Third Thursday Lecture: After the Tsunami: Japanese Contemporary Art Since 2011

What effect have the Triple Earthquake disasters of March 2011 had on Japanese contemporary art?

 

Japanese contemporary art since the 1990s has mainly been associated with the popular culture inspired work of artists such as Murakami Takashi, Nara Yoshitomo, Mori Mariko and Aida Makoto. The rupture of 2011 however made clear a major shift in Japanese art towards more community based, socially engaged, and politically critical work, including among this older generation. While explaining the longstanding roots of socially engaged “art projects” as a distinctive feature of the Japanese art world, the talk will focus on the changing output of younger generation of artists: including names such as Tanaka Koki, Shiga Lieko, Sakaguchi Kyohei and Kato Tsubasa, and the controversial art units Chim↑Pom and Chaos★Lounge.

 

The talk is based on a new chapter for a forthcoming revised and updated edition (in Japanese and English) of the book, Before and After Superflat.

 

To book your seat, please go to the booking form or email the Sainsbury Institute.