What We Do
It is said that there was no such thing as a culture of criticism in Japan for a long time. Quite certainly, the number of media that publish reviews on topics related to fine and performing arts, film, music, architecture and design, that are written from objective points of view, is extremely small. The fact that platforms for criticism have not been fostered for decades has come to be regarded as an important issue regarding the maturation of art and culture, and the nurturing of artists and other creators.
Today, press coverage of art and culture is partly reused and spread via social media and informational websites, resulting in a chaos of indiscriminate information of various kinds, including hearsay and rumor. Not only does a situation where fragmentary comments come and go in a random fashion have a negative effect on artists and creators, it is also misleading and confusing for their audiences.
Aren’t reliable information that is not subject to external pressure and filters, and valuable reviews that merit succession through archiving, the kind of contents that we really need now?
RealTokyo is a Japanese-English bilingual online medium that specializes in reviews by connoisseurs in the respective fields, written based on their actual experience of shows, screenings and performances, and unaffected by advertising. Our aim is to provide a platform for criticism with love and an eye for creativity, and thereby create occasions for positive consideration and discussion for both creators and spectators. We will continue to support the maturation of culture through the power of free and open speech, and explore the spiritual effects of art, which also works as a yorishiro whenever life doesn’t go as we want, on all of us living in the present age.
All published articles will be archived, and can be searched and viewed. The creative endeavors of gifted artists, including everything from their earliest to their latest works, as well as participations in past events including art, music, film and theater festivals, will be accessible for everyone who is eager to know more.
Furthermore, there will be links to the numerous reviews that have accumulated on the original version of Realtokyo between 2000 and 2016.
The long-term goal of the new RealTokyo is to give everyone with an interest in and understanding of art and culture in Japan and abroad free access to information that deserves being handed down as valuable reference data to the next generation.
RealJapan Executive Committee Office
RealJapan Executive Committee
Members:
Hiroshi Egaitsu (Critic, DJ, Lecturer at Tokyo University of The Arts & Kyoto Seika University): Writing, translation, direction
Sae Okami (Dance critic)
Taka Kawachi (Benrido Overseas Director, Writer)
Yoshio Suzuki (Art journalist, Bijutsu Tsushinsha)
Chie Sumiyoshi (Art producer/writer)
Akira Tatehata (Director, The Museum of Modern Art, Saitama)
Fumio Nanjo (Senior Advisor of Mori Art Museum)
Yuko Nishiyama (President of YN Associates)
Atsuko Barouh (Head of “Atsuko Barouh”/curator)
Shintaro Fujii (Professor at Waseda University / theatre critic)
Vivienne Sato (Artist/film critic)
Chihiro Minato (Professor at Tama Art University/photographer)
RealJapan Executive Committee Office
Direction: Chie Sumiyoshi, Yuko Nishiyama
Editing: Chiaki Sakaguchi, Kosuke Shimizu, Yoko Hemmi
support: A+A Studio / Azone + Associates
