Friday 15 May, 2026 - Saturday 16 May, 2026
In person conference (fully booked) and livestreamed via Zoom.
Friday 15 May – Khalili Lecture Theatre, SOAS, WC1H 0XG
Saturday 16 May – Chelsea College of Arts, UAL, 16 John Islip St, London SW1P 4JU
REGISTER TO ATTEND ONLINE HERE
JOIN THE WAITLIST TO ATTEND IN PERSON HERE
This two-day conference will address the future of the study of art, craft and design in a transnational perspective. This event is held in honour the memory of Toshio Watanabe (1945-2025), late Emeritus Professor of Japanese Arts and Heritage at the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures, Founding Director of the Research Centre for Transnational Art, Identity and Nation (TrAIN) at University of the Arts London (UAL), and former President of the Japan Art History Forum.
The conference will be held across two venues – Friday 15 May at the Khalili Lecture Theatre, SOAS and Saturday 16 May at Chelsea College of Arts, UAL.
The event will also be livestreamed via Zoom. Presentations will be given in English.
Programme
The schedule is available via the link below.
Transnational Japanisms – Schedule
Due to limited capacity at the venue, we are unable to offer in-person attendance at this time but will host a waitlist for this in case spaces become available. Contributors to the conference are not required to register separately.
Online attendance is free of charge and via Zoom. You will only need to register once and can attend any of the days.
This conference is jointly organised by the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures, University of the Arts London (UAL), Stockholm University, and the University of Zurich. The Stockholm University contribution is co-organised through the research project Can Art Be National? Japonisme and Transculturation in Turn-of-the-Century Europe, funded by the Swedish Research Council. The event is further supported by the Japan Art History Forum, the SOAS Japan Research Centre, and the Japan Foundation.
