Events & Programmes Archive

Dairy Art Centre, London, will present a major solo exhibition by Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara. The exhibition will be the largest and most comprehensive in the UK to date, and will feature seminal pieces by the artist, many of which have never been shown before in the UK. Comprising a large body of recent and previously unreleased works, the exhibition will include painting, sculpture and a unique retrospective of Nara’s drawings spanning 30 years.

The next Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) will take place on Sunday 7th December 2014. It will be held at SOAS, University of London, and the University of Edinburgh. If you wish to take the test at SOAS in London, please click here to apply via the SOAS website.  If you wish to take the test at the University of Edinburgh, please click here to apply via the University of Edinburgh website.  Online application will be open from mid August 2014 and the deadline is on Thursday 2nd October 2014, or when the test centre has reached its maximum capacity. For more information about the JLPT, please click here to visit the official JLPT website.

The Japan Foundation will be exhibiting at Japan Matsuri 2014, at Trafalgar Square in London. This dynamic annual event brings people together to enjoy Japanese food, music, dance, family activities and much, much more.

The gritty genre of “Gekiga” was named by Yoshihiro Tatsumi in 1957. Based on “Komaga”, previously proposed by Masahiko Matsumoto, it aimed to differentiate itself from mainstream Manga and depict realism in daily life while pursuing a more systematic induction of the reader’s gaze. The development of this visual expression by Tatsumi resulted not only in the growth of the comic rental market in Osaka, but once it had been picked up by publishers in Tokyo, it represented a new wave of Manga in late 1960’s Japan. By rejecting the over simplistic, fantasy-based narratives of stereotypical Manga, Matsumoto and Tatsumi’s realistic mode created work from the viewpoint of the everyday man and minorities. Why did these artists move away from moralistic tales where good always defeated evil, and how did their experimental storylines and unique visual language evolve? Mitsuhiro Asakawa, an award winning historian of Gekiga, will introduce some of Japan’s most influential Gekiga artists and reflect on his personal encounters with them, as well as explore the original source of creativity in Gekiga expression and the social circumstances that resulted in this style. Following the talk, Paul Gravett, a journalist and author specialising in comics publishing and promotion, will join the conversation. This event will provide an intriguing and insightful scope into Gekiga and alternative comics to Manga in Japan.

  Sake, or nihonshu, is one of Japan’s most famous exports and is an increasingly popular fixture on menus  at bars and restaurants across the UK.  But with such a dizzying array of classifications and often confusing  terminology it’s not easy for the uninitiated to know where to start.   Sake, or nihonshu, is one of Japan’s most famous exports and is an increasingly popular fixture on menus at bars and restaurants across the UK.  But with such a dizzying array of classifications and often confusing terminology it’s not easy for the uninitiated to know where to start.   In this special talk, sake specialist Oliver Hilton-Johnson (Tengu Sake) joins us to demystify this ancient drink covering everything from the history of sake, how sake is made and its main classifications, to different flavours and suitable food pairings.  Also joining us will be Rie Yoshitake who will discuss the recent fortunes of Japan’s sake industry, while also introducing the activities of the Sake Samurai Association, an organisation formed by young sake brewers in Japan that works to promote sake in overseas markets. Following the talk, guests will have the opportunity to sample some of the varieties of sake discussed by our experts.   Following the talk, guests will have the opportunity to sample some of the varieties of sake discussed by our experts.  

Japan has one of the best archaeological resources in the world. And yet many of the treasures that archaeologists have uncovered throughout the archipelago over the past 150 years remain little known to the outside world. As well as being a valuable research resource, Japan’s archaeology and cultural heritage can contribute to education in many different ways. To help teachers and students, the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures, supported by Hitachi Europe Ltd and Hitachi Solutions Ltd, has developed a new English-language Online Resource for Japanese Archaeology and Cultural Heritage (ORJACH).   A draft version of ORJACH is currently available at www.orjach.org, and everyone is invited to submit comments and statements of interest via that website, which will help us complete the final version.   ORJACH will be formally launched at a public seminar at the Japan Foundation in London on Tuesday September 23rd, on Japanese Archaeology in the Digital Age, which will set ORJACH in context of other digital archaeology initiatives, including the new free open-access online Japanese Journal of Archaeology published by the Japanese Archaeological Association (www.jjarchaeology.jp), the Digital Repository of Japanese Archaeological Reports, and Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs).

Today, the names Yuri Suzuki and Kouichi Okamoto have become synonymous as fusion artists who can freely cross the boundary between design and art.

Centre Européen d'Etudes Japonaises d'Alsace (CEEJA) and the Japan Foundation are now accepting applications for participation in Japanese Studies Seminar: Tokyo(東京) scheduled for 22 and 23 September, 2014 at CEEJA, in Kientzheim, France. The official language of the seminar will be JAPANESE. This seminar aims to encourage networking among young researchers on Japan in Europe and further promote Japanese Studies in Europe. Participants will join a two-day intensive workshop in the cozy and intimate atmosphere of CEEJA's facility in Kientzheim where they will present and discuss their current research projects with fellow participants and guest mentors from Japan and the USA. The theme of this year’s seminar will be “Tokyo (東京).”  We are calling for applications from young researchers in Europe specializing in politics, history, sociology, literature, the arts, language, philosophy, economics, architecture, religion, etc.  The deadline for applications is 30 June, 2014.   Please see the attached file 'Japanese Studies Seminar in Alsace' for further details including eligibility and application procedures. 

In this seminar, we will explore "Self-expression-based elementary Japanese language education," which is based on these ideas, withProf. Koichi Nishiguchi, Center for International Education and Exchange, Osaka University. Prof. Koichi Nishiguchi Center for International Education and Exchange, Osaka University

The LDF Digital Design Weekend is a weekend of events celebrating collaborations in digital art, design and science, coinciding with the London Design Festival at the V&A. As part of this year’s programme, ICN Gallery and the Japan Foundation will present Magnetic Field Record by designer Kouichi Okamoto, a suspended device recording and visualising the earth’s magnetic and gravitational forces into drawings.

The Rugby Art Gallery and Museum presents a new large scale exhibition focusing on furoshiki, a square shaped piece of cloth used for wrapping and carry different types of merchandise or gifts. Featuring loans of textiles from museum collections in the UK and pieces not seen in the UK before from collections in Japan, the exhibition explores the cultural significance and origins of furoshiki, as well as its application today as an eco-friendly alternative to plastic bags and expensive gift wrapping.

Prof Nobuhiro Hiwatari and Prof Junko Kato from the University of Tokyo join us to discuss their latest research