Tomoyo Hiroishi
8-27 Heritage and Identity. Use the handout given to you by your instructor to draw or attach symbols, images, photos or objects that might represent six aspects of your personal identity. Choose from the following list:
a. Ethnicity		g. Sex
b. Profession	h. Education	                                                                 
c. Family	i. Values
d. Language	j. Nationality
e. Likes and dislikes	k. Personal philosophy on life
f. Religion	l. Other
In class, present your handout and explain the significance of the elements you depicted.
Background Information
Japanese in Latin America
The Nikkei: The Nikkei are people of Japanese origin and their descendants who have created their own communities and lifestyles in many countries of the world. More than 750,000 Nikkei live in Latin America, the majority in Brazil, Peru and Argentina. The first to arrive in Latin America at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century were immigrant workers. These immigrants established themselves in their new countries, where, after many years of working at the most humble jobs, they have created their own businesses, schools and communities. Although the Nikkei have tried to maintain their own culture, at the same time successive generations are losing the language and the customs as they become fully integrated into Latin American society.

Tomoyo Hiroishi: Born in Mexico City in 1974 to Japanese parents, she studied at the Liceo Mexicano Japonés and at the Colegio Americano in that same city. She graduated from the University of Boston in 1997, where she received her Master's degree in Graphic Design. She worked as artistic director of the World Paper in Boston for a year and afterwards as a freelance graphic designer in Mexico City for two years. Currently, she is working as lead designer at Lehman Brothers Global Design Group in New York City.

She painted her Self-Portrait in Mexican Costume in 1994, the year that she arrived in the United States to pursue university studies. She created The Search for Identity, a wood carving, in 1997, the year that she completed her university career.

8-28. The work of Tomoyo Hiroishi. After careful examination of Hiroishi’s works, answer the following questions.
1. What are the Mexican elements depicted in her self-portrait?
2. Why do you think she painted her own self-portrait? Note the date in which it was painted.
3. Which of the masks are Japanese? Which are Mexican?
4. Interpret the significance of the hands in the woodcut.
5. What specific concern do both works seem to reflect?
6. What emotions does a person who lives in two or more cultures feel? Explain, giving examples from your own experiences and people you know.

8-29 Role-play. With a partner, prepare a list of questions that you would ask someone who has a dual cultural identity. Then, role-play an interview with Tomoyo Hiroishi. 

8-30 Community Interviews. Using the questions you prepared in Activity 8-29 and others that you find appropriate, interview a member of your community who has a dual cultural identity. Report the information back to class. What identity conflicts and challenges does he/she confront? Are they different from the identity conflicts confronted by someone who lives in only one culture?