「The Last Call: A Visual Ethnography of Drinking Establishments in Japan Before and During COVID-19」Presentation at the Central States Anthropological Society Virtual Annual Meeting

The Last Call: A Visual Ethnography of Drinking Establishments in Japan Before and During COVID-19

Steven C. Fedorowicz

Asian Studies Program

Kansai Gaidai University

Abstract: This presentation is a multimodal visual ethnography of drinking establishments such as izakaya (“Japanese pubs”) and tachinomiya (“standing bars”) in Japan before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The focus will be on a 40-year-old standing bar in Osaka called Tenbun. Tenbun serves many kinds of alcohol and food items and has a lively atmosphere with plenty of colorful characters, including the owner, employees and regular customers. Not only is it a popular place to eat and drink, it is an important setting for socialization. This study is based upon over two years of dedicated participant-observation and photography, a photo exhibition and other post-fieldwork encounters. Since the onset of COVID-19, out of necessity, eating and drinking behavior has changed and many izakaya, tachinomiya and restaurants have been forced to close. Tenbun closed shop in March, 2020. This research project examines the intersection of food anthropology, multimodal research methods, recent research on drinking establishments and the plethora of “foodie” media productions. It has also become a form of salvage ethnography. My data and photographs not only preserve Tenbun but also document the eating, drinking and socializing habits of Japan before the COVID-19 pandemic.

This presentation will be in session 2-08 on Sunday, April 25, 2021. Session time slot is 4:45-6:30 Central Daylight Time.
(Monday, April 26, 2021, 6:45-8:30 AM in Japan.)

For information about the CSAS Annual Meeting: http://csas.americananthro.org/annual-meeting/