PlantingCeremony

2003

Revive Time・Kaki Tree ProjectINDEX
28 Feb

Updated in 2020

Nishikawa Junior High School (Closed)
Yoshino-gun, Nara,Japan

27 MarAdam-Riese Shoool
Bad Staffelstein, Germany

30 MarKröller Müller Museum
Otterlo, The Netherlands

13 AprDzegvi Children Center
Tbillsi, Georgia

16 MayMulgrave School
West Vancouver, Canada

20 Feb

Nishi Junior High School
Ogaki-shi, Gifu, Japan

03 MarSeibu Junior High School
Ogaki-shi, Gifu, Japan

03 Mar

Akasaka Junior High School
Ogaki-shi, Gifu, Japan

04 MarNissin Elementary School
Ogaki-shi, Gifu, Japan

11 MarShizusato Elementary School
Ogaki-shi, Gifu, JapanKoubun Elementary School
Ogaki-shi, Gifu, Japan

Revive Time: Kaki Tree Project | 2003 Planting Ceremony

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Nishikawa Junior High School(Closed)
Japan
Yoshino-gun, Nara
28 Feb 2003

Mr. Toru Nukui, the PTA president of the Toride

the first and second year

City Second Junior High School, introduced

students only. However,the Kaki Project to the school and the school

after the third year

applied for the project to celebrate the 50th

students had watched theanniversary of the founding of the school.

NHK news which covered

Every year, 2 students are chosen from eachthe ceremony, there wasjunior high school in the city and are dispatcheda request from them, soto Hiroshima as goodwill ambassadors. The

the DVD screening of thestudent council and school staff worked

Kaki Tree Project was urgently organized fortogether to plan the tree planting ceremony

the third year students.

in order to convey what the students hadlearned in Hiroshima – the foolishness of war

On the 9th of January 2005, “Toride Youthand the preciousness of peace.

Message Contest” was held at the Toride
Civic Center and the representatives from theAs the school brass band performed at thestudent council of the Toride City Secondtree planting ceremony, a chorus consisted

Junior High School made a presentation onof 300 first and second year students sangplanting of the seedlings from the bombed“The only flower in the world” and the twotree. On the 29th October 2005, the 50thschool goodwill ambassadors vowed thatanniversary of the founding of the school“We will never forget the misery of war andwas held and Tatsuo Mijyajima presented

vow to live powerfully in the present.” After“Illustrations of the Kaki Tree Project” tothey watched the DVD of the project, two

the school in celebration of the school’s

persimmon trees were planted in the presence

50th anniversary. The school’s project wasof Mr. Ebinuma at the main entrance of thecontinuously introduced in the city reportschool. Since the third year students had toafterward and in 2009, a story on the project

prepare for theappeared in a supplementary reader fromhigh school

Mitsumura Tosho Publishing for moral class

entrance(for the first year of the junior high school).

exams in aThe tree planting ceremony at the school isweek, theintroduced in the story in the book.

ceremony wasNishikawa Junior High School was closed inattended byMarch 2012.

Revive Time: Kaki Tree Project | 2003 Planting Ceremony1Adam-Riese School
Germany
Bad Staffelstein
27 Mar 2003

Mr. Udo Mohrstedt, who runs a solar power company, appliedfor tree planting in July 2000. For 2 years we communicatedwith each other so that the background of the Kaki Tree Project
was fully understood. After repeated negotiations with thelocal elementary schools, Mr. Udo succeeded to have AdamRiese School to understand the project and tree planting was
finally realized after 3 years. Teachers of various subjects at theelementary school created a persimmon week in their classes
and prepared for the tree planting ceremony.
At the tree planting ceremony, children of the Adam Riese
School did a performance which they had rehearsed for this day.
Everyone who participated in the event was very much moved
and the ceremony was just wonderful.
Tree planting was carried out in the time of the Iraq crisis, under
threat of the Iraq war. Both teachers and pupils understood theproject very well and everyone strongly wished for peace undersuch circumstances.
Later we heard from them that the tree grew steadily and borne
fruit in 2008.

Revive Time: Kaki Tree Project | 2003 Planting Ceremony

2Kröller Müller Museum
The Netherlands
Otterlo
30 Mar 2003

Mr. Jaap Bremer of the Kröller Müller Museum visited Japan in July 2000 and
informed us that they were keen to participate in the project. That was how
the Kaki Tree Project at the museum started.
The Kaki Tree Project participated in the exhibition “Ikiro/Be alive, Contemporary
Art from Japan 1980 until Now” at the Kröller Müller Museum, which washeld from 7th of April through 8th of July 2001. Though the seedling that wasdisplayed at the exhibition was to be planted in the ground of the sculpture
garden in March 2002, it became weak due to change in environment, so themuseum reconsidered the time of planting. After taking a good care of it for
one year, the official tree planting ceremony was held in March 2003.
The tree planting ceremony was held in conjunction with the festival to celebrate
the 150th anniversary of the birth of Van Gogh. In the beautiful weather, Mr.
Piet de Jonge and Mr. Eddie Morren, who were in charge of the persimmon
tree at the museum, invited Japanese families and planted the tree in a very
good place in the sculpture garden.

