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TOKYO, 23 October 2008

At the Croatian Embassy in Tokyo, Ambassador Drago Štambuk opened yesterday calligraphy exhibition entitled “Squaring the Circle”. The exhibition, instead of Japan’s traditional kanji, as objects of artistic interpretation features the geometrical shapes of squares and circles – the symbols of Croatia and Japan.

“Although squaring the circle is mathematically impossible”, said Ambassador Štambuk, “it is very much possible in art and real life”.
The exhibition features works by 27 Japanese and two Croatian artists, one of which is Tomislav Buntak, who is currently on a study visit to Japan. Explaining that geometrical shapes are older than kanji, Ambassador Štambuk described the presented artistic step forward as a more direct interpretation of the world than ideograms. He then presented the “Squaring the Circle Award” award to Japanese artist Sadako Aoki, who became its first holder. Together with Ambassador Štambuk, the exhibition was organized by artists Motoko Matsuda, Mary Katayama, and Tomislav Buntak.

The opening of the exhibition, which drew great interest, was attended by numerous ambassadors, artists, and journalists.

Mario Dragun
Spokesman