The “Conference on Open Access to Culture” has been held since 2022 as part of Creative Well-being Tokyo, an initiative led by Tokyo Metropolitan Government and Arts Council Tokyo. The theme of its fifth edition is “Moving Together—A Culture of Mutuality.”  Bringing together artists, researchers, and practitioners from Japan and abroad, the conference will consider how arts and culture can help each individual live a better life, while exploring the nature of well-being and the future of society based on the idea of mutuality.

The program consists of three components: Conference, Studio (Networking), and Gallery (Exhibition). Programs will be accessible in Japanese, English, Japanese Sign Language (JSL), and International Sign (IS), with accessibility support including simultaneous interpretation and live captions.

We look forward to welcoming you!

 

Selected Programs (Conference)

1. Session 1 Practicing Interdependence  Date: October 31 (Sat), 10:00–12:00
     Speakers: Morishita Yu (Researcher and Educator / Project Associate Professor, Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo), Seo Natsumi (Artist / Writer), Christine Wong Yap (Visual Artist / Social Practitioner)
     Overview: Natural disasters and unforeseen accidents can suddenly transform familiar places and routine life, forcing people to live in radically changed environments. In such moments, when established ways of communicating and caring for one another must be reconsidered, how do emerging artists and researchers make sense of the situations before them and forge new relationships unlike those that existed before? Drawing on practices born out of interdependence, this session will explore what a culture of mutuality might look like.
   
   
2. Session 2 Identity and Culture
     Date: October 31 (Sat), 15:30–17:30
     Speakers: Jumana Emil Abboud (Visual Artist), Kitahara Mokottunas (Professor, Hokkaido University Center for Ainu and Indigenous Studies), Matsuzaki Jo (Professor, Miyagi University of Education)
     Overview: In our society, our sense of self is shaped by a wide range of factors, including culture, history, the body, the land, and our relationships with others. However, things taken for granted in society can sometimes silence certain individuals and obscure their culture and roots. Together with experts whose creative and academic practices are informed by their lived experiences, this session will explore the challenges and tensions inherent in living together, as well as the possibilities created by dialogue and expression.
   
   
3. Closing Session Creative Well-being — A Culture of Mutuality
     Date: November 1 (Sun), 15:30–18:00
     Speakers: Aoyagi Masanori (Executive Director, Arts Council Tokyo), Koike Kazuko (Creative Director), Miyajima Tatsuo (Contemporary Artist), Justine Simons OBE(Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries, London), Horiuchi Naoko (Curator, Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT] / Project Director of “dear Me” / Childcare Worker), Roger McDonald (Curator, Arts Initiative Tokyo [AIT] / Art Historian)
     Overview: In response to our complex and ever-changing society, we will share from Tokyo the concept of “Creative Well-being” born from the efforts of arts and culture. Reflecting on discussions that began with a multispecies perspective of the world and expanded to themes of interdependence, identity, and human dignity, speakers well-versed in art and cultural policy will offer thoughts on the future.
   

 

 

Registration

Registration is now open.

For details and registration, please visit the official website:

International Conference on Open Access to Culture 2026 | The Conference on Open Access to Culture | Creative Wellbeing Tokyo Site

 

Inquiries

International Conference on Open Access to Culture 2026 Secretariat

 Tel: 050-1743-6392

 Fax: 050-3537-2045

 Email: info-cwt2026(at)jimukyoku-public.jp

*Please replace (at) with @.

Hours: Weekdays 10:00 – 18:00 *Closed on weekends and holidays, except October 31 (Sat) and November 1 (Sun)

Please do not contact the venue directly.

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