Olympic Spirit (4/5) Olympics and Culture — Tracings, Projections, and Intersections

Contribution to a curated joint exhibition and research symposium between Joshibi University of Art and Design and Loughborough University.Joint Exhibition: 4th July – 1st August 2018 , Sagamihara Campus, Joshibi University of Art and Design, Japan.‘In this research project, academics of Joshibi University of Art and Design and Loughborough University focused on points of intersection of "Olympics and Culture", inspired by the 2012 Olympics and Paralympics held in the UK, and the 2020 Olympics and Paralympics soon to be held in Japan.Artists and researchers of both institutions conducted collaborative research and exchanged ideas to consider ways of thinking and working beyond individual units, as universities and individuals from different countries. The project aimed at the fostering of international collaboration in the field of the arts as well as increased exchange and consolidated understanding born out of focused and shared research between two universities. This exhibition is the result of the project. Approximately eight academics from each institution exhibited a variety of works based on the exhibition theme.The project aims to investigate, realize and highlight the creative and cultural capital that can be generated by hosting a major global sporting event. The exhibition comprises art, design and cultural artefacts created by researchers responding to the hosting of the Olympic Games through tracing, projecting and intersecting ideas. The exhibits offer chances for the visitor to reflect on the opportunities, achievements and issues of hosting an Olympic Games.The display of works depicts a 'collective memory' of the Olympic Games shared across cultures by researchers engaging in shared dialogues during the construction of works and suggests how these memories feature in everyday life. Such memories are communicated across time and space through conventional, social and mass media, and by extension explore how communities are formed and develop through shared memories and re-enactment through creative works’ (Dennis and Selby, 2018).Dennis, L. and Selby, A. (eds) (2018) Joint exhibition of joshibi university of art and design, and loughborough university: olympics and culture - tracings, projections, and intersections [Exhibition Catalogue]. Joshibi University of Art and Design, Japan.© Richard Johnson