Events 2018Annual & Special Events
27 JanL

Meiji at 150: Meiji Japan and Victorian Britain in Dialogue, one day conference with the Victorian Society at the Art
Workers’ Guild

15 March

Heaven’s Wind – Book launch and talk with editor and translator Angus Turvill and Professor Jay Rubin

1 MarchLecture by Paul Madden CMG, British Ambassador to Japan, at Nomura International

26 MayTrooping the Colour 2018 - Special Seats at the Major General’s Review

25 JunReception in the State Apartments of St James’s Palace, in the presence of His Royal Highness The Duke ofGloucester, KG, GCVO

18 JulJapan Society Annual General Meeting 2018

4 AugJapanese Garden Party at Hammersmith Park , with the Embassy of Japan, to mark the installation of a new gate
and avenue of stone lanterns

30 SepJapan Matsuri 2018 at Trafalgar Square, with Japan Association, JCCI, Embassy of Japan, and the Nippon Club

21 NovJapan Society Annual Dinner, supported by JTI

14 DecJapan Society Christmas Party, at the Embassy of Japan

Arts & Culture
19 JunArtist talk -moment-Noritake Kinashi in conversation, with Japan Foundation at Conway Hall

12 JulPrivate Viewing and Artist Talk: Travels in a Paper Coat, at APT Gallery

BusinessLectures & Seminars

L

25 MayNorth Korea: a view from Pyongyang, with British Ambassador, Alastair Morgan, hosted by Willis Towers Watson

18 SepRecent Developments in the Global Market, with Hiroshi Watanabe, President of the Institute for International
Monetary Affairs (IIMA) , hosted by BDO LLP

3 Dec

The Fukushima Accident & Its Aftermath, with Naomi Hirose, Executive Vice Chairman, Fukushima Affairs,TEPCO, hosted by JETRO

Chairman’s Lunches (private, off the record meetings with an informal talk by the guest of honour)
19 JanSir Martin Donnelly KCB CMG, former Permanent Secretary for the Department for International Trade, hostedby Clifford Chance

22 FebThe Rt Hon Keir Starmer MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the EU, hosted by KPMG LLP

12 DecA Conversation with Bobby McDonagh, Former Irish Ambassador to the UK, Italy and the EU, hosted by Ernst &Young LLPIn Partnership with Other Organisations
Joint Lunches with the JCCI
6 Mar

Joint Lunch for His Excellency The Japanese Ambassador, at Furniture Makers’ Hall

13 JunJoint Lunch for Mr Graham Stuart MP, Minister for Investment – The Investment Environment for Japanesecompanies in the UK, at the National Liberal Club

Others2 Jul

Japanese Business Links in the North of England, Seminar and Networking Reception, with PwC UK at PwC Leeds

6 Nov

A Japanese View on World Energy Future: Energy Transition and A Thorny Path to 3E Challenges – Ken Koyama, Chief
Economist and Managing Director of the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan, with JETRO and JOGMEC at JETROLectures

t Japan Society Lectures (at the Swedenborg Society unless otherwise stated)
15 JanGrass Poets: Japanese Baskets, 1845-1953 – with Joe Earle

19 FebEscaping to North Korea – with Markus Bell

19 Mar

The obscured ‘middle-way’ in Japanese politics: the transformative power of dialogue – with Anne MetteFisker-Nielsen

16 Apr‘Cherry’ Ingram – the English Saviour of Japan’s Cherry Blossoms – with Naoko Abe

17 MayPositive Energies: social inclusion of children with disabilities. A talk with parents, teachers and photographers

21 MayTranslation and the public dissemination of science in Meiji-era Japan – with Ruselle Meadee 30 May

Japan Room Lecture: Trading Cryptocurrencies, with Pro FX Options at Japan Room, The Freemasons’ Hall

