Patricia Lenz (Zürich): “After ‘Freedom of Expression?'” Japanese Artists Caught between Nationalism and Preemptive Obedience.

In August 2019, an act of censorship caused an international sensation. Just three days after its opening, the exhibition “After ‘Freedom of Expression?'” at the Aichi Triennale in Nagoya was closed. Originally, the exhibition was intended to promote public discussion about freedom of expression in the arts. Part of the exhibition were mainly artworks dedicated to controversial topics in Japan. The works addressed war crimes, the role of the emperor in the war, the constitution’s commitment to pacifism or criticized the government. The organizers justified the closure with the security risk posed by the violent protests of right-wing lobbyist groups. In the past decade, this event has by no means remained as an isolated case in Japan’s art scene. Rather, the discussion of World War II has become almost taboo in the public art and culture scene. This development goes hand in hand with the increasing influence of historical revisionist attitudes in Japan’s government.
Instead of a unilateral act of censorship by the Japanese government, my study shows the complex interplay between right-wing groups’ activism, anticipatory obedience in the cultural sphere, and government funding policies. Drawing on Michel Foucault’s cultural theory, I trace how the restriction of artistic expression is linked to the longstanding struggle of various interest groups for the prerogative of interpretation over memories of the Asia-Pacific War. These recent trends have far-reaching consequences for the Japanese art scene. Increasingly, it is becoming more difficult to exhibit artworks on war-related themes that contradict a specific narrative of Japan’s past.