Speakers

Born 20 November 1946 in Nagano Prefecture
1987 Received the 18th Soichi Oya Nonfiction Award for "A Portrait of the Mikado"
1996 Received the Bungei Shunju Readers Award for "Research into the Japanese Nation"
2002 Named by Prime Minister Koizumi as member of the Promotion Committee for Privatization of the Four Highway-related Public Corporations
2006 Named Special Professor at Tokyo Institute of Technology
2007 Vice Governor of Tokyo
2012 Elected Governor of Tokyo

Born in Japan's prefecture of Ibaraki, Kazuyo Sejima received a degree in architecture at the Japan Women's University in 1981. Upon completion of her studies she began working in the office of architect Toyo Ito. In 1987 she opened her own studio in Tokyo and then in 1995, together with Ryue Nishizawa, she founded SANAA. Sejima's main works include The 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art in Kanazawa*, The New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York*, The Rolex Learning Center*, Inujima "Art House Project" and the Louvre Lens*. SANAA's current projects include the La Samaritaine department store in Paris. Kazuyo Seijima was awarded the Pritzker Prize in 2010. *=collaboration with Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa/ SANAA

Architect and designer Neri Oxman is the Sony Corporation Career Development Professor and Assistant Professor of Media Arts and Sciences at the MIT Media Lab, where she founded and directs the Mediated Matter design research group. Her group explores the unification between digital and biological design fabrication. Oxman was named to ICON's list of the top 20 most influential architects to shape our future (2009), and to one of the 100 most creative people by FASTCOMPANY (2009). In 2008, she was named "Revolutionary Mind" by SEED Magazine. Her work has been exhibited at MoMA (NYC) and is part of the museum's permanent collection. In 2012 the Centre Georges Pompidou Museum (Paris, France) acquired her works for its permanent collection. Other exhibitions include the Smithsonian Institute (Washington, DC), Museum of Science (Boston, MA), FRAC Collection (Orleans, France), and the 2010 Beijing Biennale. She is included in prestigious private collections and has received numerous awards including a 40 Under 40 Building Design + Construction Award (2012), a Graham Foundation Carter Manny Award (2008), the International Earth Award for Future-Crucial Design (2009), and a METROPOLIS Next Generation Award (2009). Oxman coined the term "material ecology" to describe her work, implementing the science of ecology to the world of the artificial.

Elizabeth Diller is a founding principal of Diller Scofidio + Renfro, a 90 person interdisciplinary design studio that integrates architecture, the visual arts, and the performing arts. Ms. Diller is a recipient of the MacArthur Foundation ‘Genius' Award, the Smithsonian National Design Award, the Brunner Prize from the American Academy of the Arts and Letters, and the American Academy in Rome Centennial Medal of Honor. Ms. Diller is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Letters. DS+R's international body of work includes the Lincoln Center redesign and the High Line park in New York, the Broad Museum in Los Angeles, the Blur building in Switzerland, the Museum of Image & Sound in Rio de Janeiro, the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston, the Columbia University Business School and Medical Center, and Culture Shed and Tower D residential building at Hudson Yards. Ms. Diller is a Professor of Architecture at Princeton.

Fiorenzo Omenetto is the Frank C. Doble Professor of Engineering at Tufts University. He is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering and also holds an appointment in the Department of Physics.

His research interests cover optics, nanostructuredmaterials (such as photonic crystals and photonic crystal fibers), nanofabrication, and biopolymer-based photonics and electronics. Since moving to Tufts at the end of 2005, he has proposed and pioneered the use of silk as a material platform for photonics, optoelectronics and high-technology applications.

He was named one of the top-50 people in tech by Fortune magazine in a class of 50 featuring Steve Jobs, Jeff Bezos, and Shigeru Miyamoto among others.

Prof. Omenetto was formerly a J. Robert Oppenheimer Fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratory, a Guggenheim Fellow, and is a Fellow of the Optical Society of America.

Sebastian Seung is Professor of Computational Neuroscience in the MIT Brain & Cognitive Sciences Department and MIT Media Lab. As a pioneer in the new field of connectomics, he investigates the hypothesis that "You are your connectome" —that the properties of your mind, from memories to mental disorders, are encoded in the unique patterns of connectivity between your 100 billion neurons. To enable such research, he develops methods of combining machine and human intelligence to make sense of "big data" from the brain. In 2012 his lab launched EyeWire, the first web site that allows anyone, anywhere, to play a game to map the brain. His book Connectome: How the Brain's Wiring Makes Us Who We Are was chosen by the Wall Street Journal as Top Ten Nonfiction of 2012. Before joining the MIT faculty, he studied at Harvard University and worked in the Theoretical Physics Department at Bell Laboratories.

