Commemorative Event of the Exhibition of 1920s Japanese Book Donation
2022/12/21
On 15 December, the commemorative event of the special exhibition of the 1920s Japanese Book Donation was held at the Faculty Club in Leuven, which Japanese Chargé d'affaires to Belgium Mr. Ogawa joined. The exhibition is jointly organised by KU Leuven and the Catholic University of Louvain (UCLouvain) to mark the centenary of the Japanese book donation made on the occasion of the reconstruction of the University of Louvain library after World War I (see article of 5 September 2022). You can visit this special exhibition until 15 January 2023.
Following the opening remarks by Ms. Van Kiel, Director of KU Leuven Libraries, two Japanese silent films made in 1920s, “Jiraiya the Hero” and “Tokyo March” were screened with live narration by a benshi (traditional Japanese silent film narrator) Mr. Ichiro Kataoka, together with music played by a koto player Ms. Yasumi Miyazawa and a pianist Ms. Reiko Emura. With the explanation of these two films produced in the same period as Japanese book donation given by Professor Schmidt, Head of the Japanese Language Department at KU Leuven, the participants enjoyed the rare occasion to admire the Japanese culture of that time.
Following the opening remarks by Ms. Van Kiel, Director of KU Leuven Libraries, two Japanese silent films made in 1920s, “Jiraiya the Hero” and “Tokyo March” were screened with live narration by a benshi (traditional Japanese silent film narrator) Mr. Ichiro Kataoka, together with music played by a koto player Ms. Yasumi Miyazawa and a pianist Ms. Reiko Emura. With the explanation of these two films produced in the same period as Japanese book donation given by Professor Schmidt, Head of the Japanese Language Department at KU Leuven, the participants enjoyed the rare occasion to admire the Japanese culture of that time.