Visual Anthropology at the AJJ

The 2012 Anthropology of Japan in Japan (AJJ) Fall Workshop@Kyoto
Doshisha University, Muromachi Campus (Imadegawa) 

December 1st & 2nd, 2012

“Belonging in Japan and Beyond”

This meeting will explore what it means to feel a sense of Japanese cultural and/or national heritage within Japan or beyond its territorial borders.

***

Lots of good visual anthropology going on this week. Many thanks to my students for their efforts in creating photographs and films - both the photo exhibition and film festival were extremely successful. Thanks to all who came to both events.

In case you need another dose of visual anthro, you are in luck. The AJJ Fall Workshop is in the Kansai this year and has a lot of interesting presentations scheduled. Of particular interest to visual anthropologists will be this session:

Sunday, December 2nd, 13:30~15:30
Session 6 (Law School at the “Kambaikan,” 2F, Room KMB208)

Sights of Community: Exploring Belonging in Visual Practice
Organizer and Chair: Steven C. FEDOROWICZ (Kansai Gaidai University)

Belonging in the Work of Japanese Contemporary Artist Fuyuko Matsui (Eva MISKELOVA, Masaryk University / Kansai Gaidai University)

Exploring Devotees of a Sexy Cyber Green-Haired Guru (John SHULTZ, Kansai Gaidai University)

Fujoshi Between Pleasure and Danger: Yaoi/BL Fandom and the Management of Spoiled Identities in Japan (Jeffry T. HESTER, Kansai Gaidai University)

How to Play Deaf in Japan (Steven C. FEDOROWICZ, Kansai Gaidai University)

For more information about the AJJ Fall Workshop, check out the AJJ Blog: http://www.ajj-online.net/www.ajj-online.net/Blog/Entries/2012/11/19_Annual_Meeting_Program.html 

For directions to Doshisha University: http://www.doshisha.ac.jp/english/access/ima-access.html

"Seibu Railways to introduce 'maid trains'"

From today's Japan Today and inspired by today's in-class viewing of Tokyology (!):

The Seibu Railway Group has announced plans to introduce a new maid cafe-style train service between Ikebukuro and Chichibu stations. 

Akihabara’s maid cafe culture is closely aligned with Japan’s “otaku” subculture that is rapidly going mainstream. As several animation houses already exist along that stretch of the railway line that runs from Tokyo to Saitama, Seibu Railway officials said they are hoping to promote Japanese pop culture in the area between those stations by solidifying its reputation as an anime production zone. 

It is believed to be the first time a major Kanto rail operator has attempted to carry out such an unconventional project.

The emphasis of the new service will be to allow passengers to ride in “New Red Arrow” trains alongside staff selected from Akihabara’s maid cafes. Maid cafe games and competitions will be held and train announcements will be made by the maids. There are also plans to have small photography studios alongside the station shops around Seibu Chichibu station at which customers can pay to have their photographs taken with a maid (emphasis added).

The fare for a trip will be 3,500 yen for adults and 3,000 yen for children. Each trip will accommodate 360 passengers.

The service starts on Dec 11. For reservations, visit http://maidtrain.info

Tokyo Pop Culture -or- More Weird Japan?

Here's a new documentary for the consideration of visual anthropologists...

TOKYOLOGY is a documentary exploring contemporary Japanese pop-culture.

[T]here's more to Tokyo than crazy nightlife and entertainment: from anime to architecture, political art to gaming, from shopping and style to the Cherry Blossom festival, the city has something for everyone, and its share of surprises, too!

Read more at the Tokyology web page.

Link to Tokyology:
http://tokyology.tv/index.html

There's a different and longer clip available from Boing Boing TV:




The film makes big claims about telling us how it really is in Tokyo, hearing from real people in Tokyo, all in 10 days time... Is this a useful bit about Japanese Pop Culture and/or more weird Japan? Within the realm of cultural representation, is Weird Japan/Cool Japan/Pop Japan a new form of orientalism? Are there similar films about New York, San Francisco, London, Paris, etc. that in effect represent the corresponding city's whole country/culture?