Sang-chuel Choe is currently professor emeritus of urban and regional planning at Graduate School of Environmental Studies, Seoul National University and has been the Chairman of Presidential Committee on Regional Development. His former engagements were President of the Seoul Development Institute, a research arm for Seoul Metropolitan Government and an advisor for creative cities form in Korea and. abroad. He has been co-chairing the national conference against the relocation of capital city and active in the movement of innovative cities in Korea.

Dr. Liu Thai Ker, a renowned architect-planner, was Chief Architect & CEO of Housing & Development Board, 1975-1989 where he saw the completion of over half a million dwelling units. He was Chief Planner & CEO of Urban Redevelopment Authority, 1989-1992 for which he spearheaded the major revision of the Singapore Concept Plan 1991. Since 1992, he has been Director of RSP Architects Planners & Engineers (Pte) Ltd, a consulting firm which has projects in Singapore and over a dozen other countries. He has been appointed as the planning advisor to nearly thirty major cities in China. He is concurrently the Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Centre for Liveable Cities. He is also the Adjunct Professor of the School of Design & Environment and of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore as well as the Nanyang Technological University. He is also a member of several governmental bodies in Singapore. Dr. Liu is also a recipient of several awards, both locally and internationally.

Shingo Tsuji is the President & CEO of Mori Building Co., Ltd. He joined Mori Building in 1985 after receiving his Master's Degree in Architecture from Division of Engineering, Yokohama National University. He has driven the development of Roppongi Hills Project from 1999 at Roppongi 6-chome Area Redevelopment Project Promotion Headquarters. In 2001 he launched Town Management Preparatory Office, creating a new industry concept of Town Management, unified branding, marketing, and operation of a large-scale, mixed-use development. He has spearheaded the creation of new added-value of the area as the city of constant excitement where people around the globe gather. Roppongi Hills has since redefined urban lifestyle – a place of working, living, and enjoying art within a walking distance - where urban life flourishes. In July 2006, he was named Director of Roppongi Hills Management Division and Town Management Department; in June 2008, Managing Director of Town Management Department. His responsibilities expanded to include China Business in August 2008 and Leasing Operations in January 2009. He became the Executive Vice-President in December 2009. In June 2011 appointed as the President & CEO.

Aaron Lee has been fusing arts and architecture together by involving world-class designer teams in building projects, while at the same time developing a strong and innovative image for JUT Group. Utilizing the Development Group's greatest assets, land and space, his JUT Foundation for Arts and Architecture encourages cross-media experimentation in various arts and facilitates different forms of partnership between arts and business.

Aaron Lee curated the Museum of Tomorrow, a mobile gallery series, and also organized the UrbanCore project as well as many other architectural education projects.

Dr Lo is Chairman and Chief Executive of the Hong Kong-listed Gold Peak Industries (Holdings) Ltd.

He is the chairman of both board of directors of Hong Kong Design Centre and CreateSmart Initiative Vetting Committee of HKSAR Government. He is a member of the Economic Development Commission and the Convenor of its Working Group on Manufacturing Industries, Innovative Technology, and Cultural and Creative Industries. He is also a member of the board of the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority and chairman of its Museum Committee.

Dr Lo is an honorary professor of School of Design of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the chairman of the School Industry Advisory Committee of the faculty. He is the chairman of board of directors of The Hotel ICON Limited, which is the teaching and research hotel under PolyU. He is also a member of the Board of Overseers of Institute of Design at Illinois Institute of Technology, US.

Muneaki Masuda was born in Hirakata City, Osaka Prefecture in 1951. He currently serves as the President and CEO of Culture Convenience Club, which operates TSUTAYA and T Card. After founding TSUTAYA BOOKS in 1983, he established Culture Convenience Club in 1985. He also opened "Daikanyama T-SITE," including Daikanyama TSUTAYA BOOKS, in Daikanyama, Tokyo in December 2011 to propose a new lifestyle to people in their premier age (adults in their fifties or older). Mr. Masuda is instrumental in planning and creating cultural infrastructure in people's lives.

Francois Bancon, a French national, graduated from Ecole Nationale Superieure des Beaux-Art with degree in Fine Arts and History of Arts. Since joining Nissan in 1999 after Renault, he has been working in various positions including in the Design division and in Marketing (as a Creative director for the Zero Emission initiative). He currently is Division General Manager for Nissan Motor Co., Ltd, including for the INFINITI luxury automotive brand. His responsibilities include overseeing product global strategy and planning for the Exploratory and Advanced Product Division.

Tim Brown is CEO and president of IDEO. He frequently speaks about the value of design thinking and innovation to business people and designers around the world. He participates in the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, and his talks Serious Play and Change by Design appear on TED.com.

An industrial designer by training, Tim has earned numerous design awards and has exhibited work at the Axis Gallery in Tokyo, the Design Museum in London, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He takes special interest in the convergence of technology and the arts, as well as the ways in which design can be used to promote the well-being of people living in emerging economies.

