From traditional to popular culture, music and even cuisine, the arts and culture of Japan are currently the object of intense interest from the rest of the world. Post-pandemic the country is attracting more overseas travelers than ever, with Kyoto one of their main destinations. Meanwhile, reflecting the complex social, political and economic realities of the world today, the contemporary art that has expanded globally since the 1990s has developed into an increasingly multifaceted scene in recent years that also honors diversity of ethnic, racial and gender identity, and the historical backdrop of culture.

ICA Kyoto was established in 2020 as an adjunct of the graduate school of the Kyoto University of the Arts, with the aim of forging direct links between Kyoto with its deeply rooted traditional culture, and international contemporary art trends. Kyoto is home to multiple art schools that send thousands of graduates out into the world each year, and trying to choose a direction to take in the increasingly complex ecosystem of contemporary art is doubtless a disorienting experience for these young artists.

In 2018, the Kyoto University of the Arts graduate school launched the Global Seminar, providing a setting for learning via an intensive course of lectures by artists and curators actively working in various places around the world. Sharing the same time and space has led to enduring relationships, the networks formed there in fact gradually expanding to connect graduates to different realms. These activities have in turn led to partnerships with ICA Kyoto to stage international symposiums, and run lecture series.

The 2025 reorganization of art majors at the graduate school will see ICA Kyoto more deeply involved in education, and playing a larger role in nurturing the next generation. Specifically this will involve, in addition to the existing international symposiums, lectures, and workshops, setting up Global studies and Asian studies courses at postgraduate level (as inheritors of the global seminars), and establishing a new conference for students of Asian art universities. Following partially in the footsteps of our current online magazine REALKYOTO FORUM, we will also launch a new magazine, ICA KYOTO JOURNAL. Through collaborative programs with artists working on the frontline internationally, we will also gain practical experience in all aspects of art-making from research to production processes.

This diverse program of activities will also provide opportunities to learn the history and traditions of Japanese culture. Another goal will be to place more emphasis on reciprocal links within Asia, and acquire a deeper understanding of historical and geographical context in the region.

The world is a countless collection of the local, and no one place can be described as “the world.” Connecting with different people, experiences and knowledge allows us to imagine the structure of the world, the history of humanity, and that of the cosmos. Join us, through ICA Kyoto, to imagine a magnificent future for our world.