The Rise of Black Chicago’s Culturati

2020 ◽  
pp. 15-41
Author(s):  
Christopher Robert Reed
Keyword(s):  
Performing Arts ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
World's Fair ◽  
Class Structure ◽  
Chicago Renaissance ◽  
Literary Arts ◽  
Cultural Movement ◽  
Aesthetic Evolution ◽  
Creative Production

Chicago emerged two decades after its Great Fire of 1871 to host America's second world's fair, and with it witnessed the birth of a Black cultural movement along with the city's general rebirth. First in the performing arts, then progressing slower in the visual and literary arts, the next four decades beheld the rise of the foundational elements of a Black Chicago Renaissance somewhat paralleling that in Harlem but in an asymmetrical fashion. While the tempo of aesthetic evolution through two distinct periods was imbalanced, overall progress appeared: with a transformation in the class structure, bringing necessary Black patronage to the forefront; an intelligentsia to spur interest and appreciation in the fine arts; and impressive, awe-inspiring creative production in painting, sculpture, photography and music.

scholarly journals BALINESE ART STUDIOS: THE LEARNING PROCESS OF ART AND CULTURE TO SUPPORT SUSTAINABLE TOURISM

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 68
Author(s):  
I Gde Agus Jaya Sadguna ◽  
I Gusti Agung Mas Krisna Komala Sari ◽  
Kumiko Shishido
Keyword(s):  
Learning Process ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Formal Education ◽  
Sustainable Tourism ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
Education Institution ◽  
Tourism Industry ◽  
Hindu Religion ◽  
Art And Culture ◽  
Negative Impacts

Purpose: A lot of perspectives have been discussed about Bali and this paper will discuss it from the angle of the learning process of art and culture in the Balinese art studios in Gianyar Regency. Research methods: The research was conducted on the months of July and August 2019. Qualitative data was obtained during the research because the method of data collection was interviewing the owner of the dance studio. Results and discussions: One of the A’s in tourism is attraction and Bali have a strong attraction for tourists both domestic and foreign tourists. The art and culture is the breath of tourism in the island of Bali, which is based on the Hindu religion. The resources for these art and culture are nurtured in several forms, which one of them is through sanggar or studios, which is a non-formal education institution for learning Balinese art and culture. Various types of art and culture and developed and nurtured in these studios, such as performing arts, fine arts, and local wisdoms. The tourism industry has given positive and negative impacts for Balinese art and culture, depends on how one may argue if seen through different perspectives. Performing arts have flourished in terms of daily performances taken places in hotels and designated performance theaters. The types which can be easily watched are the music and dance of Bali. Conclusion: Tourism in this sense is not a direct aspect but, in the future, has a direct impact: providing culture resources for performances in tourism objects and destinations. This as a part of social sustainability, also the sanggars, is a part of the sustainable tourism family

scholarly journals La institucionalización de la danza en la Facultad de Bellas Artes en Valdivia: Una historia desde la experiencia de sus bailarines, 1954-1976

2018 ◽  
pp. 125
Author(s):  
Carla Mella Barrientos
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
University Funding ◽  
History Of ◽  
Personal Archives ◽  
Sociedad Civil ◽  
Siglo Xx ◽  
General Secretary

