Twenty international experts and outstanding Japanese artists will meet at the DIJ in August to discuss how the arts can contribute to overcoming the multiple challenges facing regions in Japan. Since the early 2000s, regional arts projects and festivals have sprung up in many places in rural Japan, including the Triennial in Echigo-Tsumari and the Toyooka theatre festival. Many regions anticipate such events to create new types of social, cultural, and economic capital in the area. The symposium addresses ‘Art in the Countryside’ from an interdisciplinary perspective, including Visual and Performing Arts, Cultural Policy, Tourism Studies, and Social Anthropology. Limited places are available for on-site participation. The event is organised by Gunhild Borggreen (Copenhagen) and DIJ’s Barbara Geilhorn. It is part of their projects on Collaboration and Community Building in Contemporary Art and Local Issues Take Stage – Culture and Community Revitalization, respectively. Details and registration here