Japanese National Representations at the 6th to 9th São Paulo International Art Biennials and Their Itineraries: Geopolitics and Aesthetic Debates.

• Grant number: 25/22377-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• Start date: March 01, 2026
• End date: June 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Linguistics, Literature and Arts - Arts
• Principal Investigator: Michiko Okano
• Grantee: Michiko Okano
• Host Investigator: Pedro Rabelo Erber
• Host Institution: Escola de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas (EFLCH). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus Guarulhos. Guarulhos , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Waseda University, Japan
• Associated research grant: 22/12333-3 - Institutional geopolitics: art in dispute in international circulating exhibitions in Brazil (1948-1978), AP.TEM

Abstract

This research is part of the Thematic Project "Institutional Geopolitics: Art in Dispute in Circulating Exhibitions in Brazil (1948-1978)," which aims to map and analyze itinerant visual arts exhibitions held in Brazil and Latin America, examining the aesthetic-artistic debates, institutional networks, and political and diplomatic dimensions associated with these exhibitions.The study focuses on the Japanese Representations at the 6th to 9th São Paulo International Art Biennials (1961-1967), subsequently presented at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro and, for the 7th Biennial, at the Museum of Fine Arts in Buenos Aires. These exhibitions were organized by the Kokusai Bunka Shinkokai (Society for International Cultural Relations), a Japanese governmental body for cultural diplomacy founded in 1934 and predecessor to the current Japan Foundation.The central objective is to investigate Japanese diplomatic strategies expressed in the National Representations at the São Paulo Biennial, analyzing the interrelations between geopolitical, historical, and artistic contexts, as well as the cultural practices employed in constructing Japan's national image internationally.The analysis considers Japan's early participation in the Universal Exhibitions of the late nineteenth century, marked by concerns about meeting Western expectations and integrating into the hegemonic European cultural system. The Japanese government even hired Western consultants to guide the selection of works corresponding to foreign interests.Concurrently, Japonism, then in vogue in Europe, fascinated Western audiences with ukiyo-e woodblock prints, engaging in strong dialogue with Impressionist artists. This insertion of Japanese art into the Western imaginary through prints establishes a significant link with the curatorial choices of the 9th São Paulo Biennial.Another relevant point is the analysis of the absence of division between two central techniques in the Japanese artistic panorama of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries-yoga (Western-influenced painting) and nihonga (traditional Japanese painting)-an aspect emphasized by the Biennial curators. This view supports a singular form of pictorial expression where elements of both traditions coexist.Moreover, the advent of informal abstractionism marks when Japanese oil painting, previously undervalued by the West, came to be appreciated for its affinity with traditional calligraphic gesturality, understood as modern art. This relates to the predominance of abstract oil painting at the 6th and 7th São Paulo Biennials.Two curators worked on the four exhibitions: Kenjiro Okamoto, responsible for the 6th and 7th Biennials, and Yoshinobu Masuda, curator of the 8th and 9th editions. Their proposals differed significantly. Whereas Okamoto privileged oil painting, Masuda sought a balanced selection among painting, printmaking, and sculpture at the 8th Biennial, restricting himself to printmaking and traditional Japanese painting at the 9th. In Okamoto's view, Japanese art manifests a peculiar way of feeling and thinking, reinforcing national singularity. The internationalization of Japanese art does not oppose its nationalization-it often reaffirms it.During the fellowship period, the aim is to deepen curatorial analysis through studying artists at the Venice and Tokyo Biennials during the same period and conducting an intensive survey of primary sources in Japanese. This constitutes an essential phase for achieving the proposed objectives, enabling a broader understanding of the historical, artistic, and geopolitical contexts involved. (AU)