Revive Time: Kaki Tree Project | 2003 Planting Ceremony

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Dzegvi Children CenterGeorgiaTbilisi
13 Apr 2003

Georgia is situated in the Caucasus region of

had hard days, worked hard to make theWest Asia, an important strategic spot on theceremony wonderful. The children rode on

Silk Road where exchanges among various

a cart that was drawn by a thin horse andethnic groups happen since prehistoric times.

they also put dozens of seedlings including

It is bounded to the west by the Black Sea,

the seedling arrived from Japan as well as ato the north and east by Russia, to thebrown goat whose big eyes were staring at

southeast by Azerbaijan, and to the south by

the children and a couple of big husky dogs

Armenia and Turkey. It is a wine-producing

on the cart. Then they marched down a few

country and is also well-known as themiles singing together from the Botanicalbirthplace of wine.

Garden to the planting
site, Mtskheta, which

The artist fromis located outside ofGloucester, UK, Mr.

Tbilisi. A friend whoBruce Allan (whowas carrying a small

carried out the Kaki

donkey also joined

Tree Project on thethem on the way.

15th of March 2002

The children whoin Gloucester, UK)

were the brass bandand Novvy introduced

members tried very

the project to Chiko

hard to play the usedin Georgia, and that was how the projecttubas and trombones with their tiny bodies.

was expanded to Georgia. Chiko and Marina

The event was innocent and full of energy

Khatiashvili applied for the project.

being surrounded by the blue sky with a hintof a milk color, the gray mountains and Jvari

The planting site is located on a small hill,

Church that sits on the hill. (A partial excerpt

600 meters above sea level, and is veryof the report by Anthea, the person in chargeclose to the Children’s Center, a facility foron site)orphans. Everyone was waiting for “theseedling from the bombed persimmon tree”

At the tree planting ceremony, Mr. Mamuka

from Japan and the photos taken at theJapharidze (an artist who exhibited at theairport when they had received the seedling

Georgian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale

were immediately sent to us via email.

1999), who was the local person in charge

The children at the center, who lost theirof the Kaki Tree Project, conducted theparents when they were very young andworkshop for children.

Revive Time: Kaki Tree Project | 2003 Planting Ceremony

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Mulgrave School
CanadaWest Vancouver
16 May 2003

Ms. Ricarda McDonald, the person in charge

the Margrave School in March 2003. Yetof the local office, is a tough and passionate

again, it was postponed until 16th of Mayartist who always has a smile on her face.

due to the Iraq War that broke out in March.

In March 2001, the seedling arrived safely

The executive committee member fromin Vancouver, Canada and was temporarily

Japan who planned to attend the ceremony

planted in a pot.

had difficulty traveling and in the end could
not attend the ceremony. Also, Motoko
On the 10th of May

Ogawa, who cooperated with the project

2001, Ms. Ricarda

from the very beginning, passed away due

McDonald conductedto illness. On the 16th of May 2003, the day

the workshop for 29of tree planting ceremony, Motoko’s friends

students in the 6th andparticipated in the ceremony and the tree was

7th grades of Frommeat last able to take root in West Vancouver.

Elementary School.
She introduced them

In June 2005, we visited Margrave School

the Kaki Tree Project

when we participated in the tree planting

and they wrote haiku about the persimmon

ceremony at Collingwood School, Canada.

tree and made Origami persimmons together

Our visit this time was accompanied by thewith the help of Motoko Ogawa, a Japanesefamily members of Motoko Ogawa and thewoman who lived there. Although at that

executive committee member of the projecttime the seedling was planted in a pot, it was

who was also a friend of Motoko, and all

full of life and seemed to be even ready forof us could deepen our friendship with Ms.

producing buds.

Ricarda. The tree is planted in a sunny placeand is growing steadily.

The tree planting was originally planned in
March 2002 and with the efforts of Ms.
Ricarda it was finally concluded that theMargrave School to be the planting site.
However, it was postponed due to theschool’s busy schedule with other events.
The tree, in the meantime, was kept at alocal gardener. After many twists and turns,
Ms. Ricarda’s efforts paid off and the tree
planting ceremony was going to be held at
Revive Time: Kaki Tree Project | 2003 Planting Ceremony

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