This month, the Sainsbury Institute was delighted to work in partnership with the Japan Foundation for the first edition of our lecture series in 2025. Organised by the Japan Foundation as part of the Japan Foundation Awards 2024 Commemorative Talk series, the event celebrated the Sainsbury Institute receiving this prestigious award last year in recognition of its contribution to the field during its 25 year history. Professor Simon Kaner gave a talk on behalf of the Institute exploring ‘How Japanese Arts and Cultures can make us happier‘, an ideal topic for the start of the new year and one which placed the work of the Institute and the many other contributors to the field into a wider context. While the activities, research, events and projects of institutions, museums, galleries, researchers, and others are important to further the academic study of Japanese arts and cultures, what is the actual lived benefit for us as people? What difference can it make to our lives? Using some of the Institute’s experiences as a starting point, Simon went on to show how engaging with Japanese arts and cultures can indeed have an important – and measurable – impact.
Introductory remarks were given by the Japan Foundation London’s Iona Vos (Assistant Programme Officer) and Mr Shin-ichi Tanaka (Director) who provided further information on the Japan Foundation’s impressive work through the awards since 1973, with notable recipients including Hayao Miyazaki and Haruki Murakami (more information on the recipients is available here). The floor was then handed over to Simon, who began with an introduction to the Sainsbury Institute for the in-person and online audience before going on to investigate where and how we can see ideas of happiness appear within Japanese arts and cultures. One of the major projects of the Institute that Simon referenced in relation to this theme was our display in The Forum in Norwich in May 2024. Bringing a high-resolution replica of the 12m Kannon Bosatsu scroll to be suspended in full in the centre of Norwich, we also invited twelve representatives of the Karyōbinga Shōmyō Kenkyūkai to perform o-shōmyō, ritual chanting, at a range of locations across the city (you can see an example of this here). The project brought together a diverse audience from across the local community and beyond, many of whom said how much they enjoyed the displays and the sense of unity that they encouraged. This was exemplified by the special 願文 (ganmon or prayer) that Numajiri-san, the leader of the group, gave to an audience of over 100 members of the public at the final performance that mentioned the feelings of connection and unity between Norwich and Japan. From my experience of this project, there was a real sense of happiness for all involved as we learnt, exchanged, and bonded over Japanese arts and cultures over the course of the week – all under the watchful eye of the Kannon Bosatsu, bodhisattva of compassion and mercy.
As discussed by Simon, the Forum displays also involved the Later Prehistoric Norfolk Project, which for two fieldwork seasons in Norfolk has worked with the Restoration Trust to use heritage and archaeology to help those living with mental health challenges to improve wellbeing. It is important to caveat that the concept and idea of happiness itself is a necessarily broad and subjective term and differentiates from concepts such as wellbeing, but the testimonials given by those involved in the project (now published in two books) certainly convey some sense of happiness for those that took part – whether that be through meeting new people, learning a new skill, or simply feeling more connected to the world in which they live through heritage. Simon also noted the differing understanding of ‘happiness’ across cultures as demonstrated by the difficult task of finding an exact translation of the word in Japanese. Nevertheless, by tracing ideas of happiness from the early Jomon figurines and Haniwa, through to more contemporary examples such as the inaugural exhibition of the Mori Art Museum titled ‘Happiness: A Survival Guide for Art and Life’ curated by David Elliott, the talk showed how ideas and concepts of happiness have been something that have preoccupied human thinking for millennia.
Simon’s talk also highlighted the increasing emphasis placed on happiness and wellbeing through engagement with culture by institutions and international organisations. The third UN Sustainable Development Goal relates to healthy lives and wellbeing, and a recent report by the UK Government estimates that consuming culture improves health and wellbeing and generates £8bn per year through these improvements – with this concept of monetisation followed in December 2024 by research on Embedding a Culture and Heritage Capital Approach. Dr Darren Henley’s revised edition of The Arts Dividend, released on 30th January, also explores how investment in culture creates happier lives. All of this serves to demonstrate what an important and current topic this is. What is perhaps idiosyncratic about specifically Japanese arts and cultures is the international element it brings to this, providing new perspectives, opportunities and connections across national and cultural boundaries.
After further examples of happiness as presented in Japan, Simon finished the lecture by providing a selection of comments from Sainsbury Institute staff, friends and former Fellows describing how they felt Japanese arts and cultures can make us happier. Some drew on the specific nature of Japan, with Eugenia Bogdanova-Kummer (Associate Professor in Japanese Arts, Cultures, and Heritage) describing the mindfulness that comes through Japanese calligraphy and Laura Hollinghurst (Office Assistant) referring to the pause and reflection encouraged by Japanese tea ceremonies. Others felt the transcending of boundaries and divides brought a sense of happiness, with Denisa Edwards (Institute Administrator) discussing how the projects of the Institute bring together different cultures using the example of the shared workshop between the Karyōbinga Shōmyō Kenkyūkai and St Peter Mancroft choir in May 2024. In my own comment, I reflected on the meaningful connections that are facilitated by our various events and projects between scholars, students and members of the local community. Dr Andy Hutcheson, project lead on the Later Prehistoric Norfolk Project, provided a very direct example through his work with the Restoration Trust and the partnerships created through a mutual interest in looking to understand how people lived in the past. It struck me that, even through this small selection of comments, the breadth of ways in which people derive enjoyment and ultimately happiness from engaging with Japanese arts and cultures serves to show just how personal but also far-reaching this can be.
For me, perhaps one of the key messages from the lecture, exemplified by Simon’s final slides, was the strength of community that derives from Japanese arts and cultures; the networks created by shared research, by community projects, by the coming together of audiences for these events, for the partnerships between organisations as demonstrated by this lecture which was brought together by the Japan Foundation, Japan House London and the Sainsbury Institute. Through working across countries and boundaries, this sense of community is felt at personal, local, national and international levels and provides an important avenue of exchange through shared appreciation and encourages mutual understanding. This can help us all to feel more connected amidst what can often seem like an increasingly fragmented world stage.
It seems fitting that I am writing this report from the train back to Norwich, having missed my original train as I reconnected with friends, colleagues and supporters after the talk and shared best wishes for the new year — a prime example of the happiness that Japanese arts and culture can bring.
Olivia Butler
Event and Project Coordinator, Sainsbury Institute
