Presenter: Eun-Jai Shin – Art History
Faculty Mentor(s): Akiko Walley
Session: (Virtual) Oral Panel—Read, Speak and Act
The Meiji Restoration of 1868 was one of the most monumental moments of East Asian history, featuring Japan’s rise as an imperial power. Rigorous nationalistic development helped it achieve its first victory in the First Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895). However, these feats were not without insecurities, and Japan as the new ‘Empire of Asia’ necessitated validation of its reformed identity and influence. Ukiyo-e, woodblock printing from the Edo Period, was revitalized during this time and served as a new form of reportage, providing a popularly consumable and replicable source of current events. Furthermore, its realist agenda- assured credibility- enabled it to become an ideal platform for propaganda. This presentation will focus on marginalization- specifically the emasculation– of subaltern others during the First Sino-Japanese War- and how its compositional, figural and symbolic depiction of China and Korea assisted in the Japanese assertion of superiority and dominance.