Bangkok--14 Oct--The Japan Foundation
The Japan Foundation, Bangkok in collaboration with Thai Nichi Institute of Technology and Japanese Studies Center, Chiang Mai University, will co-organize a contemporary Japan seminar entitled "Japanese Art of Manufacturing and the Japanese: Culture and Technology in Edo period" by Mr. Kazuyoshi Suzuki of the National Museum of Nature and Science, Tokyo, on 24th November 2009 (Tue.) at Thai-Nichi Institute of Technology in Bangkok, and 25th November 2009 (Wed.) at Lecture Room 114, College of Arts, Media and Technology (CAMT), Chiang Mai University respectively.
The Japanese have long been fond of and are famous for products that show heightened attention to details, quality and convenience. Japan’s long tradition of monozukuri (Japanese Art of Manufacturing) is the key to please such tastes and it has also been one of the factors for Japan’s greater competitiveness in technological advances in the world. The origin and secret of monozukuri lies in the unique technological and social systems built around the mass culture that flourished during the Edo period(1603-1868)which enjoyed peace and prosperity for almost 260 years.
There is a phrase of “yo-no-bi” in Japanese, which might be translated as “the beauty of utility.” It refers to manufacturing of products that embody both craftsmanship and beauty. The Western word “art” is sort of an analog to describe it, but the idea of art definitely does not extend to common, everyday objects.
This “yo-no-bi” utilitarian beauty unique to Japan was cultivated in the Edo period, throughout which the country enjoyed a peace without parallel in any other countries around the world. The skills of the artisans and craftsmen who had made swords and firearms were diverted to the production of plowshares and hoes, and widely applied in areas of everyday activity, for the betterment of communities and people’s lives.
The skills of manufacturing products have long been refined and permeated into the everyday lives of Japanese people in such a way that the artisans and craftsmen unconsciously incorporated the “yo-no-bi” into manufacturing of products, not only in terms of functionality from the user’s point of view but also in terms of acute esthetic sense and sensibility.
The lecture will look into a wide variety of artifacts which can display our culture of manufacturing, science, and technology nurtured during the Edo period.
Profile of Mr. Kazuyoshi Suzuki
Mr. Suzuki is Division Head of History of Science and Technology, Department of Science and Engineering, the National Museum of Nature and Science. His field of special competence is the history of science and technology. He studies and researches the process of scientific and technological advancement in Japan. A particular focus in his studies and research is the nature of science and technology from the Edo period to the present with an empirical viewpoint.
Starting from 2001, Mr. Suzuki was engaged in the Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Priority Areas, a five-year project initiated by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), under the theme of “Systematical Inventory and Research of Historical Materials Relating to Science and Technology in Premodern Japan.” He is currently studying and researching manufacturing in the Edo period (his website can be found at: http://www.edomono.com/)
He is a member of many organizations and societies, including the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers, Japan Industrial Archaeology Society, Japan Society for Design Engineering, and the Japan International Doll and Toy Research Association. He is also a member of the Manufacturing Policy Confab Committee under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI).
Thus far, he has served as a member of the METI’s Study Group for Traditional Crafts, as well as a conceptual planning committee member and an exhibition supervisory committee member of several museums including the Osaka Children’s Castle, Toyota Commemorative Museum of Industry and Technology, and Edo-Tokyo Museum.
Date: 24th November 2009 (Tue.)
Time: 14.00 - 17.00
Venue: Seminar Room C401, Thai-Nichi Institute of Technology (TNI)
CHIANG MAI:
Date: 25th November 2009 (Wed.)
Time: 13.00 - 15.30
Venue: Lecture Room 114, College of Arts, Media and Technology (CAMT),
Chiang Mai University
Admission is FREE
For further information,
please call the Japan Foundation, Bangkok at 02-260-8560~3
(Please contact Mr. Wathana for Thai/English, Mr. Uchida for Japanese/English)
Chiang Mai: Please call Japanese Studies Center, Chiang Mai University at
(053) 943-284 (Please contact Mr. Surasri for Thai, Mr. Nakai for Japanese/English)