Matureness and Unmatureness in Contemporary Japanese Art and Culture: Aging and Kawaii

A talk by Prof. Inuhiko Yomota
Respondent: Dr. Sharon Kinsella

Abstract: In this special event organized in collaboration with London Asia Pacific Cultural Studies Forum, celebrated critic Inuhiko Yomota will contrast the culture of kawaii―so prevalent in manga, anime, and East Asian pop culture in general―with the aesthetics of aging within Butoh dance and other performing arts. Traversing from the figure of the girl warrior in the anime "Sailor Moon" and Henry Darger’s Vivian Girls, to the “immortality” of legendary Butoh performer Kazuo Ohno, this talk promises to be a tour de force from a unique voice in cultural criticism.

Bio: Prof. Inuhiko Yomota’s publications range over film history, literature, manga, and even food culture. His "One Hundred Years of Japanese Cinema" has been translated into German, Italian, Korean, and Chinese, while his books on kawaii and manga have been published in Chinese and Korean translations. Among the prizes he has been awarded for his writing are the Kodansha Essay Prize, the Kuwabara Prize, and the Saito Ryoku’u prize. He has also translated works by Paul Bowles, Edward Said, Pier Paulo Pasolini, and Mahmoud Darwish into Japanese. He is Professor of Motion Picture History and Comparative Literature at Meiji Gakuin University, and he has been a visiting professor at Konguk University, Columbia University, the University of Bologna, and Tel Aviv University, among others.

Dr. Sharon Kinsella is author of "Adult Manga: Culture and power in postwar Japanese society" and "Girls as Energy: Fantasies of rejuvenation in contemporary Japan". She is lecturer in Japanese Visual Culture at the University of Manchester, and has previously held positions at the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, MIT, and Yale.

When? 6pm Friday 25th March
Where? Room 541 Main Building
Free and open to public but booking is essential, please email lapcsf@gmail.com

The event is supported by Birkbeck's Centre for Media, Culture and Creative Practices.