Japan, Land of Characters〜JFK newsletter

http://www.jpf.org.uk/artsandculture/onoffer.php#charactersIn recent years, attention paid to Japanese subculture, particularly anime and manga, has been increasing rapidly all over the world. Annual events such Japan Expo in Paris and Salon Del Manga in Barcelona draw huge crowds, attesting to high levels of interest in Japanese subculture in many countries.

In response to this interest, the Japan Foundation will present an exhibition based on one element of subculture: characters. What is a character? Why are characters born, and how do they become popular? What kind of society do they reflect?

Focusing on “Characters and the Japanese”, this exhibition including figurines, panels, film and design products will showcase representative animated characters from the 1950s until present day, such as Hello Kitty and Pikachu commonly known to Japanese people, and introduce their worlds in a broader sense, as well as examining the impact they have had on Japanese society.

This exhibition is supervised by Hiroyuki Aihara (Head of Bandai Character Research Institute) and Kodama Kanazawa (Curator, Kawasaki City Museum) and is organised in cooperation with CHARACTER DATABANK.

To see the full list of exhibits, please click here.