West Bloomfield Library Hosts Display of Japanese Sketches

Winning entries from the May 2013 sketching competition sponsored by the Japan Business Society of Detroit are on display at the West Bloomfield Township Main Library through August 15. 

This annual contest invites members of the Japanese community in metro Detroit to tour the Detroit Zoo and then sketch animals of their choice. 

The 24 winning sketches–drawn by children, teens and adults–are displayed outside the Library’s Casual Study. The Japan Business Society of Detroit, a long-standing supporter of the Library, and the Consulate General of Japan in Detroit made the exhibit available.

The display will greet eight teens from Awaji City, Japan when they stop at the Library on Wednesday, July 31 as part of a U.S. visit. This is the fourth time residents of Awaji City, home to West Bloomfield’s sister library, have been to West Bloomfield.

Other visits included a delegation with the mayor of Awaji City and other officials traveling to West Bloomfield in April 2011 after learning the Library had been awarded the National Medal for Museum and Library Service. A group of ten teens visited West Bloomfield in August 2012, toured Apple Island and enjoyed a traditional American cookout.

The Awaji City Higashiura Public Library and the West Bloomfield Township Public Library were paired as sister libraries in 1999. West Bloomfield was one of 51 U.S. libraries selected to participate in the “Sister Libraries White House Millennium Project.” The two libraries have exchanged books, photos depicting a day in the life of both communities, books by local authors, and videos highlighting geographic and cultural features of both communities.

The West Bloomfield Main Library is located at 4600 Walnut Lake Rd. For more information, call 248-232-2290.

Source: West Bloomfield Public Library press release