Tim advises senior executives and boards of Fortune 100 companies and has led strategic client relationships with such organizations as the Mayo Clinic, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, and Steelcase. He is a board member of the Mayo Innovation Advisory Council and the Advisory Council of Acumen Fund, a nonprofit global venture fund focused on improving the lives of the poor. Additionally, he writes for the Harvard Business Review, The Economist, and other prominent publications. His book on how design thinking transforms organizations, Change by Design, was released by HarperBusiness in September 2009.

Tim maintains a blog on the subject of design thinking.

Born in 1958, graphic designer Kenya Hara emphasizes design of the abstract as much as he does the physical. In 2000, he produced "Re-Design—The Daily Products of the 21st Century," an exhibition that demonstrated how resources for astonishing designs can be found in the context of mundane, everyday life. He was appointed to the Advisory Board of Muji in 2002, becoming the company's art director. In 2004, he orchestrated the exhibition "HAPTIC—Awakening the Senses," where he exposed the great design resources that are dormant in the human senses. His career often involves him in projects deeply intertwined with Japanese culture, including production of the opening and closing ceremonies of the Nagano Winter Olympics and the official poster for Expo 2005 in Aichi. Other artistic events he has staged include "Tokyo Fiber—Senseware," held in Paris, Milan and Tokyo in 2007 and 2009, as well as "Japan Car," which ran from 2008 through 2009 in Paris and at Science Museum in London. He is also expanding his sphere of activity to encompass other parts of Asia as well, as seen in "Designing Design—Kenya Hara 2011 China Exhibition," a show that he launched in Beijing in 2011. One of his big focuses now is "House Vision," a project for spotlighting Japanese industry's potential to the rest of the world. His books, such as Designing Design and White, have been translated into various languages, including Asian languages other than Japanese. His current positions include Representative Director of Nippon Design Center, Inc., Professor at Musashino Art University, President of Japan Design Committee Co., Ltd., and Vice President of Japan Graphic Designers Association Inc.

Born in 1975. Sculptor. Received his Ph.D in Fine Art Sculpture and became an assistant professor at Kyoto University of Art and Design.

In 2009, he established "SANDWICH," a creative platform for production in Fushimi, Kyoto where many projects take place in collaboration with other fields such as graphic, architecture and product design.

In 2011, his solo exhibition was taken place at Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo (MOT). In 2013, he joins to Setouchi Triennale and Aichi Triennale after having his successful project "Manfild", a large scale public art exhibited permanently at Sculpture Garden of ARARIO GALLERY in Cheonan, Korea.

Having unique concept of PixCell as an axis, his works continue to unfold expressions in diversity.

http://www.kohei-nawa.net/

http://sandwich-cpca.net/

Huang Sheng-Yuan, born 1963, Taipei, Taiwan, graduated from Tunghai University Dept. of Architecture and received his M. Arch. with Honors from Yale University, 1994 settled down in Yilan. 19 years of practicing in the field, he is currently the Principal of Fieldoffice Architects, and also the mentor of Field School, initiated architectural actions with a group of young architects from all around, gradually expanded to the diverse re-development of the local ecology, waters, and the urban space. The social collective creativity of the team has received Far Eastern Design Awards, National Landscape Re-development Award, and more than 10 Taiwan Architecture Awards, and has frequently been invited to participate in international exhibitions, social and cultural activities. By means of the attendance in Venice Architecture Biennale and the lectures given in MIT in USA and other institutions such as in India、Singapore and China, the team encourages new generations to recognize the potential of Taiwan, inviting more people to explore the local possibilities of healthier and more sustainable life.

Hideki Kasai joined Obayashi Corporation in 1989, and since then has designed redeveloped complexes, office buildings, commercial establishments, film studios, city parks, and more. He is also involved in the FUWWAT2050 project, as well as a project aimed at making a hypothetical CG recreation of the Library of Alexandria. He has received awards such as the Grand Prize in Environmental Art, the Nagoya City Scenic Design Award, the Aichi Cityscape and Architecture Award, the IES Illumination Award, and the Good Design Award.

Born in 1970 in Oita, Japan. Participated in the International Studio Program by PS1 in New York (2000-2001). Stayed in Paris as an external scholar of the Agency for Cultural Affairs (Japan) (2002-2004). Founded BEPPU PROJECT with an aim to hold international exhibitions in cooperation with different organizations (2005). General producer of the "Mixed Bathing World" (2009, 2012). General director of the "Kunisaki Art Project" (2012, 2013). In 2008 received the “New Face” Award from the Ministry of Education (Art Promotion section). Major Exhibitions; “Taipei Biennial” Taipei Fine Arts Museum, Taiwan (2000-2001), “Exposition collective” Palais de Tokyo, Paris, France (2002)

Mr. Fujimori is President and CEO of LIXIL Corporation since August 2011. He also serves as an external director of Tokyo Electric Power Company. He is a vice chairman of Keizai Doyukai, a major business federation, and leads its committee on the promotion of EPAs/FTAs. Prior to joining the LIXIL, he worked 25 years at GE where he was Senior Vice President and served as CEO of various Asian and global business divisions. Prior to joining GE he worked for Nissho Iwai Corporation (now Sojitz) for 10 years. He holds a bachelor's degree in petroleum engineering from the University of Tokyo and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon Graduate School of Business, where he serves as a lifetime member of the Board of Trustees.