En el artículo se analiza el proceso de institucionalización universitaria de la danza disciplinaria en Valdivia a mediados del siglo XX. El objetivo es demostrar que su desarrollo surgió debido a la preocupación por la apertura de la cultura a la sociedad civil, entendida aquella como aquellos elementos educativos y artísticos de interés para el Estado chileno, los agentes privados y las municipalidades.El proceso de institucionalización de la danza corresponde a un periodo de transformaciones en torno a la comprensión de la necesidad de integrar en la academia valdiviana el arte escénico, lo que no estuvo alejado de problemas relativos al financiamiento universitario, desastres naturales e interés por parte de las autoridades de mantener el área. Las fuentes utilizadas corresponden a relatos orales de tres destacadas bailarinas vinculadas al campo de la danza en Valdivia, testimonios de carácter principal que encarnan las influencias de escuelas, corrientes y estéticas; documentos vinculados con la historia de la Facultad de Bellas Artes, extraídos del Archivo de la Secretaría General de la Universidad Austral de Chile, archivos personales y notas periodísticas del diario El Correo de Valdivia.Institutionalization of Dance in the Fine Arts faculty in Valdivia: A history from its dancers’ experience 1954-1976AbstractThis article analyzes the process of university institutionalization of disciplinary dance in Valdivia in the middle of Twentieth Century. The objective is to show that its development emerged due to the concern about the cultural opening to the civil society known as those educational and artistic elements of interest for the Chilean State, private agents, and municipalities. Such process of institutionalization takes place when people were transforming their understanding about the necessity to integrate Performing Arts in the Academy of Valdivia, which was not far away from problems as university funding, natural disasters, and the interest from authorities to maintain the area. Used sources correspond to verbal stories by three distinguished dancers connected to the dance field in Valdivia, important testimonies personifying influences of schools, trends, and aesthetics; documents related to the history of the Fine Arts Faculty and extracted from the General Secretary Archive of the Universidad Austral de Chile, personal archives, and journalist notes from El Correo de Valdivia newspaper.Keywords: Disciplinary dance, institutionalization, Faculty of Fine Artes, Universidad Austral de Chile.A institucionalização da dança na Faculdade de Belas-Artes em Valdivia: Uma história desde a experiência de seus bailarinos, 1954-1976ResumoNo artigo analisa-se o processo de institucionalização universitária da dança disciplinar em Valdivia em meados do século XX. O objetivo é demonstrar que seu desenvolvimento surgiu devido à preocupação pela abertura da cultura à sociedade civil, entendida como aqueles elementos educativos e artísticos de interesse para o Estado chileno, os agentes privados e as prefeituras. O processo de institucionalização da dança corresponde a um período de transformações ao redor da compreensão da necessidade de integrar na academia valdiviana a arte cénica, o que não esteve alheio aos problemas relacionados com financiamento universitário, desastres naturais e interesse por parte das autoridades de manter a área. As fontes utilizadas correspondem a relatos orais de três destacadas bailarinas ligadas ao campo da dança em Valdivia, testemunhos de caráter principal que encarnam as influências de escolas, correntes e estéticas; documentos ligados à historia da Faculdade de Belas-Artes, extraídos do Arquivo da Secretaria Geral da Universidade Austral do Chile, arquivos pessoais e recortes da imprensa pertencentes ao jornal O Correio de Valdivia.Palavras-chave: dança disciplinar, institucionalização, Faculdade de Belas-Artes, Universidade Austral do Chile

Matsumoto, Shunsuke (松本竣介, 1912–1949)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takuya Tsunoda
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Pacific War ◽  
Oil Painting ◽  
Avant Garde ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Literary Arts ◽  
Spinal Meningitis ◽  
Professional Artist

Matsumoto Shunsuke was an oil painter and essayist active in the years up to and through the Pacific War. His best-known paintings, most of which feature figures in urban landscapes, include several self-portraits such as Standing Figure (1942). Matsumoto contracted spinal meningitis at the age of eleven, which eventually led to the loss of his hearing, an event that steered him towards the career of professional artist, and encouraged him to become immersed in reading and the literary arts. Later, it also rendered him ineligible for the draft. At seventeen he dropped out of high school and moved to Tokyo, where he studied oil painting at the Pacific School of Fine Arts (Taiheiyô Bijutsu Gakkô) for three years. In 1935 he became a member of the avant-garde NOVA Art Society, the first of several exhibition collective and artist groups in which he would participate. Other groups including the Nikakai, the Nine-Room Society (Kyûshitsukai), and the Newcomers Painting Society (Shinjin Gakai). Like Ai Mitsu, Asô Saburô, and others with whom he associated, Matsumoto expanded his style to accommodate expanded Japanese interest in Abstraction and Surrealism during the 1930s, but he largely retained his interest in painting intimate portraits, set in non-idealized cityscapes, throughout his career.

scholarly journals When life becomes art: A librarian’s experience acting the part

2017 ◽  
Vol 78 (6) ◽  
pp. 319
Author(s):  
Laura Schwartz
Keyword(s):  
Undergraduate Student ◽  
Art History ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
University Of Texas ◽  
History Department ◽  
The University ◽  
Arts Programming

