慶應義塾大学アート・センター　Keio University Art Center

　Over the past eight years we have held the event “Talking about Tatsumi Hijikata” to mark the anniversary of his death on January 21. This year we will hold “Tatsumi Hijikata/Archive” in place of the regular event format, as a newly instituted public forum for debate. 

　2018 saw the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Keio University Art Center (KUAC) archive. To commemorate this milestone, we held a symposium themed on issues surrounding the archive. This is not to say that the issues with which the archive has grappled are in any way diminished simply by holding a symposium; merely theorizing about the archive does not in itself contribute to the archive’s materialization.

　In recent years, interrogations of Tatusmi Hijikata’s work and legacy have continued in line with new discoveries of relevant materials. The Tatsumi Hijikata Archive is positioned as a fixed star in our archiving apparatus. However, there have also appeared various “planets” in its orbit leading to the current situation whereby these “planets” have become inseparable appendages of the fixed star of the archive and have thus contributed to its expansion.

　Gaining access to previously unknown or uncollected materials is essential to further deepen studies of dance, and the mission of any archive is inextricably bound in with the collation and making public of such materials.  With this said, the nature of such a mission is under constant interrogation, and this process will inevitably be informed by disparate phenomenon, newly evident relationships, and the contingent activities which such developments demand.

　This public debate will introduce the archive’s various “constellations.” It will explore and attempt to trace the history of these materials, freshly considering the future and fate of the archive with the aim of both contextualizing the materials themselves and attempting to answer questions which remain around Tatsumi Hijikata.

Flyer (PDF 3.6 MB)