Past Events

Kawanabe Kyōsai and the RA’s History with Japan

Kawanabe Kyōsai (1831-1889) was one of the most important Japanese painters of the 19th century, although he has been overlooked for decades, especially compared to his early counterparts, Katsushika Hokusai and Utagawa Hiroshige. His witty, energetic, and imaginative work is now being rediscovered and celebrated, with its influence felt strongly in numerous artistic styles today, from manga to tattoos. In this webinar, Rebecca Salter, the 27th President of the Royal Academy of Arts, talked about the RA’s historical involvement with Japan and discussed Kyosai’s life and works with Koto Sadamura, curator of the current RA exhibition, Kyōsai: The Israel Goldman Collection.

Artist Talk: Asako Shiroki in conversation with Ellen Greig

In this talk, Asako Shiroki discussed her artistic practice and The wind blows in, her solo exhibition on show at the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation, with a curator and writer, Ellen Greig.

Artist Talk by Saeborg

In this talk, award-winning Japanese artist Saeborg shared the trajectories of her practice and discussed some concepts which she is planning to develop further – Oikos, life/biology, power and vulnerability, care, and viruses.

Private View: The wind blows in by Asako Shiroki

The Private View was a chance to have a first look at the exhibition The wind blows in by Asako  Shiroki.

The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation is pleased to showcase Asako Shiroki’s first UK solo show, The wind blows in. Originally trained in silversmithing, Shiroki moved on to working in wood. She describes this natural material as simultaneously confrontational, adaptable, and a means to explore the temporal process of bringing form to raw material. The performative act of working the wood crystallises in the exhibition space as an installation, choreographed in physical relationships, balance, and tension between shapes. Shiroki respects the ephemeral nature of reality and how metamorphosis takes place in our environment; she reflects fragility and strength through her practice, hence her works can be dismantled to lie dormant until they are ready to be re-assembled.

Sharing Senses

During the pandemic we experienced a transformation of standard methods of communication, with a significant increase in online interaction.  The workshop “Sharing Senses” aims to share senses with participants online, through our computer screens. Participants will explore the possibility of sharing senses in separate three-dimensional spaces by using a two-dimensional screen and online communication. 

Guided Exhibition Tour with the Artist: Yukako Tanaka’s Fluctuating Fluctuations: now＝then here＝elsewhere

The artist Yukako Tanaka will lead a guided tour of her exhibition, Fluctuating Fluctuations: now＝then here＝elsewhere. This is an excellent chance to view the exhibition with the artist herself providing an explanation and commentary on the works on show.

Art x Ecology x Japan

The COVID-19 pandemic has been a catalyst for paradigm shifts pulling together societies to get through hard times. Founded during the pandemic, in Japan, “art for all” was initiated to broaden the understanding of diverse cultural and artistic activities and to discuss how contemporary art contributes to our society through enlightening and investigating, creating dialogue and supporting social reforms.

This first talk, in a series of three, explores some case studies in Japan. Ms Wakabayashi Tomoko, Dr Justin Jesty, Yoi Kawakubo and Towa Takaya explained how “art for all” began, why it was needed, what its current activities are, what forms of support currently exist in the art world and their respective visions for the future.

Reaching Net-Zero Emissions with Ocean Renewable Energies, and Japan's ocean wave energy potential and stability

The energy crisis, climate change impacts, and hence, commitments to net-zero emission have brought renewable energies into focus. Ocean renewable energies have been considered a promising alternative to fossil fuels in areas exposed to open water bodies. However, climate change may alter the available resources and suitable locations for energy extraction. In this seminar, we focused on the wave energy potential in Northeast Asia and Japan and its stability under a changing climate, and discussed the suitable areas for future planning considering the long-term change of resources in line with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Artist Talk: Yukako Tanaka in conversation with Fatoş Üstek

In this Artist Talk, Yukako Tanaka and curator & writer Fatos Ustek, discussed the artist’s practice through visiting each component of the exhibition and drawing overarching thematic framework that lies at the heart of Tanaka’s artworks.

Guided Exhibition Tour with the Artist: Yukako Tanaka’s Fluctuating Fluctuations: now＝then here＝elsewhere

The artist Yukako Tanaka led a guided tour of her exhibition, Fluctuating Fluctuations: now＝then here＝elsewhere. This was an excellent chance to view the exhibition with the artist herself providing an explanation and commentary on the works on show.

Eleven Winters of Discontent: The Siberian Internment and the Making of a New Japan

In August 1945 the Soviet Union seized the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo and the colony of Southern Sakhalin, capturing more than 600,000 Japanese soldiers, who were transported to labour camps across the Soviet Union but primarily concentrated in Siberia and the Far East. The Japanese prisoners became a workforce for the rebuilding Soviets, as well as pawns in the Cold War. In Eleven Winters of Discontent, Sherzod Muminov draws on extensive Japanese, Russian, and English archives, memoirs and survivor interviews, to piece together a portrait of life in Siberia and, for those who survived, life in Japan afterward.

Supporting older people in the community in England and Japan

Demographic ageing is forcing many developed countries to abandon generous public welfare services. But this change does not mean giving up on welfare provision and adopting libertarian policies that leave almost everything to self-help. Many countries are making more positive use of welfare provision by residents and charitable organisations to support the lives of older people in the community. Looking at the cases of England and Japan in this seminar, Dr Daisuke Watanabe introduced the background, current situation, and challenges for contemporary pluralistic welfare services for older people. He also discussed the costs and other burdens of community-based mutual aid activities, and their sustainability.