18 JunOswald ‘Shiro’ White (1884-1970): Thirty-eight Years in the Japan Consular Service – with Hugo Read

16 JulCarmen Blacker Lecture 2018: Thinking for Oneself. Individuality in Early Modern Japan, with some memoriesof Carmen Blacker – Prof Peter Nosco, (19 July, with SISJAC at Cathedral Hostry, Norwich)

20 AugTiny Objects can tell the Truth. British Influence on the Birth of Japanese Archaeology – with Tomoaki Nakano

6 Sep

The Meiji Restoration from a British Perspective, with the Embassy of Japan and Japan House London, at JHL

17 Sep

Images with and without Texts: The Photographic Magazine in 1930s Japan – with Jelena Stojkovic

15 OctTurf Wars: Territories and Textbooks in Sino-Japanese Relations – with Caroline Rose, at Japan House London

30 OctJapan Room Lecture: The Curious Case Of Japan Leads To Deep Revelations About Money, with Prof Michael
Mainelli at Japan Room, The Freemasons’ Hall

20 Nov

Imamura Shohei: How to Win Fans and Influence People in the Postwar Japanese Studio System – with Jennifer Coates

17 DecThe Arrival of Tango in Japan: Allure, Fear, and Morality in Early Twentieth-Century Japan – with Yuiko Asaba

Lifestylen 2 FebdAfternoon Tea and Film Screening with Screenwriter Kosuke Mukai, with Japan Foundation

8 Feb

Life is Sweet – Japanese inspired desserts by Suzue Aoyama, at The National Bakery School, London South BankUniversity9 Mar

Love and Other Cults – Film Screening and Q&A with director Eiji Uchida and producer Adam Torel, at SOAS
University of London

30 Apr

The essence of omotenashi – Rethinking hospitality with Toru Machida, Head Concierge of The Savoy

10 MayJapanese Robata Grill Inspired Supper Club, hosted by Silla Bjerrum at Jenius Social

27 JunJapan Society Golf Tournament 2018

20 OctCollar Cup Golf Tournament 2018

& Book Club (held on the second Monday of each month)
8 Jan

An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro

12 FebSlow Boat by Hideo Furukawa

13 MarGhosts of the Tsunami by Richard Lloyd Parry

9 Apr

Heaven’s Wind edited and translated by Angus Turvill

14 MayDendera by Yuya Sato

11 JunThe Hunter by Asa Nonami

9 JulShiokari Pass by Ayako Miura

13 AugTei, A Memoir of the End of War and Beginning of Peace by Tei Fujiwara

10 SepThe Scarlett Gang of Asakusa by Yasunari Kawabata

8 Oct

After the Banquet by Yukio Mishima

12 Nov
f 10 Dec

Spring Garden by Tomoka Shibasaki

69 by Ryu Murakami

Japanese Conversation Group – held on the first Tuesday of every month at The Brewmaster:
An opportunity for Japanese speakers of all nationalities to come together and speak Japanese.

Schools Education
Reaching over 7,000 school children annually
All YearJapan in Your Classroom School Visits: during 2018, some 40 visits were made to primary and secondary schools in
the UK giving pupils an introduction to Japanese, culture, and language.
School Links: establishing new partnerships whilst providing targeted support to help strengthen existing links
through bilateral exchange trips, conferences, and curriculum-support projects.

Loan Resources: a variety of materials and authentic cultural artefacts representing both traditional and modern
aspects of Japan on loan to primary and secondary schools throughout the year to support teachers with their Japanrelated topics.
MarchVisit from Takamatsu Daiichi High School to Newstead Wood School and Bury St Edmunds County Upper School.

15 MayTeachers’ Workshop in Cardiff exploring opportunities for cross-curricular work on Japan through haiku, sport andmanga.

Spring15th World Children’s Haiku Contest, organised by JAL Foundation, with support from Japan Society. Over 700
individual entries on the theme ‘Living Things’ were received from schools across the UK.

5 JulyHaiku Walk Workshops in Cardiff with Paul Conneally and St. Fagans National Museum of History. These workshops
culminated in the creation of a new haiku video resource, to be disseminated to schools in early 2019.

