Japan Foundation: Imagining Samurai, A Look at Life through Art of the Edo Period

One of the keywords that you will often hear when talking about Japanese culture is Bushi, or Samurai. In recent years, Japanese mass media have begun to use the phrase Samurai Japan to describe their national baseball or soccer teams. Many people outside of Japan may be familiar with the Hollywood movie “The Last Samurai”.

Does our contemporary image of Samurai correctly reflect what it was like in Japan during the Edo period (17 -19^th centuries)?

To answer these questions and explore the real samurai, we have invited Dr. Hiroshi Kurushima, Professor at the National Museum of Japanese History in Chiba, Japan. This lecture offers an opportunity to think about the reality of Bushi and Samurai by examining some prominent Japanese art works from that era.

Location: The Japan Foundation, Toronto
Address: 131 Bloor St. W., 2nd Floor of the Colonnade Building
Admission: free
RSVP Required: www.jftor.org/whatson/rsvp.php
Language: Japanese with English translation

Dr. Hiroshi Kurushima is a Professor at the National Museum of Japanese History in Chiba, Japan. He graduated from the PhD program of Japanese History at Tokyo University and assumed his current position at the Museum in 2003. Dr. Kurushima specializes in late Edo-period Japanese history.