124TH year | no. 43,036 IssN 0289-1956 © THe JaPaN TIMes, LTd., 2020 saTurday, MARCH 14, 2020 Japan Cultural Expo Exploring the Arts of Japan from Antiquity to the Present NORIO KIDERA Bando Kamezo performs a scene from “Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami.” Kagami.” Bando performs “Sugawara Kamezo scene a Denju from Tenarai COLLECTION OF SHIRIAGARI KOTOBUKI SHIRIAGARI OF COLLECTION Head Office: 14F Kioicho Bldg., 3-12 Kioicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Advertising (Crossmedia) Tel: 050-3646-8421 Email: [email protected] Web: www.japantimes.co.jp B2 | The Japan Times | Saturday, March 14, 2020 MAJOR PROGRAMS (Sponsored content) Late March to June 1, 2020 EXPLORE 10,000 YEARS Timeless Conversations 2020: OF CULTURAL PRACTICES Voices from Japanese Art of the Past and Present ttracted to Japanese paintings like we would like to create and offer more and those of artist Katsushika Hokusai? more experience-based programs,’’ said Yumi ACurious about ancient techniques for Ennyu, director general of the Japan Cultural This unique exhibition will shed an entirely wooden architecture or the works of famous Expo. new light on Japanese art through a com- modern architects such as Kenzo Tange and Co-sponsored by the Agency for Cultural parison of classic and contemporary art- Kengo Kuma? Affairs and the Japan Arts Council, the expo works. Pre-20th century pieces including The Japan Cultural Expo, a series of art and features art works across different genres, paintings, Buddhist statues, pottery and cultural programs across Japan, will go into full including pottery, ukiyo-e paintings, kimono, swords will be paired with artworks by eight gear this year. It offers opportunities for lovers anime and performing arts, such as kabuki and contemporary artists in eight separate exhi- of Japanese culture to learn and embrace both bunraku. Various workshops from sword mak- bition rooms. traditional and contemporary arts, such as cul- ing to playing traditional musical instruments Works in the pre-Meiji Era include works tural assets, performing arts, media arts and will also be available. by legendary artists such as Soga Shohaku, music, as well as food and lifestyles that have This comprehensive expo will also explore Ogata Kenzan, Enku, Sengai Gibon and developed in Japan over the past 10,000 years, the arts in the context of an inclusive society, Katsushika Hokusai. beginning with the prehistoric Jomon Period. living with other cultures and recovery from Works by eight prominent contemporary Leading up to the Summer Olympic and natural disasters. Japanese artists: Rinko Kawauchi, Tomoko Katsushika Hokusai’s The Great Wave off Kanagawa Paralympic Games in Tokyo, the expo began in Many programs of the expo will also be held Konoike, Shiriagari Kotobuki, Kishio Suga, from the 19th-century series Thirty-six Views of Mount 2019 under the theme “Humanity and Nature outside Tokyo. Koji Tanada, Tsuyoshi Tane, Akira Minagawa Fuji; and Shiriagari Kotobuki’s The Earth as Seen from in Japan,’’ and will continue beyond 2020. Its and Tadanori Yokoo will be on display along- the Sun (bottom) from the series Nearly 36 Somewhat programs are intended to inspire and share Some of the major programs scheduled side the classic exhibits. Ridiculous Views, 2017, will be on display from May with visitors how nature has cultivated creativ- for this year are outlined here. However, Venue: National Art Center, Tokyo 8 through June 1. COLLECTION OF THE KUBOSO ity in Japan. some exhibitions are temporarily URL: https://kotengendai.exhibit.jp MEMORIAL MUSEUM OF ARTS IN IZUMI / COLLECTION “We have never had a chance to show closed in March due to the coronavirus OF SHIRIAGARI KOTOBUKI Japanese art and culture to the world in such a outbreak. Please contact each museum diverse and multilayered way on a massive to confirm the schedule. scale. Aside from making these multilingual, November 2020 to February 2021 (tentative) The Architecture of Japan: April 28 to June 21, 2020 Natural Materials Meet Traditional Techniques Kyoto National Treasure: This exhibition features Japanese architec- To Protect and Convey ture, which has been developed using a wide range of natural materials such as tim- Japanese Treasure ber, earth and stone. Visitors can see and learn about Japan’s Commemorating the reopening of Kyoto City architectural history through some 50 mod- Kyocera Museum of Art, this exhibition show- els of leading masterpieces from the Asuka cases a collection of over 40 National Period (538 to 710) to the present day. These Treasures, including paintings, sculptures, one-tenth scale models, including works craft pieces, writings, archaeological artifacts from Todaiji temple in Nara Prefecture cov- and other historical items involved in Kyoto’s ering the Kamakura Period (1185 to 1333) to history. The exhibits cover the Heian Period those from the Kanchiin Guest Hall covering A scale replica of a belfry of Todaiji temple circa the (794 to 1185) through the Edo Period (1603 to the Edo Period (1603 to 1868), were built by Kamakura Period (1185–1333), a national treasure. 