21 February 2006
Leftist thought and activism stands as a defining force in the articulation of political culture and policy in modern Japan. Operating from the periphery of formal political power for the most part, the Japanese Left has had an impact that extends far beyond its limited success at the ballot box.
More info15 February 2006
This seminar focused upon some of the issues affecting young people in Japan as they face the transition from school to work.
More info30 January 2006
This lecture explored how ‘salarymen’ in large Japanese corporations have changed over the last decade. It questioned whether the image of a conformist workaholic and loyal company man is still valid or whether he has become more individualistic and corporately mobile.
More info18 January 2006
Changing demographics has become one of the major challenges facing government and business in the 21st century. The rapid ageing of societies, changes in household sizes, family structures, and so on, all point to a future in which family life, work and employment and social welfare needs will increasingly depart from established norms.
More info10 January 2006
An exhibition featuring the collaboration between Royal College of Art designers Harriet Harriss and Suzi Winstanley and Kyushu University (in association with Helen Hamlyn Research Centre, Royal College of Art)
More info10 January 2006
A chance to meet Harriet Harriss and Suzi Winstanley, who were collaberating with Kyushu University (in association with Helen Hamlyn Research Centre, Royal College of Art)
More info5 December 2005
Over the last 25 years, Antony Gormley has revitalised the human image in sculpture through a radical investigation of the body as a place of memory and transformation, using his own body as subject, tool and material. Since 1990, he has expanded his concern with the human condition to explore the collective body and the relationship between self and other in large-scale installations like ‘Allotment’, ‘Critical Mass’, ‘Another Place’, and most recently ‘Domain Field’ and ‘Inside Australia’.
More info22 November 2005
Michael Fisch was awarded the Daiwa Japan Forum Prize 2005 for his article ‘In Search of the Real: Technology, Shock and Language in Murakami Haruki’s Sputnik Sweetheart’ (Vol. 16, No.3 2004).
More info16 November 2005
Yasukuni shrine, constructed after the Restoration in mid 19th centuryJapan, is dedicated to the 2.5 million Japanese who gave their lives for their country. The Prime Minister’s patronage of Yasukuni is controversial both because of the enshrinement there of war criminals and because of the Constitution’s provision for the separation of religion and state.
More info2 November 2005
Katsunori Hamanishi, born in Hokkaido in 1949, is one of a group of Japanese artists who have explored and developed the rich, three-dimensional effects achievable with the centuries-old European mezzotint (literally “half tone”) technique. ‘Out of the Darkness’ follows the artist’s development from his characteristically dark and elegant early works, featuring natural objects emerging from shadows into stark twilight, to his recent more colourful abstract and geometrical compositions
More info25 October 2005
Takeshi Kitamura, one of Japan’s most eminent textile artists, spoke about his life and work. He was joined by Takeo Uchiyama who discussed the role of traditional crafts in Japan and the ‘Living National Treasure’ designation, and by Dr Rupert Faulkner of theVictoria and Albert Museum.
More info19 October 2005
In examining the experience of museums in both the Uk and Japan, this seminar considered the role of government and business in supporting the arts and looked particularly to the involvement of Japanese newspapers, like the Asahi Shimbun, in sponsoring international exhibitions, both at home and abroad.
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