The National Art Center, Tokyo, has opened a major exhibition titled "Curating the Nation: Japanese Art from the 1950s to the Present." The show examines the complex and often contentious process of how Japanese art has been selected, presented, and defined for both domestic and international audiences over the past seven decades.
The exhibition matters because it critically reflects on the role of institutions and curators in shaping national identity through art. By presenting a meta-narrative about curation itself, it prompts viewers to question the power dynamics, historical narratives, and political influences behind what gets designated as representative of a nation's culture on the global stage.