1868). The program also offers a glimpse of actual shrine and temple carpenters. the work that goes into restoring cultural arti- There are also structures from the 20th facts, such as securing the materials needed century such as the Main Building of Tokyo’s plays that explain recent efforts to train the for restoration work, passing down the nec- Imperial Hotel, which was designed by next generation of craftspeople. Other dis- essary skills to the next generation and Frank Lloyd Wright and built in 1923. plays focus on the enhancement of skills efforts to revive traditional techniques Explanations of wooden architecture tech- and procurement of raw materials specifi- through the reproduction of historic art- niques and the characteristics of various cally used for those traditional architectural works. building styles will be offered during guided buildings. Venue: Kyoto City Kyocera Museum of Art tours. Venue: Tokyo National Museum, National URL: https://tsumugu.yomiuri.co.jp/en/ Visitors can also learn about the skills and Museum of Nature and Science, National events/kyoto-linked-national-treasures-trea- A carving of the deities Bonten and Taishakuten at Toji techniques of traditional wooden architec- Archives of Modern Architecture sures-of-the-imperial-family-to-be-show- temple in Kyoto is a national treasure that dates back to ture, nominated for the UNESCO Intangible URL: https://japanculturalexpo.bunka.go.jp/ cased-at-kyoto-city-kyocera-museum-of-art/ the Heian Period (794-1185). COURTESY OF BENRIDO Cultural Heritage list in 2018, through dis- en/lineup/19/ Saturday, March 14, 2020 | The Japan Times | B3 MAJOR PROGRAMS Late March to May 24, 2020 Left: Puppeteer Kanjuro Kiritake performs a The World of Traditional Performing Arts: Kabuki, scene from “Okuniwa Bunraku, Noh and Kyogen, Gagaku, Kumi-odori Kitsunebi” (“Foxfires in the Inner Garden”) People are invited to explore Japan’s rich each field, to discover more about these tra- in the bunraku play and diverse performing arts history ranges ditional performing arts. Priceless footage “Honcho Nijushiko” from the classical theater of kabuki, bunraku courtesy of Japan’s national theaters pro- (“Twenty-Four Examples and noh to the lesser known but no less vides further learning, while regularly sched- of Filial Piety”). Right: important artforms of gagaku (imperial uled demonstrations and symposia give an A scene from the noh court music and dance) and kumiodori, tradi- exacting glimpse into the both the accessible play “Izutsu” (“The Well tional music and dance from Okinawa. yet rarified world of each artform. Curb”) This interactive exhibition provides Venue: Hyokeikan, Tokyo National Museum attendees with an overview of these prac- URL: https://tsumugu.yomiuri.co.jp/dentou tices, all of which are accredited by UNESCO 2020/en.html as part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Of special note is a specially curated pro- back of each seat typically feature subtitles Humanity. 2020 National Noh Theatre gram of shortened two-hour shows drawing and simply worded explanations of noh plots Visitors can experience what it’s like to be Showcase Performances upon “Humanity and Nature in Japan,” the for novice viewers via English, simplified a kabuki actor through interactive displays. Newcomers and dedicated fans alike of noh designated theme of the Japan Cultural Expo Chinese and Korean languages. Attendees will be immersed in the intri- and kyogen have further opportunity to and scheduled in conjunction with the Tokyo Venue: National Noh Theatre cate costumes, various props and array of indulge in their love of the practice through 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Date: July 20 to Sept. 5 musical instruments, alongside impressive a series of performances held at the National Non-Japanese speakers need not miss URL: https://www.ntj.jac.go.jp/schedule/ reproductions of the different stages used in Noh Theatre. out; individual LCD displays located on the nou/2020/7190.html?lan=e Late March to June 14, 2020 Washoku: Nature and Culture in Japanese Cuisine Washoku, traditional Japanese cuisine, has that has played a major part in shaping the gained global recognition and popularity in nation's traditional cuisine. recent years, especially after it was added to Also on display are historical documents UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list in and replicas of dishes from different periods, 2013. This exhibition examines the allure of including ones prepared for famed female the quintessential Japanese cuisine from dif- ruler Himiko in the early third century and ferent perspectives. These include how it has colorful meals served at a noble banquet evolved over time, distinctive cooking tech- during the Nara Period (710 to 794). niques and abundant natural ingredients The show also looks into the future of found across the archipelago. washoku by introducing the latest technolo- From bluefin tuna to radish and mush- gies and research such as a project to rooms, the exhibition is a showcase of more develop space food.