I am a European, staying now in Japan for some 6 months and will be here for maybe another 2 years.
Although I am working for an academic institute here in Japan and get into touch with a lot of open minded, intelligent and culturally interested people, I still have the feeling that Japan itself has culturally not much to offer.
Of course there is classic poetry, and there are some contemporary artists and art exhibitions. But compared to Europe, it seems rather boring, not cutting edgy at all, but merely repetitive. Everything seems so business oriented here.
And I still wonder what is so special about wood cut paintings, pottery from Kyoto , No and Kyogen Theatre and the beauty of Haiku. Of course they are forms of Art, but long outdated. Where can I find new interpretations, new approaches to Japanese culture, contemporary art that is not related to Manga, Movies, PC Games and so on?
Is it due to my misconception of Japanese culture ( I do speak and write Japanese) or is Japanese culture really not moving forward and becoming more and more culture-less?
Although I am working for an academic institute here in Japan and get into touch with a lot of open minded, intelligent and culturally interested people, I still have the feeling that Japan itself has culturally not much to offer.
Of course there is classic poetry, and there are some contemporary artists and art exhibitions. But compared to Europe, it seems rather boring, not cutting edgy at all, but merely repetitive. Everything seems so business oriented here.
And I still wonder what is so special about wood cut paintings, pottery from Kyoto , No and Kyogen Theatre and the beauty of Haiku. Of course they are forms of Art, but long outdated. Where can I find new interpretations, new approaches to Japanese culture, contemporary art that is not related to Manga, Movies, PC Games and so on?
Is it due to my misconception of Japanese culture ( I do speak and write Japanese) or is Japanese culture really not moving forward and becoming more and more culture-less?