Past Events

While prints of the Edo period (c. 1615–1868) are known for their depictions of floating world beauties, this does not capture the full diversity of women depicted in Japan’s graphic arts. Prompted by a puzzling set of luxury prints by artist Yashima Gakutei (1786–1868), this talk takes up the subject of retsujo, exemplary women.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Japanese education attracted global attention for its excellence. In recent decades, however, Japan’s economic woes seem to have cooled international enthusiasm for learning from the country. Is Japanese education still a beacon of excellence?

The Last Ring Home is a book and documentary film telling the true story of Lt. Minter Dial, a WWII POW in the Philippines, and the fascinating journey of his Annapolis Naval Academy ring that miraculously made its way home 17 years after his death.

We are delighted to welcome the British Ambassador to Japan, Julia Longbottom CMG, to address the Japan Society after two years in post.

With its origins mainly from Chinese traditional medicine, Japan established its own traditions and systems of treatments in an array of different situations over the course of its several time periods. These were further influenced by the indigenous belief system of the Japanese called Shinto as well as the arrival of Europeans into Japan, particularly Rangaku or “Dutch Learning.”

Very few scaled the heights to reach the level of Minister to Japan or especially Minister to China – the most important British official east of India. This means that Alcock’s story would inevitably have been out-of-the-ordinary, but there were things about him that made it more than that.

In this lecture, Alex Hardie will explore the life of Lord Sempill (1893-1965), a distinguished aviator and a lifelong friend of Japan who was labelled “the traitor of Pearl Harbor.” He will argue that the archival evidence does not support the prevailing view of Sempill as a spy who betrayed British and American interests.

In this presentation, Mark Bookman will provide a regional history of physical disability policy and social movements in contemporary Japan explaining why interested parties have emphasized the needs of certain demographics over others when developing built environments, education, employment, entertainment, and medical systems.

What is the role of touching in modern Japanese literature? How have Japanese writers expressed the act of touching mediated through skin, objects, and memories? In this talk, Fusako Innami will explore the work of Japanese writers to analyse the desire for touch in modern Japanese fiction.

In this lecture, visual artist and researcher Eleanor Burkett will pay tribute to this area’s traditional craft practice offering a rare glimpse into a textile collection, archive photographs and handmade paper from Fukushima.