In fall 2014, I was approached by a theater/dance undergraduate student who wanted to put on a play in the Fine Arts Library (FAL) at the University of Texas (UT)-Austin. Because we had done a variety of performing arts programming in our magnificent space, I was inclined to say yes. She had written and was directing a play that took place in a library. Being the liaison to the Art and Art History Department, I thought it prudent to bring the theater/dance librarian into the discussion.

scholarly journals Gerakan Kultural dan Pemberdayaan: Sebuah Imun atas Radikalisasi di Sanggar Sekar Jagad di Sukoharjo

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
A. Jauhar Fuad
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Community Organizing ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Animal Husbandry ◽  
Art Galleries ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Medium Enterprises ◽  
Cultural Movement

Abstract: This paper aims to explain the prevention of radicalization through cultural movement and empowerment. This approach is done by art that is believed to be able to stem the streams that conflict with the Republic of Indonesia, the 1945 Constitution and Pancasila. By art in addition to preserving Javanese traditions, but far behind all that, cultivating a sense of nationalism, as well as patriot souls in the nation's children. Sanggar as a place of art builds its community through three important components; (1) community organizing in the form of studio, (2) art performances or performing arts, (3) strengthening the economic sector through assistance and empowerment of rural communities. Art galleries are handling radicalization that is rooted from below, ie a shared consciousness that grows from the idea of a 'bottom up' society. On the other hand to empower the community in a variety of assistance activities in various sectors of life in the form of activities. For example: training and workshops in the field of Small and Medium Enterprises, agriculture, animal husbandry, fisheries, plantation and entrepreneurship. This move can counteract and stem the flow of radicalism that enters the countryside.الملخص: تهدف هذه الورقة إلى شرح الوقاية من التطرف من خلال الحركة الثقافية والتمكين. ويتم هذا النهج بفن يُعتقد أنه قادر على وقف التدفقات التي تتعارض مع جمهورية إندونيسيا ودستور عام 1945 وبنكاسيلا. من خلال الفن بالإضافة إلى الحفاظ على التقاليد الجاوية ، ولكن وراء كل ذلك ، زراعة الشعور بالقومية ، فضلا عن الروح الوطنية في أبناء الأمة. يبني سنجار كمكان فني مجتمعه من خلال ثلاثة مكونات مهمة ؛ (1) تنظيم المجتمع في شكل استوديو ، (2) العروض الفنية أو الفنون الأدائية ، (3) تعزيز القطاع الاقتصادي من خلال المساعدة وتمكين المجتمعات الريفية. تعالج المعارض الفنية التطرف المتجذر من أسفل ، أي الوعي المشترك الذي ينمو من فكرة مجتمع "من أسفل إلى أعلى". من ناحية أخرى لتمكين المجتمع في مجموعة متنوعة من أنشطة المساعدة في مختلف قطاعات الحياة في شكل أنشطة. على سبيل المثال: التدريب وورش العمل في مجال المؤسسات الصغيرة والمتوسطة ، والزراعة ، وتربية الحيوانات ، ومصايد الأسماك ، والمزارع ، وتنظيم المشاريع. يمكن لهذه الخطوة أن تقاوم وتوقف تدفق التطرف الذي يدخل إلى الريف.Abstrak: Tulisan ini bermaksud menjelaskan pencegahan radikalisasi melalui gerakan kultural dan pemberdayaan. Pendekatan ini dilakukan dengan berkesenian yang diyakini mampu membendung aliran-aliran yang bertentangan dengan NKRI, UUD 45 serta Pancasila. Dengan berkesenian di samping untuk melestarikan tradisi Jawa, tetapi jauh di balik semua itu, menumbuhkan rasa nasionalisme, serta jiwa patriot pada anak-anak bangsa. Sanggar sebagai tempat berkesenian membangun komunitasnya melalui tiga komponen penting; (1) pengorganisasian komunitas dalam bentuk sanggar, (2) seni pagelaran atau pertunjukan seni, (3) penguatan pada sektor ekonomi melalui pendampingan dan pemberdayaan masyarakat desa. Sanggar seni melakukan penanganan radikalisasi yang berakar dari bawah, yakni kesadaran bersama yang tumbuh dari ide masyarakat yang bersifat ‘bottom up’. Pada sisi lain melakukan pemberdayaan pada masyarakat dalam berbagai kegiatan pendampingan di berbagai sektor kehidupan dalam bentuk kegiatan. Misalnya: pelatihan dan workshop pada bidang Usaha Kecil Menengah, pertanian, peternakan, perikanan, perkebunan dan kewirausahaan. Langkah ini dapat menangkal dan membendung arus radikalisme yang masuk di pedesaan. 

