Writer Profile

Yu Homma
Museum Full-time Lecturer, Commons
Yu Homma
Museum Full-time Lecturer, Commons
Image: Scene from the Chutobu Junior High School workshop
On June 18, 2021, the ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Museum Commons (KeMCo) grand opening project "Cross-scape" came to a close. In "Moji-kei: Landscapes of Letters¡ªMasterpieces of the Century Akasaka Collection," we traced the development of writing culture by combining masterpieces from the newly donated Century Akasaka Collection with rare books from the Juku's collection. In "Shu-kei: Landscapes of Gathering¡ªFrom the Cultural Properties of ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app," we selected and introduced masterpieces from the Juku's art collection that were created against the backdrop of human connections. Centered on these two exhibitions and the international symposium "Hon-kei: Landscapes of Association Created by Book Culture," we collaborated with teams from both within ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app and outside to conduct various experiments exploring the possibilities of museums. KeMCo's mission is to serve as a "hub" for the decentralized museums at ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app and to create interactions surrounding cultural properties. We believe we were able to present one form of this practice through this project. In this article, I would like to report on the grand opening project from the perspective of collaboration.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Culture Pass
In conjunction with the grand opening of KeMCo, exhibitions were held on the Mita Campus at the Art Space (South Annex) of the ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Art Center (KUAC) and the Mita Media Center exhibition room (´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Library (New Building)). The exhibition at the Art Space was "Artist Voice I: Tatsuo Kawaguchi¡ªApnea." It focused on new works by Tatsuo Kawaguchi, who practiced art production while facing the COVID-19 situation head-on. At the Mita Media Center, as a counterpart to "Moji-kei," the exhibition "(Western) Moji-kei: Typefaces and Movable Type in Western Rare Books from the Mita Media Center (´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Library)" was held under the supervision of Takami Matsuda (Professor, Faculty of Letters / Director, KeMCo).
KeMCo planned the "´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Culture Pass," a common ticket for visiting the three venues. We attempted to link the exhibitions and highlight the art and culture hubs scattered across the Mita Campus.
´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Object Hub
On April 14, prior to the opening, the "´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Object Hub (KOH)" was launched. KOH is a website that provides an overview of ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app's cultural collections. At the time of release, approximately 11,500 cultural properties were registered in collaboration with the Fukuzawa Memorial Center for Modern Japanese Studies, the Faculty of Letters Major in Archaeology and Ethnology, the Mita Media Center, and the Committee for the Management and Operation of Art Objects. Furthermore, in May, we began collaborating with "Japan Search," a national cross-disciplinary integrated portal. We have established the basic framework for connecting ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app and cultural properties nationwide in a digital environment. We encourage everyone to try searching for "Yukichi Fukuzawa" on Japan Search.
Kuzushiji AI x Chutobu Junior High School Workshop
The transcription of "kuzushiji" (cursive script), which is necessary for deciphering historical materials, is undergoing a major period of transformation due to AI technology. In the "Moji-kei" exhibition, with the cooperation of the Center for Open Data in the Humanities (CODH), we released CODH's mobile app "miwo," which is equipped with kuzushiji recognition AI, to the general public for the first time. We also held a workshop using the app with students from the calligraphy and art clubs of ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app Chutobu Junior High School. The workshop was designed so that students could appreciate the works while learning kuzushiji experientially, and then create secondary works based on their favorite exhibition pieces using the fabrication equipment at KeMCo StudI/O. The works by the Chutobu Junior High School students were all masterpieces, and we were surprised by their imagination and creative power.
KeMCoM Project
A major force in connecting exhibitions and events with various people was "KeMCoM," which operates out of KeMCo StudI/O on the 8th floor. KeMCoM is a team of ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app students who work across disciplines and campuses, exploring new possibilities for culture, art, and fabrication from a perspective and context unique to students. For the grand opening, they presented three projects: "Kawaiinfo" (sharing art that can be felt casually from a "kawaii" perspective on social media), "3D Virtual Exhibitions" (a KeMCo experience in virtual space), and "Augmented Aesthetics" (expanding aesthetic "senses"). The ´ºÓêÖ±²¥app students spent every single day at KeMCo StudI/O, explaining not only their own projects but also the studio's concept and the highlights of the exhibitions. They also served as tutors for the workshop with Chutobu Junior High School and single-handedly handled the program composition and appearances for the "Shu-kei" gallery talks.
Looking back quickly at the grand opening, these two months have made me realize that KeMCo is a place where exhibitions and their related programs work together to activate dynamic collaborations. The next project is "Object Reading: Eight Views of Close Reading." This exhibition, a collaboration between eight departments on the Mita Campus, will be held starting August 16.
*Affiliations and titles are as of the time of publication.