Shapes, Lines, and Light: My Grandfather’s American Journey

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Friday, February 3, 2023 | 6pm to 7:30pm

25 West 43rd Street, Room 1000
between 5th & 6th Avenues, Manhattan

Minoru Yamasaki described the feeling he sought to create in his buildings as “serenity, surprise, and delight.” In Shapes, Lines, and Light, Katie Yamasaki charts his life and work: his childhood in Seattle’s Japanese immigrant community, paying his way through college working in Alaska’s notorious salmon canneries, his success in architectural school, and the transformative structures he imagined and built. A Japanese American man who faced brutal anti-Asian racism in post–World War II America and an outsider to the architectural establishment, he nonetheless left his mark on the world, from the American Midwest to New York City, Asia, and the Middle East.

This striking picture book renders one artist’s work through the eyes of another, and tells a story of a man whose vision, hard work, and humanity led him to the pinnacle of his field. 

Purchase Book: https://wwnorton.com/books/9781324017011/about-the-book/reviews

Author Bio

Presented By:

Katie Yamasaki is a muralist and children’s book artist. She has traveled widely, painting over 80 murals with diverse communities around the world that explore local issues of identity and social justice. Her children’s book work focuses on similar themes of social justice and stories from underrepresented communities. Her murals take a participatory approach, working with local community members to find ways to best share the stories they want to tell.

Yamasaki wrote and illustrated “Shapes, Lines, and Light: My Grandfather’s American Journey” (Norton Young Readers, 2022), which tells the story of her grandfather, acclaimed Japanese American architect, Minoru Yamasaki. Her other books “When the Cousins Came” and “Fish for Jimmy” recount personal family stories about World War II incarceration camps and growing up in a multi-racial family. She also co-authored “Everything Naomi Loved,” with Ian Lendler (NYR, 2020), dealing with the topic of gentrification.

Yamasaki is currently in the early phases of a multi-year residency with the Women and Justice Project, in partnership with justice organizations around the city, to build a campaign of legislative reform and culture change around issues of gender justice and the mass incarceration of women.

Yamasaki earned her BA from Earlham College and MFA from the School of Visual Arts in NYC. She is a teaching artist at The Center for Fiction in Brooklyn. You can explore more of Yamasaki’s work on her website, www.katieyamasaki.com, or Instagram page, @katieyamasaki.