WASHINGTON, D.C- The National Building Museum presents Five Friends From Japan, through February 16, 2005. Five Friends From Japan, organized by The Children’s Museum, Boston, and The Capital Children’s Museum (CCM), is an introduction to childhood in contemporary Japan using a series of intimate built environments as a means of exploration. The exhibition captures a view of Japanese life through the eyes of five children by exploring a typical Japanese elementary school classroom and five different home and family settings. Visitors are introduced to a Japanese classroom, bedroom, living room, tatami room, tofu shop, and farmyard where they can learn how the design and size of each physical environment is a reflection of both cultural values and an individual’s personality. As visitors "meet" each child via videotape and view their favorite activities, an intriguing picture of contemporary Japan emerges where lifestyles are diverse and traditional values coexist with a taste for modern international culture.

For visitors, the story begins at school and moves on to "homestays" with students — immersive environments in which the children describe their families, their interests, and the things that matter most to them. American children can compare and contrast their homes, schools, furniture, and shopping centers. Students will get to experience Japanese life through many engaging, hands-on activities, such as looking through photo albums, and working in a mock tofu shop, or learning Japanese. The exhibition is organized around the physical spaces in which children live - focusing on the personal space created when five children from Japan invite Museum visitors into their lives.

Five Friends From Japan is presented by the National Building Museum in partnership with the National Children's Museum. This exhibition, designed by Capital Children's Museum and the Children's Museum, Boston, is made possible by the Freeman Foundation and supported by the Association of Children's Museums.This presentation is made possible by The Japan-US Friendship Commission and Weyerhaeuser Company.