News & Announcements

For a limited time, until Oct 2, works of Masumi Hayashi from the book, Masumi Hayashi: Panoramic Photo Collages (1976-2006) will be on display at Tregoning and Company (1300 W. 78th St.) in Cleveland, Ohio. (216-281-8626). The show includes 29 original works that are included in the book. This is the first time in years that her work has been on display. This is also the first time since Dr. Hayashi's death that her original works are available for sale. Featured work: Manzanar Relocation Camp, Tree View, Inyo, California©, Panoramic Photo collage with Fuji Crystal Archive prints, 1995, Size: 27″ x 63″

Reflect Space Gallery of the Glendale Public Library (just north of downtown Los Angeles) held an exhibition from May 29 to July 8, 2018, that focused on the Japanese-American internment during WWII. The exhibit featured works by Dr. Masumi Hayashi, on loan from the permanent collection of the Japanese-American National Museum in Los Angeles, including:

• Manzanar Relocation Camp, Monument (Version 1), Inyo, California, 1995
• Manzanar Relocation Camp, Tree View, Inyo, California, 1995
• Heart Mountain Relocation Camp, Blue Room, 1995
• Manzanar Relocation Camp, Guard Gates, Inyo, California, 1992
• Gila River Relocation Camp, Dog Grave, Gila River, Arizona, 1995
• Gila River Relocation Camp, Foundations, 1990

The exhibition was reported to be a big success!

The Masumi Hayashi Foundation is proud to announce the successful installation of two mural-size reproductions of Dr. Hayashi's work in the Main Classroom building of Cleveland State University, "Public Square, Night" and "Edgewater Park"! This project which has been in the works since 2016, is an exciting example of how Dr. Hayashi's work can be magnified with epic results! Special thanks to collaborators:

• Melanie Boyd (Senior Architect, Cleveland State University)
• Kathy Signorino (Artists Programs / Percent for Art Coordinator, Ohio Arts Council)
• Margaret Coats and Repros
• Tom Huck and Trudy Wiesenberger at University Hospitals for making the physical work available for imaging
• Howard Agrieste, Chief Photographer at the Cleveland Museum of Art for photographing the work
• Mike and Mary Gentile at M. Gentile Studios for transportation and creating digital files

Since Masumi passed in 2006, there are many people who have together spent countless hours working hard to care for the artwork that Dr. Masumi Hayashi created, keeping it safely preserved and stored, to keep it in the public eye, to get it framed, and exhibited, to get it published in magazines and books, to maintain the web properties of Dr. Hayashi, or to have it reproduced and enlarged in public spaces. After years of working as an individual to maintain the physical artwork of Masumi Hayashi, making it available for exhibition, enabling other creative projects to reproduce Dr. Hayashi's work in various publications, and operating individually as the Estate of Masumi Hayashi, I have decided to organize formally as the Masumi Hayashi Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Special thanks to collaborators, Tricia and Mark Del Guercio at Non Profit Advisor Group who helped work through this rigorous process! This should lay a solid foundation for the ongoing work of serving Dr. Hayashi's artistic legacy and keeping Dr. Hayashi's innovative and brilliant artwork available to the public for many years to come. Among other things, this enables us to accept donations to help cover yearly expenses, which are tax deductible for donors. Official date of recognition: December 15, 2017

The Masumi Hayashi Foundation is pleased to announce that Dr. Masumi Hayashi's photograph Bodhi Tree, Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India from her Sacred Architectures series appears in the Apple TV+ film "Swan Song," which premiered December 17, 2021. Film Details:

• Title: Swan Song
• Director: Benjamin Cleary (Academy Award winner for Best Live Action Short Film, Stutterer, 2016)
• Starring: Mahershala Ali (two-time Academy Award winner), Naomie Harris, Awkwafina, Glenn Close
• Release Date: December 17, 2021
• Platform: Apple TV+
• Genre: Science Fiction Drama

Hayashi's Contribution: The foundation worked with the film's production company to make Dr. Hayashi's Bodhi Tree photograph available for use as set decoration. The artwork appears subtly in the background of scenes (visible in the trailer image above), adding to the film's thoughtful visual aesthetic. The Bodhi Tree is part of Dr. Hayashi's acclaimed Sacred Architectures series, documenting sacred sites across India and Southeast Asia through her innovative panoramic photo-collage technique. About the Film: "Swan Song" is a science fiction drama exploring themes of identity, love, and mortality. The film received critical acclaim, with an 80% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and garnered nominations including Golden Globe for Best Actor (Mahershala Ali) and BAFTA for Best Actor in a Leading Role. This marks another example of Dr. Hayashi's work reaching new audiences through contemporary media, demonstrating the enduring relevance and visual power of her artistic vision.

Celebrating the pending availability of the book Masumi Hayashi: Panoramic Photo Collages 1976 – 2006, the Masumi Legacy Project group (Linda Butler, Eli Becker, Garie Waltzer, Bill Lipscomb, Barbara Tannenbaum, Penny Rakoff, Dean Keesey, and Judith McMillan), toasts the incredibly successful result! Thanks to the huge crowd of Masumi fans and friends that came and picked up pre-ordered books, or bought books at the event. I had so much fun signing books with essay author, Barbara Tannenbaum, Cleveland Museum of Art Chair of Prints, Drawings, and Photographs, and Curator of Photography. And so many thanks to Linda Butler and Dr. Steve Nissen, who hosted the party at their stunning new house, which is itself an architectural achievement in modern sustainability practices! Book Details:

• Publisher: Radius Books
• Essay by: Barbara Tannenbaum
• Available through: Amazon and high-end art book dealers

Special thanks go to Masumi Hayashi Foundation Partners, Mike and Mary Gentile at M. Gentile Studios for making the artwork available for the book team and for imaging! Thank you to David Chickee and the whole staff at Radius Books for the excellent design and execution of this book!