Academic Staff

Arts appreciation and its advocacy in the 21st century are now facing intricate transition. It is simply because erosion of the existing media that create and communicate value and evaluation of arts is quickly in progress, and as what has been brought about by this erosion, the lapse between creators and those who appreciate any arts forms impairs a constructive and cooperative relationship between the both.

This confusion, however, reveals at the same time that now any art forms having their anchors in the western world no longer can claim their superiority over other parts of the globe. Value and creation of the arts are made relieved from the 19th century style leash of the western world.

This is my understanding on what is going on with arts, especially with music today. From the cradle to the grave, this music is our music, not “theirs,” “imported,” “imposed” or “brainwashing.”

To enhance the human infrastructure vitalizing the synergy of each arts sectors (theaters / concert halls/ higher education/philanthropic fund / artists / audience), the roles of arts management are being intensified, and its expertly trained practitioners are mandatory for facilitation of arts activities. Music requires them most, because it is essential need for both artists and audience to properly prepare an ideal place, equipment and environment for live performance by certain period of day and time so that the both can encounter creative moments at highest standard.

I sincerely hope that this new school will be a place for those who are young and earnest to be experts of directing performance institutions and venues. With the sense of balancing creation and administration, I believe it is the mission, mine and yours, to create the Asian arena of music and musicians that consists of the global community of music on an equal basis.

Kazumi W. Minoguchi

Reconciling the diversity of individuals with the inclusion of diverse people within society is always accompanied by a dilemma. In this society where various social divisions continue to arise, and as we look ahead to a shrinking society, how can we create spaces, relationships, and a social environment in which we, as diverse individuals, can remain diverse?

In this graduate school, while continuously engaging in various artistic activities, practical research, and proposals addressed to society through them, I seek to build a collaborative network to consider and practice the role of art in this increasingly divided society. Through artistic projects, practice-based research, and public engagement, I aim not only to examine the social function of art but also to actively intervene in social realities through it. Specifically, within the fields of cultural policy and arts management, I aim to provide education grounded in practice, while articulating experiential knowledge through research and critical discourse.

Building on my research and practice concerning the expressive activities of people with disabilities as my primary point of departure, I have explored and implemented accessibility in the arts, the role of art workshops, and approaches to cultural policy and projects in local communities, and have spoken and written about those experiences. From a cultural policy perspective, organic collaboration between culture itself and related fields has long been advocated; however, in this lab, I place particular emphasis on the intersections of art and fields such as welfare, education, and community development, and aim to expand collaborative initiatives both within and beyond the university.

Here, I would like to consider management not only in the general sense of business administration or organizational operation, but also by returning to its etymological roots, to include the meaning of “handling the horse by its reins.” It involves acquiring the ideas and skills necessary for artistic activities to sustain themselves, whether autonomously or through co-creation with society, and reflecting firsthand on how those “reins” should be handled. The perspectives and capabilities cultivated through this process will be important for envisioning spaces in which we, as diverse individuals, can remain diverse. Furthermore, in this increasingly unpredictable society, such perspectives are vital not only in the arts but across a wide range of fields.

What does the name of this Graduate School, “Global Arts” mean? You are invited to learn critical study and practice of arts that overcome the pain of globalization and the modernization driven by anthropocentrism.

The arts, along with politics, science, and religion, are the means by which we understand and engage with the world. In the sense that, unlike any of the others, it demands us to confront individually with pre-determined standards or values, it is also a means of resistance. It is an act of expression or appreciation, using sensory experience of what has not yet been seen, heard, or touched. It enables individuals to affirm, liberate, and emancipate themselves to feel differently from others.

The role of the curator has gradually come to be focused through critical theory since structuralism, which has led us to self-reflection on the function of art in society, including not only the artists and their works, but also the museums and collectors that surround them. At the same time, international exhibitions such as biennials and cross-cultural exchanges increased, and the expertise of curators, who were responsible for “translation” and “editing,” began to attract attention from the 1980s onward.

Later, in contrast to exhibition making and catalog editing based mainly on historical and aesthetics research, there was a growing emphasis on an empiricist approach that investigated a more organic relationship among the production process in art, the viewer, and society. In other words, not only learning about history or contemporaries and selecting what is of valuable, the workshops/lectures/performances/documentation/archives, etc., are used to critique existing knowledge through inquiries raised from personal experience. Social changes such as decolonization and new media technology have also been major factors in the emergence of the term “curatorial,” which refers to the incomplete act rather than producing a final outcome.

