One year experience at the 'Edoardo Chiossone’ Museum of Oriental Art, Genoa, Italy Aurora Canepari* Introducing myself My name is Aurora Canepari. I’m 28 years was asked to move to Japan by the Meiji old, and I’m Italian. government and became an honorable hired I studied Japanese language and culture at foreigner (oyatoi gaikokujin). He worked at Ca’Foscari University in Venice. I got my the Imperial Printing Bureau (okurashō bachelor’s degree in 2012 with a dissertation insatsu kyōku). He designed banknotes, on Lafcadio Hearn, better known in Japan promissory notes, postage stamps and as Koizumi Yakumo, the author of Kwaidan. official papers. He also made the official Then in 2013, I came to Japan for a three- portrait of Meiji Emperor. During his 23 year month Japanese language and culture class stay in Japan, advised by important at Kyoto Nihongo Gakko in Kyoto. Back in personalities of Meiji Government and Italy, I got my master’s degree at Ca’Foscari inspired by his artistic sensibility, he University with a dissertation on the gathered a collection of more than 15,000 meaning of pain in the novels of Ōe pieces, mainly of the Edo and Meiji period. Kenzaburō. He used to show this collection in his house In November 2015, I became a National in Tokyo, and when he died in 1898, he left Civil Service Volunteer at the ‘Edoardo the whole collection as a legacy to the city of Chiossone’ Museum of Oriental Art in Genoa. Genoa, as a gift to his hometown. He gave it Genoa is the biggest city in the Liguria on the condition that it would be possible for Region in Northwest Italy. As I said, I all citizens to see it, which was not common worked as a National Civil Service Volunteer, at all in Italy at that time. The collection so now I would like to explain what a arrived in Italy in 1890 and was displayed National Civil Service Volunteer is: it is a for the first time in 1905 in the Art Academy government program for young people who of Genoa where Chiossone had studied. In want to help their country by working for 1971 the ‘Edoardo Chiossone’ Museum re- one year as Volunteers in various fields. opened in a new location, and it remains Thanks to my Japanese studies and degrees there today, on the top of a hill, in the I was selected for a cultural program to be luxurious garden of a former villa. carried out at the 'Edoardo Chiossone' About the Museum Museum of Oriental Art. The Chiossone collection is actually the Who was Edoardo Chiossone? largest collection of Japanese art in Italy, First of all, let’s talk about the name of the and it includes a lot of Chinese artworks as museum. Who was Edoardo Chiossone? well. The collection is unique because Maybe some of you already know his story. Chiossone collected all the pieces by himself He was born in 1833 in Arenzano, in Genoa. while he was living in Japan. The museum He became an art professor and an engraver. exhibition area is divided into three parts. Thanks to his talent in engraving, in 1875 he The permanent exhibition is displayed on * Aurora Canepari (National Civil Service Volunteer, 'Edoardo Chiossone' Museum of Japanese Art) 251 the first floor and in three more galleries on Another part of my work at the Chiossone the second and third floor. The permanent Museum was helping with some short exhibition includes Buddhist bronze projects. I helped to plan the temporary sculptures and small bronze ware, Japanese exhibition Antologia della pittura giapponese wooden objects like Buddhist statuettes, and (Japanese painting masterpieces), in which Nō theatre masks. There are also applied you could see 40 kakejiku, one byōbu and and decorative arts like enamels, lacquer one emakimono from Edo and Meiji period, ware, makie, inrō, and netsuke. Finally, with masterpieces from the Soga, Kanō and there are twelve complete suits of armour Rinpa School, suibokuga from the Sesshū and equipment for war, hunting and riding. School, ukiyoe-ga by Kaigestudō Ando, In the two galleries on the fourth floor, the Hokusai and the Hokusai School, Utagawa museum holds temporary exhibitions of and Hiroshige, all from the Chiossone objects from the Chiossone Collection, such Collection. I gave assistance to the museum as nihonga and ukiyo-e, which can't be director planning the layout of the artworks, included in the permanent exhibition preparing the display and eventually because of conservation problems. On the arranging the artworks in the windows. first floor, there is also a space for temporary exhibitions not from the Chiossone Second, I promoted a temporary exhibition Collection. called Tabemono no bi, which was held by About my one-year experience the Museum from the 31 of October until the 25 of June. The exhibition focused on the My project mainly consisted of promotion of meaning of food in the Japanese art and the Museum Collection through guided tours, consisted of various ukiyoe, enamels and gallery talks and workshops for children. lacquer. My tasks were to lead the guided From March to October, I led more than 70 tour; write the didactic panels; and read and guided tours, 7 gallery talks and 12 correct the draft of the catalogue of the workshops for children. All the activities exhibition written by the Museum Director were planned by me and another NCS Donatella Failla. volunteer, with the advice and support of the Museum Director. The admission was free Third, in August I also gave assistance to for all the visitors and the school groups. Professor Akama of Ritsumeikan University in an international digital archiving project A second part of my project was the involving the Chiossone Museum. On that development of themes and topics occasion, the project involved digitizing concerning Japanese artistic and cultural emakimono, kakejiku, ehon, official papers, tradition, in the framework of Japanese banknotes, stamps and manuscripts of the traditional celebrations and their social Chiossone Collection. meaning in the lives of children, women and My last short project at the Chiossone men. These included celebrations of Museum was the conservation maintenance Hinamatsuri, Kodomo no Hi and Tanabata. and re-ordering of official papers, postage stamps, bonds and banknotes that were Third, I also worked as a Cultural Mediator between the Japanese culture and other designed by Edoardo Chiossone for the Imperial Printing Bureau. The maintenance cultures. I invited visitors to our Japanese consisted of a first step in which the paper Literature Reading Club and led activities material was gently cleaned with brushes, for school groups as well as for immigrants and a second step in which all the sheets who were learning the Italian language. 252 were put into acid-free envelopes and acid- free boxes. All the materials were re-ordered and listed. In conclusion I would like to say that it was a pleasure to be involved in so many projects and that it was a wonderful experience which gave me the opportunity to grow both personally and professionally. 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