Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s Art Encouragement Prize Recipients Announced

On March 7, the Agency for Cultural Affairs announced the recipients of the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology’s Art Encouragement Prize for the fiscal year 2017. In the Fine Arts category, artist SUGITO Hiroshi for his exhibition titled ‘Hiroshi Sugito module and lacura’ and artist NISHINO Tastu (also known as Tatzu Nishi) for his exhibition titled ‘Tatzu Nishi in Beppu’ shared the prize. In the Criticism category, art historian Professor Emeritus at the University of Tsukuba, OMUKA Toshiharu for his monograph titled ‘Hijōji no modanizumu’ and art critic SAWARAGI Noi for his monograph titled ‘Shin nijutsu ron’ share the prize. In the Media Art category, animator YAMAMURA Kōji was awarded for his animation titled ‘Yamamura Kōji migime to hidarime de miru yume’. The three recipients of the Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists were artist IWASAKI Takahiro for his exhibition titled ‘Turned Upside Down, It’s a Forest’ in the Fine Arts category; director of a non-profit organization (NPO), Creative Support LET’S, for her social inclusion project titled ‘Hyōgen miman, Jikkenshitsu’ in the Development of Art category; and artist WADA Ei for his music project titled ‘Electronicos Fantasticos!’ in the Media Art category. (Japanese)

Report on National Treasures and Important Cultural Properties Designation Submitted

On March 9, the Council for Cultural Affairs submitted a report on five assets to be designated as National Treasures and fifty assets to be designated as Important Cultural Properties to HAYASHI Yoshifumi, Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. The five assets to be designated as National Treasures were a pair of six-panel folding screen paintings, ‘The Four Seasons with the Sun and Moon’ (Amanosan Kongōji temple, Osaka); a wooden statue of the Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva Kannon, enshrined in the main hall of Rengeōin (Myōhōin temple, Kyoto); wooden statues of Four Heavenly Kings (Kōfukuji temple, Nara); Daebojagyeong Sutra, Volume 32 in Gold Characters (Kyoto National Museum); and Sugaura documents and illustrated map of Sugaura and Ōura shimo manors (Suga shrine, Shiga Prefecture). One of fifty assets to be designated as Important Cultural Properties was colored murals of Kitora Tumulus (Asuka village, Nara Prefecture). The Council for Cultural Affairs also recommended that 196 buildings, including the former Tōshōgū Treasure House, a modernist building designed by architect KISHIDA Hideto, be registered as Registered Tangible Cultural Properties. (Japanese)