AugEECERA Budapest. Presentation by teachers from Sakado Azuma Kindergarten and Reepham Primary School,
outlining the benefits of international linking in early years education.

Sept‘Cities of Peace’ project launch with Coventry Young Ambassadors and Between the Stones Noh theatre project.

12 OctJapan Conference for Schools 2018 organised with Japan Foundation and hosted by British Council. Since thefirst such event in 2009, this conference has proved an invaluable opportunity for teachers to meet counterparts
to share information and participate in workshops and discussion groups. In 2018, topics included Manga asa gateway to learning; Japan-related enrichment and curriculum ideas for the secondary classroom; Maths
through Japanese; and Art in the Japanese classroom. The Keynote Speech was given by Rebecca Bollands,
co-ordinator of the Coventry Young Ambassadors Project, who inspired participants with ideas for collaborative
activity in the lead up to Tokyo 2020.

7 Nov

Sixth Form Japan Day 2018 organised with Ritsumeikan University and hosted by SOAS, attended by over 100
students interested in learning more about Japan and exploring opportunities for further study of Japan post school.

18 NovA group of teachers and students from Komaki Elementary School, Nagano, visit Cropwell Bishop Primary School andHeymann Primary School, Nottingham.

Small Grants
In 2018, the Japan Society Small Grants scheme gave £20,000 of funding in support of 25 projects taking place in various parts ofthe UK. In particular, our Small Grants Scheme focuses its support on education and community projects, where a small amountof additional funding can make a big difference and in many cases, where our grant will enable event organisers to reach a wider
audience or provide opportunities for the public to engage directly with performances or exhibitions.

Twelve of the grants awarded were for projects taking place in schools or for activity involving young people. This included Taikodrumming workshops for children at a primary school in Brighton, complementing the activities of the school’s Japan Club, andthe third annual ‘Fuji Festival’ which took place in Edinburgh this April, inviting Scottish school children to participate in karate,sushi making, origami workshops, music and other Japan related activities. Whitley Academy presented its students with a uniqueinsight into life in Tokyo through a performance by Tokyo based theatre company, Tarinainanika specialising in corporeal mime. The
performance was followed by workshops, which gave the students the opportunity to try out corporeal mime for themselves, aswell as a Q&A session and interviews with the group.
During one project in rural Northern Ireland, local traditional Irish musicians collaborated with experienced shinobue and taiko
drum facilitators to learn a traditional Japanese piece of music, through which they were able to discover both the similarities
and differences between their cultural traditions. The piece was in turn taught to local children and young people who went on toperform on the showcase stage at the 2018 Foyle O-bon Festival.

The Society once again supported the Kotatsu Japanese animation festival in South Wales. Children attending the festival weregiven a rare chance to attend a workshop on how to design their own original character, taught by ‘Domo-kun’ creator, Tsuneo Goda.

Other projects supported by the Small Grants scheme include ‘Scored in Silence’, a digital artwork and performance piece by deaf
concept artist, Chisato Minamimura, through which over 50 deaf and hearing young people took place in workshops in a vibrotactile
setting, to learn of the experience of deaf hibakusha (survivors of the atomic bomb). A project by Clod Ensemble shared learning
about Noh with artists and the general public through events, workshops and online resources; and ‘Flight Paths’, a collaborative
production between Extant and Yellow Earth which, inspired by the traditions of Biwa Hoshi players, tells the stories of three visually
impaired artists and their migration to the UK, used Japan Society small grant funding to create an online digital resource toprovide background and context. The show can be seen throughout the UK in early 2019.

Small grants were also given in support of a series of workshops including tenugui screen printing, wood block printing and haiku
run by the West Yorkshire Print Workshop in conjunction with its Japanese summer exhibition; a Japanese translation workshop at
the School of Modern Languages in Cardiff; the 2018 Japanese Avant-Garde and Experimental Film Festival, and Japan Now 2018,a festival exploring contemporary Japanese literature, film and culture.