Kimono Consultant/Shinto Priestess Kuniko Kanawa to Be Otakon 2016 Guest

Baltimore, MD (July 25, 2016) – Kuniko Kanawa, a certified Kimono consultant, Kimono model, founder of Washington D.C. Kimono Club, Edo Tsumami Kanzashi artisan, and also a certified Shinto priestess. will be a guest at Otakon this year, according to Otakorp Inc.

In 2007, Kanawa officially became a certified Kimono consultant of All Japan Kimono Consultant Association after graduating from Sodo Reiho Kimono College. This certificate is approved by the Ministry of Education/Science and Economy/Industry. Since then, she has been offering Kimono dressing services, instructing Kimono classes/workshops, and producing Kimono fashion shows/dressing demonstrations. She also works as a Kimono model, treasuring six years of classical Japanese dance training under Hanayagi style under the instruction of Hanayagi Wakana sensei.

In the same year, she became a professional Edo Tsumami Kanzashi artisan through intensive training by a designated master, Kazuyo Hozumi, one of only a few designated Edo Tsumami Kanzashi artisans in Japan. As a successor to preserve this disappearing traditional handicraft, she creates both traditional and modern designed Tsumami Kanzashi, including custom orders. Her beautiful creations can be purchased online at http://atelierkanawa.com. She occasionally participates in arts and crafts shows. She currently offers ongoing workshops at the Japan-America Society of Washington D.C.

In early 2013, she founded the Washington D.C. Kimono Club. The club welcomes her Kimono class students, who love and sincerely respect Kimono, Japanese seasonal culture, and Japanese custom/manners. Members can participate in Japanese seasonal cultural events in Kimono, attend Washington D.C. Kimono Club's special workshops, and model at her Kimono fashion shows/dressing demonstrations. For more information about the club, please visit http://www.atelierkanawa.com/#!wdc-kimono-club.

In October 2015, Kanawa humbly became a certified Shinto priestess through Ama-no-Iwakura-Jingu, the independent Shinto shrine in Horoshima prefecture. As she has been deeply pursuing the traditional Japanese culture due to her profession, she was naturally guided to this path of rediscovering Shinto, the indigenous religious beliefs and practices, as a core and the base of Japanese culture/spirituality. Now she offers Shinto ceremonies/rituals, such as Shinto weddings, Shichi-go-san, Seijin-shiki (coming of age ceremonies) , Shinnen-sai/Hatsu-moude (New Year prayers), Jomaku-shiki (unveiling statue ceremonies), anime convention opening ceremonies and Shokuju-sai (planting trees).

Otakon 2016 will be held August 12-14 at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, MD.

ABOUT OTAKON AND OTAKORP, INC.: Now entering its twenty-third year, Otakon is an annual celebration of Japanese and East Asian popular culture, and also one of the largest gatherings of fans in the United States. Otakon celebrates popular culture as a gateway to deeper understanding of Asian culture, and has grown along with the enthusiasm for anime, manga, video games, and music from the Far East. Since 1999, Otakon has been held in Baltimore, Maryland; currently, Otakon is one of Baltimore's few large, city-wide events, drawing over 34,000 people for three days each year (for a paid attendance of over 100,000 turnstile attendees). Otakon is a membership based convention sponsored by Otakorp, Inc., a Pennsylvania-based, 501(c)3 educational non-profit whose mission is to promote the appreciation of Asian culture, primarily through its media and entertainment. Otakorp, Inc. is directed by an all-volunteer, unpaid staff – we are run by fans, for fans.

For more information about Otakorp, Inc., see http://www.otakon.com/otakorp/index.asp
For more information and the latest news on Otakon 2015, see http://www.otakon.com/