About the Talk

At this book launch Professor Watanabe will firstly introduce the book by explaining why it is so important to understand Japanese art and culture not as something isolated, but as part of the larger context of East Asia. He will then introduce briefly a selection of international contributions, which range from western-style or ink paintings to war and pornography in East Asia. As a case study, Dr Tomizawa-Kay will look at the complexities of how and why Okinawan artists sought to generate locality, tradition, and identity especially after the devastating 1945 Battle of Okinawa. Finally, Professor Watanabe will talk about what we mean by the term ‘transnational’ so that we could understand better Japan’s at times fragile relationships with East Asia not only of the past and present but also of the future.

About the Speakers

Toshio Watanabe is Professor for Japanese Arts and Cultures at the Sainsbury Institute, University of East Anglia and Emeritus Professor of History of Art and Design of the University of the Arts London, where he was the founding Director of the Research Centre for Transnational Art, Identity and Nation. His research has explored how the arts of different places and cultures intermingle and affect each other.

Eriko Tomizawa-Kay is lecturer in Japanese Language and Culture at the University of East Anglia. She has published on Okinawan art and is working on a project dealing with Okinawan arts in their regional context. She is organiser of the international conference hosted by UEA and the Sainsbury Institute on 10 - 11 October 2019 at UEA. https://store.uea.ac.uk/conferences-and-events/faculty-of-arts-and-humanities/conferencesevents/okinawan-art-in-its-regional-context-2019

How to Book

Admission free. All welcome. Booking is essential.
Use our booking form, call us on 01603 597507 or email us.

Tthe Third Thursday Lecture Series is funded by the Gatsby Charitable Foundation, the Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation and Yakult UK.