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BLUE KINGFISHER
Before and After Superflat
A Short History of Japanese Contemporary Art 1990-2011
By Adrian Favell.
Any discussion of Japanese contemporary art inevitably leads to the pop-culture fantasies of Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara and the other artists of the Superflat movement. But Japan as a whole has changed dramatically after stumbling through a series of economic, social and ecological crises since the collapse of its bubble economy in the early 1990s. How did Murakami, Nara and Superflat become the dominant artistic vision of the Japan of today? What lies behind their imagery of a childish and decadent society unable to face up to reality? Written by a sociologist with an eye for sharp observation and clear reportage, Before and After Superflat offers the first comprehensive history in English of the Japanese art world from 1990 up to the tsunami of March 2011, and its struggle to find a voice amidst Japans economic decline and Chinas economic ascent.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Prologue: Tourists in the Japanese Pavilion
Little Boys and Tokyo Girls: The Rise of Superflat
Artist in Wonderland: Takashi Murakami
The Little Prince: Yoshitomo Nara
Tokyo Girls Bravo! Kaikai Kiki and Mariko Mori
Utsukushii Kuni: Yokoso Japan!
How to be A-Zillionaire: Commerce, Design and Art in the Superflat World
The Art Entrepreneurship Theory
Nara as Businessman
The World is Flat
The Creative Surplus
Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? The Tokyo Art World in the 1990s
Tokyo 1991-1995: The Birth of the Cool
Ginza Days, Omori Nights: The Birth of a Contemporary Art Scene
Art and Money: The Birth of a Contemporary Art Market
When Will Aida Be Famous? Before and After Zero Japan
Art & The City: How Art Replaced God at the Heart of Neo-Tokyo
The Tower of Power: The Mori Story
Yokohama: From Triennial to Debacle
What are Contemporary Art Museums in Japan Really For?
Echigo-Tsumari and Rural Art Festivals: Rise of the Northern River
After the Gold Rush: The New Japanese Art Scene in the 2000s
China Mania
The Zero Zero Generation
Aidas Children
Space for Our Future
Epilogue: After the Tsunami
Epilogue: Sources and Acknowledgements
Epilogue: Cast of Characters / Index
Featured image, by Tsuyoshi Ozawa, is "Vegetable Weapon: Saury Fish Ball Hot Pot / Tokyo" (2001).
PRAISE AND REVIEWS
Art in America
Janet Koplos
This book was written for me -- or those like me who wish they better knew the ins and outs of the Japanese art world of the last 20 years. The surprise, however, is that it's written by an English sociologist who lives and teaches in France. Adrian Favell sees his profession as an advantage. He notes in the acknowledgments section, for example, that his five-year research project was nonhierarchical: he interviewed everyone from gallery assistants to museum directors. His emphasis is on context, although art objects themselves are not overlooked. That's an interesting approach, since most Japanese insiders have been relatively close-mouthed. Either there has been a change in recent-years or Favell is particularly adept at drawing people out -- or at reading between the lines.
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FORMAT: Pbk, 6.5 x 8.75 in. / 246 pgs / 16 color / 80 b&w. LIST PRICE: U.S. $24.95 LIST PRICE: CANADA $27.5 ISBN: 9789881506412 PUBLISHER: Blue Kingfisher AVAILABLE: 4/30/2012 DISTRIBUTION: D.A.P. RETAILER DISC: TRADE PUBLISHING STATUS: No longer our product AVAILABILITY: Not available TERRITORY: NA LA ASIA AU/NZ
Before and After Superflat A Short History of Japanese Contemporary Art 1990-2011
Published by Blue Kingfisher. By Adrian Favell.
Any discussion of Japanese contemporary art inevitably leads to the pop-culture fantasies of Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara and the other artists of the Superflat movement. But Japan as a whole has changed dramatically after stumbling through a series of economic, social and ecological crises since the collapse of its bubble economy in the early 1990s. How did Murakami, Nara and Superflat become the dominant artistic vision of the Japan of today? What lies behind their imagery of a childish and decadent society unable to face up to reality? Written by a sociologist with an eye for sharp observation and clear reportage, Before and After Superflat offers the first comprehensive history in English of the Japanese art world from 1990 up to the tsunami of March 2011, and its struggle to find a voice amidst Japans economic decline and Chinas economic ascent.