scholarly journals Presença e morte: o carácter efémero das artes do corpo.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro Bessa ◽  
Mariana Assunção Quintes dos Santos
Keyword(s):  
Performance Art ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
Classical System ◽  
Physical Object ◽  
The Body ◽  
Contemporary Dance ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Technical Reproducibility ◽  
And Performance

This paper aims to reflect on a hypothetical threshold-space between contemporary dance and performance art, questioning at the same time the prevalence of too strict a boundary between them. To this end, a range of works involving hybridization of artistic languages ​​were selected and analyzed, from Signals (1970) by American dancer and choreographer Merce Cunningham to Café Müller (1978) by German choreographer Pina Bausch. Both dance and performance art are ephemeral arts or, according to the classical system, arts of time as opposed to the arts of space - painting, sculpture and architecture. They have also been called allographic arts, performative arts or, perhaps more specifically, arts of the body (Ribeiro, 1997). Unlike traditional fine arts, which materialize in a physical object other than the body, unlike video-art and cinema, arts without originals, mediated by the process of “technical reproducibility” (Benjamin, 1992), performative arts require the presence of a human body - and the duration of the present - as a fundamental instrument for their realization. In that sense, the paper also focuses on the ephemerality factor associated with dance and performing arts, and the consequent devaluation these have suffered vis-à-vis other artistic practices, considered to be academic and socially more significant.

scholarly journals La institucionalización de la danza en la Facultad de Bellas Artes en Valdivia: Una historia desde la experiencia de sus bailarines, 1954-1976

2018 ◽  
pp. 125
Author(s):  
Carla Mella Barrientos
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
University Funding ◽  
History Of ◽  
Personal Archives ◽  
Sociedad Civil ◽  
Siglo Xx ◽  
General Secretary

En el artículo se analiza el proceso de institucionalización universitaria de la danza disciplinaria en Valdivia a mediados del siglo XX. El objetivo es demostrar que su desarrollo surgió debido a la preocupación por la apertura de la cultura a la sociedad civil, entendida aquella como aquellos elementos educativos y artísticos de interés para el Estado chileno, los agentes privados y las municipalidades. El proceso de institucionalización de la danza corresponde a un periodo de transformaciones en torno a la comprensión de la necesidad de integrar en la academia valdiviana el arte escénico, lo que no estuvo alejado de problemas relativos al financiamiento universitario, desastres naturales e interés por parte de las autoridades de mantener el área. Las fuentes utilizadas corresponden a relatos orales de tres destacadas bailarinas vinculadas al campo de la danza en Valdivia, testimonios de carácter principal que encarnan las influencias de escuelas, corrientes y estéticas; documentos vinculados con la historia de la Facultad de Bellas Artes, extraídos del Archivo de la Secretaría General de la Universidad Austral de Chile, archivos personales y notas periodísticas del diario El Correo de Valdivia.Palabras clave: danza disciplinaria, institucionalización, Facultad de BellasArtes, Universidad Austral de ChileInstitutionalization of Dance in the Fine Arts faculty in Valdivia: A history from its dancers’ experience 1954-1976AbstractThis article analyzes the process of university institutionalization of disciplinary dance in Valdivia in the middle of Twentieth Century. The objective is to show that its development emerged due to the concern about the culturalopening to the civil society known as those educational and artistic elementsof interest for the Chilean State, private agents, and municipalities. Such process of institutionalization takes place when people were transforming their understanding about the necessity to integrate Performing Arts in the Academy of Valdivia, which was not far away from problems as university funding, natural disasters, and the interest from authorities to maintain the area. Used sources correspond to verbal stories by three distinguished dancers connected to the dance field in Valdivia, important testimonies personifying influences of schools, trends, and aesthetics; documents related to the history of the Fine Arts Faculty and extracted from the General Secretary Archive of the Universidad Austral de Chile, personal archives, and journalist notes from El Correo de Valdivia newspaper.Keywords: Disciplinary dance, institutionalization, Faculty of Fine Artes, Universidad Austral de ChileA institucionalização da dança na Faculdade de Belas-Artes em Valdivia: Uma história desde a experiência de seus bailarinos, 1954-1976ResumoNo artigo analisa-se o processo de institucionalização universitária da dança disciplinar em Valdivia em meados do século XX. O objetivo é demonstrar que seu desenvolvimento surgiu devido à preocupação pela abertura da cultura à sociedade civil, entendida como aqueles elementos educativos e artísticos de interesse para o Estado chileno, os agentes privados e as prefeituras. O processo de institucionalização da dança corresponde a um período de transformações ao redor da compreensão da necessidade de integrar na academia valdiviana a arte cénica, o que não esteve alheio aos problemas relacionados com financiamento universitário, desastres naturais e interesse por parte das autoridades de manter a área. As fontes utilizadas correspondem a relatos orais de três destacadas bailarinas ligadas ao campo da dança em Valdivia, testemunhos de caráter principal que encarnam as influências de escolas, correntes e estéticas; documentos ligados à historia da Faculdade de Belas-Artes, extraídos do Arquivo da Secretaria Geral da Universidade Austral do Chile, arquivos pessoais e recortes da imprensa pertencentes ao jornal O Correio de Valdivia.Palavras-chave: dança disciplinar, institucionalização, Faculdade de Belas-Artes, Universidade Austral do Chile

