Japan has long taken pains to preserve its outstanding cultural heritage, as is fully evident in the annual Shoso-in exhibition, held this year from Oct. 23 through Nov. 11.
Testifying to the nation's rich cultural achievements are recent recipients of the Order of Culture award such as architect Tadao Ando, fashion designer Issey Miyake and stage director Yukio Ninagawa, as well as the newly designated Persons of Cultural Merit such as kabuki actor Ichikawa Ennosuke, conductor Kazushi Ono, actress Sayuri Yoshinaga and cartoonist Shigeru Mizuki, whose fame was rekindled by the recent NHK drama "GeGeGe no Nyobo" (Wife of the GeGeGe Cartoonist).
However, the straitened economic times and change of government have cast a shadow on arts funding in Japan. After the new administration's policy review last year, the Agency for Cultural Affairs announced plans to cut subsidies substantially over the next three years. In response, the Japan Council of Performers' Organizations has launched a campaign to increase the percentage of the national budget spent on culture from 0.11 percent to 0.5 percent. It hopes to gather a million signatures on a petition to be presented to the Diet in December. Another goal is the establishment of a separate Ministry of Culture (at present, the Agency for Cultural Affairs is part of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology).