The University of Alabama celebrated the 26th year of the Sakura Festival through an art exhibit showcasing Japanese works from Tuscaloosa’s sister city, Narashino, Japan.

Shinrai, the Japanese word for reliance, acts as the central theme for the artwork displayed in the exhibit.

The University holds the festival in honor of the time of ohanami, the viewing of cherry blossoms, symbolic of the both fragile and enduring nature of life. The festival also acts as a celebration of the union between Tuscaloosa and Narashino as sister cities.

According to the College of Arts and Sciences website, the month of March was scattered with Japanese-inspired exhibits and activities with support from the Children’s Hands-On Museum and University Mall. The Children’s Hands-On Museum displayed an authentic replica of a traditional Japanese home and offers its Origami Imperial Couple Dolls art activity as one of the festival’s last remaining events.

Woodblock prints from the collection of Dr. and Mrs. William T. Price are on display in the Ferguson Center Gallery as a component of the University’s Sakura Festival.

The prints were provided by Dr. Price, a collector of more than 500 Japanese prints, among an assortment of other Asian art pieces and cultural artifacts, and display depictions of famed sumo wrestlers and samurai of their time within historical and military scenes.

A print depicting sumo wrestler Hiraishi Shichidayu, signed Ikkosai Yoshimori, as well as a portrayal of general Takeda Haranobu Nyudo Shingen, signed Ichiyusai Kuniyoshi, are among the displayed art pieces.

Dr. Catherin Pagani, chair of the Department of Art and Art History, curated the exhibit with help from UA students studying art history.

Since its opening reception on March 8, the prints have been open daily and will remain open to the public in the Ferguson Center Gallery until March 29.