scholarly journals Restaging Bronislava Nijinska’s Les Noces: Multimodal Interdisciplinary Curriculum in the Performing Arts

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Katz Rizzo
Keyword(s):  
Performing Arts ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
Assistant Professor ◽  
First Year ◽  
Making Meaning ◽  
Temple University ◽  
Ballets Russes ◽  
Arts Curriculum ◽  
Performance As Research

In this article I will discuss "Performance-As-Research," as a method of pedagogy, an approach to learning and problem solving, as a practice of inquiry and of making meaning in the performing arts, and as a conduit for students to develop physical, cognitive and affective proficiencies; in the context of a first year undergraduate dance repertory course. Over the past academic year, I have begun to collaborate with entering Bachelor of Fine Arts Dance majors at Temple University (where I am an assistant professor) to restage and perform Les Noces, (French; English: The Wedding; Russian: Свадебка, Svadebka), a ballet and orchestral concert work composed by Igor Stravinsky for percussion, pianists, chorus, and vocal soloists. Stravinsky subtitled the work "Choreographed Scenes with Music and Voices." The ballet, commissioned by Serge Diaghilev for the Ballets Russes, was choreographed by Bronislava Nijinska and premiered in Paris in 1923. In my Repertory I course, the students and I have worked together to collaboratively craft a creative reimagining of the original work. This article will describe that process, and demonstrate the multiple avenues for teaching and learning that Performance-As-Research opens up in the pedagogical context of the higher education performing arts curriculum.

scholarly journals Adangiyah: Philosophy of Art in Tradition and Modernization

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. i-ii
Author(s):  
Bambang Sunarto
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Values ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
Fine Arts ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
Intensive Training ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Self Injury ◽  
The Arts ◽  
Animated Film ◽  
Tourist Village

