By Ron P. Muriera, owner of RPM Consulting
Dr. Jerrold “Jerry” Hiura was a force of nature actively engaged in the arts and cultural community at the local and state level. He served as the Chair of the City of San José’s Arts Commission in 1992 and was President of the Arts Council Silicon Valley (now SVCREATES).
In 2002, Jerry was appointed by California Governor Gray Davis to the California Arts Council where he was elected and served as Vice Chair, bringing education and awareness to the CAC on those underrepresented communities where funding and resources were not being allocated.
Jerry co-founded San José’s Contemporary Asian Theater Scene (CATS) and the Japantown Community Congress of San José (JCCsj). He was also a Senior Fellow of the American Leadership Forum Silicon Valley.
A committed advocate for multicultural arts, Jerry dedicated his life to ensuring diverse representation in organizations. Actively involved with public art, he helped establish the Three San José Japantown Landmark Public Art projects, and Ikoinoba (quiet resting places) throughout San José’s Japantown.
Jerry was a mentor and advisor to many artists and creatives. He would often provide his wisdom over coffee at Roy’s Station in Japantown, or lunch at his favorite Japanese restaurant, Kubota. His tremendous generosity in supporting arts and cultural organizations flew under the radar, as he didn’t want attention brought to “something that all should be doing.”
At the time of his passing, Jerry was on the Board of Trustees for the San José Museum of Art, and was a founding board member for Chopsticks Alley Art, where he examined the intersection between Japanese and Vietnamese American art and history
An enthusiastic artist himself, Jerry explored many forms of expression, including paintings and drawings ranging from whimsical to impressionist to portraiture using a variety of media, oils, watercolor, and acrylics. As an author, poet, and editor, he published “The Hawk’s Well” in 1986, a unique collection of Japanese American art and literature.
Jerry’s family has planned a celebration of his life on Saturday, June 6, 2020 at Wesley United Methodist Church located at 566 North Fifth Street in San José Japantown.
A showing of Jerry (and his family)’s art is planned for June 1–10 at ArtObject located at 592 North Fifth Street in San José Japantown. Many thanks to Ken Matsumoto for providing a space to celebrate and honor Jerry’s life dedicated to art.
