Join us for an exciting evening exploring and expanding on the themes of the book, Mingei / Art Without Heroes. 

Originating in Japan in the 1920s, the Mingei movement was based on the principle that beauty is inherent in handmade, everyday objects created by anonymous craftspeople. Spearheaded by the philosopher Yanagi Sōetsu, and potters Hamada Shōji and Bernard Leach, the movement sought to elevate the status of folk craft in a rapidly modernising society.

Mingei / Art Without Heroes covers a wide range of objects associated with Mingei, from ceramics and furniture to textiles and toys, alongside a series of profiles of leading designers and makers working in Japan today. Contributors from a variety of backgrounds explore Mingei’s origins, interpretations and contemporary implications, shedding new light on the ways in which the principles of the movement remain relevant to today’s personal, social and environmental concerns.

This event forms part of the Mingei on the Move public programme, designed in response to the Gallery’s Art Without Heroes: Mingei exhibition. The programme spotlights the diasporic nature of Mingei and why artists from all cultures and backgrounds are continually inspired by the movement’s ethos.

• 6pm – 6:30pm Doors Open
• 6:30pm – 7:30pm Panel Discussion
• 7:30pm – 9pm Private View

Mingei / Art Without Heroes is edited by Roisin Inglesby and published by Yale University Press. Read more about the book here.

Tomo Yoshizawa is a journalist and cultural translator, based in Japan.

In collaboration with The Japan Foundation.