ABSTRACT
This chapter adapts an approach based on “the artist as ethnographer” in order to analyze contemporary Japanese artworks that deal with generational issues. First, the chapter presents an overview of how age groups and generational gaps are discussed in Japanese contemporary art, moving from the shinjinrui generation of artists born in the 1960s, whose art engages with consumer society and mass popular culture, to the generation of freeters, who engage in various artist-driven social actions. Specific groups within these cohorts are discussed, including female artists, and the post-bubble era generation of artists is identified as the “the 00 generation”. The overview is followed by an analysis of two art projects that comment on demographic changes and generational differences with two different artistic strategies – an ethnographic approach in which the artist Yanagi Miwa uses the information from her conversations with young informants to visualize issues of generational conflict and old age; and a project by the art action team Me that involves local citizens of all ages in practical activities with a purpose of making people of the local community perceive their everyday environments from new perspectives.
