This one-day symposium brings together scholars, curators, and artists to explore the creation, interpretation, and presentation of Japanese American art. Focusing on the influential works of acclaimed Nikkei artists Isamu Noguchi and Chiura Obata, the event examines how their artistic visions were shaped by the spatial and historical contexts of the 20th century, including the profound impact of wartime incarceration.

The symposium also considers the broader landscape of Nikkei art—its development within arts collectives, community museums, and major contemporary art institutions. Presenters will offer insights into the politics of curating and making Japanese American art in the decades following World War II.

Speakers:

Sanae Nakatani (Tokyo Metropolitan University / USC Fulbright Fellow) 

Susan H. Kamei (USC) 

Nayan Shah (USC)

Ana Iwataki (USC) 

Clement Hanami (Japanese American National Museum) 

Kris Kuramitsu (Independent Curator) 

Schedule
10:30 AM. -  Welcome and refreshments 
11:00 AM  -  "Chiura Obata's Vibrating Life Worlds in California and Japan circa 1927-1930" - Nayan Shah (USC) 
11:30 AM "Chiura Obata's Contributions to Japanese American Incarceration Art” - Susan Kamei (USC) 
12:00 PM  -  "Weaving Art into Everyday Life: Isamu Noguchi and Social Space" - Sanae Nakatani (Tokyo Metropolitan University/USC Fulbright Fellow) 
12:30 PM. -  Q&A 
1:00 PM  -  Break
2:00 PM  -  Afternoon coffee, tea, light snacks
“800 Traction: Nikkei Artists and the Politics of Cultural Preservation in Little Tokyo”  -  Ana Iwataki (PhD candidate, USC) 
2:30 PM. -  “Art and Identity at the Japanese American National Museum”  -  Clement Hanami (Japanese American National Museum) 
3:00 PM  -  “Notes on Planning Afterlives: Japanese American Artists and the Postwar Era”  -  Kris Kuramitsu (Independent Curator) 
3:30 PM. -  Q&A 
4:00 PM  -  Event Concludes

Join us for a day of dialogue and discovery as we trace the dynamic histories, aesthetics, and curatorial practices that continue to shape Japanese American art today. Presented by the Shinso Ito Center and co-sponsored by the USC East Asian Studies Center and the USC Van Hunnick History Department.  

Image: Chiura Obata, Full Moon, Pasadena 1930. The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens. Gift of the Obata Family