JAPAN: Kingdom of Characters Opening

The JAPAN: Kingdom of Characters exhibit had its opening at the Metropolitan Museum of Manila. Despite the rainy weather, quite a number of people, including Doraemon, showed up and it was no surpise that a handful came in their cosplay attire. The exhibit, presented by the Japan Foundation, Manila and the Embassy of Japan along with Toshiba, highlights the characters originating from manga, anime, video games, etc. that has become part of the daily life of the Japanese people.

Gerry Torres, director of the Metropolitan Museum of Manila gave the welcome remarks while Corazon Alvina (Vice Chairman of the Board of the Metropolitan Museum of Manila), Shinsuke Shimizu (Minister and Head of Chancery of the Embassy of Japan), Shuji Takatori (Director of the Japan Foundation, Manila) and Josel Ignacio (Director for Northeast Asia Division of the Office of Asian and Pacific Affairs, DFA) gave messages to the guests gathered at the lobby before formally opening the exhibit.

Doraemon makes a special appearance

Then it was time to view the exhibit. The exhibit consisted of prints which showed which characters came into the forefront during a particular decade. I liked how some historical events were placed beside the prints giving an idea on how life was like during the decade and how these characters fit in to the overall picture of Japanese history and culture. The prints were supported by a handful of statues like that of Pikachu from Pokemon and the RX-78 Gundam from the Mobile Suit Gundam series.

RX-78 Gundam

Another part of the exhibit was a reproduction of a teenager’s room full of Hello Kitty items which is typical for most girls in Japan. This showed how the characters have already become part of the Japanese people’s daily lives. And this penetration has conquered all demographics not just children and teenagers. And then there were also a few videos projected on the wall showing flash animation of newer characters. The video portion showed where the future of characters is headed. There’s also a portion where characters representing different regions were shown. It’s interesting to realize that characters/mascots are so accepted in Japanese society that regional governments actually make use of them to foster hometown pride and affection.

JAPAN: Kingdom of Characters

The exhibit is not that extensive especially for someone like me who is very much aware of who these characters are and what their impact had been to Japanese society which has now expanded globally. I guess that this exhibit is really geared towards the uninitiated, the one who would scratch his or her head thinking why an adult male likes to build Gundam models. I did feel that the exhibit should’ve included more in depth historical information regarding the characters and their cultural, social, political, economical impact in Japan. I guess that this will be fulfilled by a couple of lectures happening at the same venue. Prof. Tito Valiente (Japanese Studies) of the Ateneo de Manila University will give a lecture on July 29, 2011 2:00 PM while Prof. Romanlito Austria (College of Fine Arts) of the University of the Philippines will give the other on August 12, 2011 2:00 PM. The JAPAN: Kingdom of Characters exhibition runs until August 20.

RAd and Shuji Takatori, Director of Japan Foundation, Manila