Finished] Braille Art Workshop: Free Design Using Braille as a Motif

[Finished] Bird Carving Workshop: Carving Birds from Wood

How to Register for a Workshop

You may register either by telephone or e-mail. If you register by e-mail, please include the items in the registration checklist and send it to the e-mail address below. Telephone registrations are accepted between 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. on weekdays (Monday-Friday).

Registration Checklist

When registering, please include the:

  1. Name of the workshop
  2. Date you wish to attend
  3. Number of members in your group
  4. Names and ages of the members in your group
  5. Name and telephone number of a contact person

To Register, Please Contact:

National Museum of Ethnology, Information Planning Division, Braille Exhibition Workshops Section
Telephone: 06-6878-8532
E-mail: workshop@idc.minpaku.ac.jp

Please be aware that if there are a large number of applications, they will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. We will notify applicants within a week. Any personal information collected will not be used for purposes other than those related to the workshops.

Inquiries
National Museum of Ethnology, Information Planning Division
Telephone: 06-6878-8532
Hours of Operation: Weekdays (Mon-Fri) 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
Address: 10-1 Senri Expo Park, Suita, Osaka 565-8511, Japan