Traditional scholarship has viewed the empirical as personal and contingent, and has sought to explore a logic that transcends it. Emphasizing experience, on the other hand, means not constructing universal principles and criteria, but focusing on the interaction of different occurrences, believing in the plurality of values in the formation of intelligence and meaning. Curatorial is not scientific research, but a practice that refuses to represent, and tries to find reality in unknowable and dissent. Moreover, the aforementioned freedom is also understood in terms of the inter-dependence with others and environment, rather than considering the individual as an autonomous subject.

No matter how much our knowledge and technology evolve, the world will continue to be full of unknowns and uncertainties. I hope you will study and find a way to add another perspective on what is considered to be a single answer or correctness.
Sumitomo Lab. Website : http://sumitomo.geidai.ac.jp/

Art is a special technique for connecting lonely souls with others. There are two types of art: creating things and creating events. The latter includes theater, dance, performance, and music (as well as events and festivals). Sometimes actions are performed solo, while other times people with different backgrounds or specialties come together, and create large-scale social projects that could not be accomplished on their own. In this research laboratory, we conduct research on the types, characteristics, and historical and social contexts of event-styled art from the perspective of dramaturgy (the technique of dramatic composition), while also acquiring practical knowledge for collaborative and operational purposes.

In my research laboratory, we study artistic, social and critical curation from a contemporary perspective. Based on its genealogy, we explore the future of curation. Aimed towards students aspiring to become curators, the lab will be holding courses inviting guest lecturers active in the field of art, or exercises in reading literature related to curation in 2023. It also supports student-led exhibitions. The mission of this lab is to nurture students so that they become successful professionals in the field of curation.

In the Age of ‘Crisis’

As we enter the twenty-first century, we are witnessing a critical turning point in our history. Art and culture is no exception. New forms of art and culture are emerging rapidly in response to the processes of globalization, transformations in politics and the economy, and developments in technology.

We should not of course, be too optimistic. This new era could also be regarded as a period of ‘crisis.’ Neo-liberal globalization, the logic of late capitalism and radical developments in technology cannot guarantee us a better future. Art and culture, and the related fields of the humanities and the social sciences, are all facing a tough crisis. The term crisis does not, however, refer only to the deadlock point where everything collapses: rather, as Gramsci has suggested, it is a ‘critical’ moment in which current cultural, political and economical formations are being re-organized into a historical conjuncture.

Our new graduate school is seeking those able to think through new approaches in con-current art and cultural practices in order to overcome this crisis with “pessimism of the intellect, but optimism of the will.” In particular, we are seeking those who are actively engaged in the development of both art-cultural theory and practice across inter-disciplinary fields and with a trans-national perspective.

My main research topics are primarily the inter-relations between the arts, culture, society and politics; grounded in the fields of sociology, cultural studies and media studies. By specialising in ‘research’ you will have the opportunity to study, for instance; the connections between contemporary art and society, modernity and postmodernity and also the interconnections in contemporary culture, the creative industries, the transformation of the city, social movements and comparative cultural studies in Asia. You will also be able to explore topics related to your own research area within this programme.

As only a limited number of students can enter this course, we are able to create a flexible educational programme that can be aligned with each student’s research theme, and their regular lectures and seminars. We are greatly looking forward to working with those individuals who, together, are able to study, think and mobilize in order to produce new forms of art and culture in this age of ‘crisis’.

Mōri Lab. Website : http://mouri.geiai.ac.jp/

Today, in the age of globalization, neoliberalism, the COVID-19 pandemic, and war, our idea of politics, economy, and society are being severely shaken. Under these circumstances, what is the role of the humanities, arts and culture?

Advances in media and technology have drastically changed our living environment, triggering a drastic shift in the way we perceive the world. As technology changes, so do our values. It can sometimes make us stop thinking.

I have been examining the issues surrounding the intersection of politics and art, with a focus on the media environment. In a society in transition, the methodology of the study of culture must also change.

From the micro-scale surrounding our daily lives to the macro-scale surrounding global politics, I would like to reexamine various issues in contemporary society, crossing diverse domains such as capitalism, race, gender, liberalism, violence theory, life sciences, and so on. Also, I would like to not only learn existing knowledge, but rather to ask new questions and rethink or unlearn the “common sense” we have taken for granted from a different angle.

In the name of democracy, it is assumed that everyone is equal, but this is not the case in our life. The French philosopher Jacques Rancière once wrote that “dissent” is a situation in which one interlocutor simultaneously understands and does not understand what the other is saying. Politics will begin when we crack the existing system, which seems to be stable, and by highlighting the fact of unequal distribution. In this sense, art is really political. The future always resides in the present. Let’s explore the complex issues of contemporary society, and we will open up a new path.