International Days 2022: Japan Day
The Vice Rectorate for International Affairs is inviting the public to take part in a special program on Japan to be held on October 26. Comprising wide-ranging cultural and academic offerings, the program is organized in cooperation with the Japanese Consulate General in Düsseldorf, the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, the Japan Foundation in Cologne, the German-Japanese Society of Bonn, the Department of Oriental and Asian Studies and the University’s International Office.
Wednesday, October 26, 2022
From 10:00 am to 10:30 pm at the University of Bonn Main Building – Am Hof 1, 53113 Bonn
Workshop: Bring Your Manga To Life
Workshop Group 1: 10:00 am – 12:00 noon
Workshop Group 2: 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Venue: University Main Building, Department of Art History, Room 1.037
Instructor: Sarah Wolter (Instagram: @universaria.art)
Conducted by manga artist Sarah Wolter, this workshop is all about dynamically illustrating manga characters utilizing line art and perspective. Participants will be able to put what they learn immediately into practice, working on their own creations.
Drawing materials will be provided at the workshop to all participants.
Japanese Cinema
Japan has one of the world’s most productive film industries, and Japanese cinema has influenced the art form throughout its extensive history. Three extraordinary masterpieces of cinema will be shown as part of the University’s Japan Day events—with kind support from Rapid Eye Movies.
The screenings are open to the public and admission is free.
Registration required: No.
Venue: University Main Building, Lecture Hall I – Am Hof 1, 53113 Bonn
12:15 pm: Shiver
An intensive sound experience with impressive scenes of the Japanese island of Sado. This powerfully meditative work by Toshiaki Toyoda represents a portrait of musician and composer Koshiro Hino in his collaboration with the Taiko Performing Arts Ensemble Kodo.
Director: Toshiaki Toyoda, 2021
Length: 89 minutes
Language: No spoken language
2 pm: Tokyo Drifter
Seijun Suzuki’s unusual yakuza film is now a classic of Japanese cinema. Retired assassin Tetsu (Tetsuya Watari) roams the streets as the “Vagabond of Tokyo” to escape being executed by a rival crime syndicate. It’s a classic gangster tale, told before a backdrop of campy pop-art sets—with directing of noteworthy artistic quality.
Director: Seijun Suzuki, 1966
Length: 83 minutes
Language: Japanese, German ST
7:30 pm: Drive My Car
Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s acclaimed masterpiece received a Palme d’Or for Best Screenplay and earned an Oscar for Best International Film in 2021.
The movie is about stage actor and director Yusuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima), and based on a story written by author Haruki Murakami.
Director: Ryusuke Hamaguchi, 2021
Length: 179 minutes
Language: Japanese, German ST
Japanese For Beginners
2:00 - 3:00 pm
Venue: University Main Building, Department of Art History, Room 1.041
Instructor: Katharina Dudzus, The Japan Foundation Cologne
A class open for anyone to get started learning Japanese—no prior knowledge required. Everything you always wanted to know about Japanese you will find out here. By the end of the course you will know how to greet people, introduce yourself and tell people your hobby—in Japanese! Sign up! We get right to the learning part.
Workshop: Japanology and East Asian Studies in Ukraine
2:30 - 5:00 pm
Venue: This is an online-only workshop
Organizer: Prof. Dr. Harald Meyer, University of Bonn Department of Japanese and Korean Studies
Instructor/s: Prof. Dr. Gergana Petkova, Sofia University, and Dr. Yuliya Osadcha, University of Bonn and Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv
Topic 1: East Asian Studies at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv: History and Achievements
Instructor/s: Hab. Dr. Natalia Isaieva and Dr. Yuliya Osadcha Ferreira, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv
Topic 2: Ikenobo’s Ikebana in Ukraine: Past and Present
Instructor/s: Professor of Ikenobo Ikebana Olena Kapranova, Ikenobo Ukraine, Eastern Europe Ikenobo Chapter
Topic 3: The Major Areas of Activity of the Confucius Institute at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv
Instructor/s: Dr. Olha Vorobei, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv
Topic 4: Japanese Visual and Performing Arts in Kharkiv: Theory and Practice
Director: Prof. Dr. Svitlana Rybalko, Kharkiv State Academy of Design and Arts
Registration required: Yes (registration open here soon). Upon completing registration enrollees receive a link to participate.
Info Fair
3:00 - 6:00 pm CET
Venue: Main Building – Senatssaal
Before we begin with our on-stage program in the Festsaal, we invite you to have a look around our info fair in the Senatssaal next door. Here, you will find information and offers of the Japanese Consulate General in Düsseldorf, the Japa Society for the Promotion of Science, the Japan Foundation in Cologne, the German-Japanese Society Bonn as well as the German Academic Exchange Service around the topic of Japan. There will also be hands-on activities such as calligraphy and origami.
Prior registration is not required.
Information Event: Study and Research in Japan
4:00 - 5:30 pm
Venue: University Main Building, Grand Hall
The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD), the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) and the International Office of the University of Bonn will provide information on the Japanese higher education system as well as funding opportunities for students and researchers who plan to spend time abroad in Japan. In the Senatssaal next door, visitors will find individual support at the respective booths.
Prior registration is not required.
Welcome and lecture “Hearing Japan: How old records provide new insights”
5:30 - 6:30 pm CET
Venue: Main building - Festive Hall
Registration required: No
5:30 pm: Welcome
by Rector Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. Michael Hoch and Vice Rector for International Affairs Prof. Dr. Birgit Ulrike Münch
5:45 pm: Presentation
Prof. Dr. Reinhard Zöllner, Institute for Orient and Asian Studies
For three years, a multi-member team, in cooperation with numerous Japanese archives and specialists, digitized and researched the approximately 4,000 Japanese records from the 1920s to the 1940s that are housed in the Kataoka Collection of the Department of Japanese Studies and Korean Studies. The collection allows unique insights into the world of Japanese culture and politics before World War II: The Japan of that time is made audible and thus accessible in a completely different way.
Keynote Presentation
6:30 - 7:15 pm
Venue: University Main Building, Grand Hall
It's all about the Wurst: On the Transformation of Food in German and Japanese Cuisine
Prof. Dr. Kikuko Kashiwagi, Kansai University
Prior registration is not required.
Lecture Series on Japanese Culture and Society
14 October 2022 – 27 January 2023
Fridays, 10:15 – 11:30 am
Via Zoom (follow the link below)
In this joint lecture series of the University of Bonn, the University of Cologne and the Japan Society in Cologne, Japanese researchers from the humanities and social sciences analyze Japanese culture and society, addressing current issues in relation to Germany and highlighting challenges and problems faced by both countries.
Topics addressed in the lectures include historical revision of World War II, key aspects of the political and legal systems, environmental movements, handling of the COVID pandemic as well as Japanese literature and cinema.
Contact and organization
Maximilian Patzek
Amanda Henson