Dewa Ruci's journal on this edition is felt so special. Since volume 15 has been eager to target a wider audience. Many scientific idiographic concepts are important and need to be known by international readers. This edition is proud to present the most widely written articles by postgraduate students and lecturers from the Indonesian Institute of the Arts Surakarta, Universities of Education from Surabaya, and Malang (East Java). What is special about this edition of this journal is the participation of the second author, who comes from various countries who are very encouraging to the first author. The participating writers from abroad are Adzrool Idzwan Ismail (Malaysia), Michiyo Yoneno Reyes (Japan), Nazima Rangwala Kalita (India), Lee Yong-Shik (South Korea), Jody Diamond (United States).We above appear to have six collaboratively written articles to publish on this occasion. The first author, Soerjo Wido Minato, wrote an article entitled “Art, Nature, and Culinary As Leverages for Village Branding at the Foot of the Mountain.” He discussed that coastal tourism and coastal villages have always been attractions, especially mountain villages that have succeeded in branding themselves as tourist villages. The Malang State University research team conducted research activities to support the preparation of Benjor Village to become a tourist village. An effective strategy for branding Benjor Village as a tourist village at the foot of the mountain is to synergize art, nature, and culinary arts in logos, songs, dances, taglines, videos, and social media.Next is Yulela Nur Imama's article entitled "Masak, Macak, Manak” at this time through challenge-based research on the creation of Nol dance," discussing 3M (cooking, preening, give birth) as cultural values for Javanese women. This study aims to determine the existence and relevance of these 3M values in dance works and how these values must be maintained. Tari Nol interprets 3M's cultural values.Hanna Medita wrote the article “Self Me: interpretation of self-injury in the context of healing,” discussing modernization that affects human needs. Self Me is a work inspired by the author's experience of self-injury which is very common among teenagers towards adulthood. Many symptoms are very likely to affect one's mental health. The work of Self Me gives a message about the importance of knowing self-injury early on and knowing what the symptoms of self-injury are.Rian Prasetya's article entitled "Color Formation of Musical Compositions of Children's Choir "Vocalista Angels" discusses the choir resulting from intensive training in various competitions in the Vocalista Angels (VA) group. The group emphasizes unique performance with sound color processing that deviates from the conventions of music theory. At the heart of quality processing at VA is building a distinctive tone of voice, trying to avoid musical tendencies based on classical vocal theory. An important element to form distinctiveness is a musical work that puts forward the method of wording, processing articulation, resonance, and intonation.Izam Ismail wrote the article "Media Adaptation of Mask Making in Malang: Study of Functional and Process for Making Fiber Masks" which discusses the adaptation made by changing the media without changing the shape and visuals that appear in Topeng Malang. The mask in the Malang Mask performance is a sacred form used by dancers by bringing the Panji character into the show. Making fiber masks begins with practice, namely making molds without changing the shape and ornaments on Malang Masks.Harmanto’s article entitled "The Concept of Tumbuk in Javanese Gamelan Tuning" discusses the phenomenon of musical mash in the Javanese karawitan tradition. Tumbuk is more than just a scale between Sléndro and Pélog. Tumbuk acts as a synchronizer in frequency and range between notes and a tone coordinator or add-on in the tuning system. Tones that have the same frequency in the tone of nêm are nêm sléndro and nêm pélog, nêm sléndro and pélog stuff, and others.The last writer is Hasbullah, with an article entitled "The Meaning Of Bali Aesthetic Code In The Animated Film Si Uma." He discusses the meaning of the Balinese aesthetic code in the animated film "Si Uma." The animated film gives a message through semantic codes such as cloth poleng, which connotes a balance of life and perfection. The meanings found from studying the Balinese aesthetic code in the animated film “Si Uma” are beauty, concentration, and cultural identity.That is the essence of the issue of Volume 16 Number 2 (December Edition), 2021. Hopefully, the knowledge that has been present in this publication can spur the growth of fine arts and performing arts in international networks, both in the arts. Creation and in the scientific research of art in general. We hope for the development of fine arts and arts.Thank you

Performing Japan in the ‘World of Tomorrow’

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Peterson
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Performing Arts ◽  
World's Fair ◽  
World War ◽  
Love Affair ◽  
New York World's Fair ◽  
The World ◽  
Trade Relationship ◽  
The Temple ◽  
Tea Ceremony

As Asia and Europe raced toward another catastrophic world war, the Japanese government engaged Nippon Kōbō, its de-facto state propaganda machine, to reinforce America’s love affair with all things Japanese at the 1939-1940 New York World’s Fair. The temple-like national pavilion set amidst an extensive garden celebrated the strong diplomatic and trade relationship between the two countries, while highlighting the ‘softer’ and more feminine side of Japan through displays featuring attractive, kimono-clad women engaged in silk production, ikebana floral arranging, and the ubiquitous ‘tea ceremony.’ The reception given to the genderbending performing arts company, Takarazuka in May, 1939, suggests Americans were unwilling to change their perception of Japan as the land of cherry blossoms and willowy maidens.

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