Asia Society is delighted to invite, Matt Alt, author of "Pure Invention: How Japan’s Pop Culture Conquered the World", to this special global webcast. Speaking from Tokyo, to the Asia Society global network, Matt will share his unique perspectives of Japanese pop culture and how it has influenced our pandemic lives. 

Drawing from his book, "Pure Invention: How Japan’s Pop Culture Conquered the World", Matt will share the secret history of modern life told through the lens of Japanese consumer products: “fantasy-delivery devices” that have transformed our lives as we have consumed them. From gadgets like the karaoke machine and the Walkman to immersive virtual escapes of anime, video games and anonymous online imageboards that have come to play such a role in the COVID-19 era, "essential inessentials" made in Japan reprogrammed the way we spend time with each other and soothe ourselves. They bewitched millions because they were well crafted products, but so too because advanced nations have come to resemble Japan demographically, politically, economically, and socially. That’s why when Japan’s economy crashed in the 1990s, its cultural clout paradoxically soared – and continues to today in an unprecedented time of instability, isolation, and pandemic.

Date: Monday 22 February 2021
Time: 7 - 8 pm  AEDT

Watch on YouTube

This event is open to the public and will run as webcast only. Registration is essential. For further enquiries contact: [email protected]