Mark began his career with GE in 1980. After various leadership roles in the US, Taiwan, Indonesia and Thailand, moved to Japan as President & CEO of GE Capital Japan. Later assumed the role of President & CEO of GE Japan.

Via Prudential and Cerberus from 2003, Mark rejoined GE in 2007 as President & CEO of GE Japan. Appointed as President & CEO of GE Greater China in 2008 and assumed current role in March 2011.

Saskia Sassen is the Robert S. Lynd Professor of Sociology and Co-Chair, The Committee on Global Thought, Columbia University (http://www.saskiasassen.com). She is the author of several books. Five of her books are translated into Japanese, most recently, The Global City: New York, London, Tokyo, with Chikuma Shobo Publishing (November 2008), and Territory, Authority, Rights, with Ashoki in 2011. Her forthcoming book is Expulsions: When complexity produces elementary brutalities (Harvard University Press 2014). She has received diverse awards, from multiple doctor honoris causa to being chosen as one of the Top 100 Global Thinkers by Foreign Policy and as the 2013 winner of the Principe de Asturias Prize for the Social Sciences.

Ms. Karen Tang was appointed as the Executive Director of the Better Hong Kong Foundation in 2006. Upon graduation, she joined the Basic Law Consultative Committee of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) as the Administration Officer. After completing the consultation work, she developed her career in the media and multimedia industries, including worked as Deputy General Manager of Magazines Division of Ming Pao, General Manager of Yazhou Zhoukan, Deputy General Manager of the Chinese Television Network, General Manager of the Hongkong Telecom IMS, Director of Multimedia Services and Director of E-commerce under the Hutchison Whampoa Group.

Ms. Tang worked for the Tung Chee-Hwa Election Office in 2001 and the Leung Chun-Ying Election Campaign Office in 2012 (for the election of Chief Executive of the HKSAR). Both candidates won. Ms. Tang holds a BA in Social Science and an MA in Public Administration.

Mika Ninagawa has won a number of awards including the Kimura Ihei Award for photography. She has also produced a number of motion picture films.

In 2007, she directed the movie Sakuran.

In 2008, Ninagawa's solo exhibition, Mika Ninagawa Exhibition, toured museums across Japan, attracting 180,000 visitors.

Ninagawa published the photograph collection, MIKA NINAGAWA, through Rizzoli N.Y., generating much buzz throughout the world.

In July 2012, Helter Skelter directed by Ninagawa was released in cinemas Japan wide, recording box-office sales of 2.2 billion yen.

Cafe and bar Shanghai Rose, with interior design by Mika Ninagawa, opened in Spring 2013 at the Shanghai Bund.

A free camera app called cameran is now available and allows users to see the world through the eyes of Mika Ninagawa. http://cameran.in

Michael Molasky taught Japanese literature at Connecticut College and the University of Minnesota before moving to Hitotsubashi University in 2010. He has recently accepted a position in the Faculty of International Research and Education at Waseda University, where he teaches a wide range of courses on Japanese culture and society. In addition to his English publications, which focus on Japanese and Okinawan literature, since 2005 he has published five books in Japanese, including studies of Japan's jazz culture, izakaya (pub) culture, and personal essays. He also writes essays for Japanese newspapers and magazines, and occasionally plays piano in Tokyo's jazz clubs.

Born in 1964 in Saga Prefecture, Yoshiaki Koga joined Kodansha as an editor in 1989. Leveraging his first-hand experience of foreign cultures acquired through backpacking, and as a writer and editor of Shukan Gendai and Friday, he was responsible for a number of articles on current affairs and natural disasters covering both Japan and overseas. While he has become successful thanks to his unique journalistic approach, he is also an avid photographer who takes many pictures in his private time. While Koga was in France on a study trip in 2001, he discovered the international weekly magazine, Courrier International, a publication he was particularly impressed by. Later, he launched Courrier Japon in 2005 based on the same concept, and became the publication's first chief editor. In 2010, Koga resigned from his position and is currently responsible for business development in India at the International Business Division of Kodansha. Koga worked as Chief Producer for Suraj: The Rising Star, the Indian anime adaptation of Kyojin no Hoshi, which attracted a large amount of attention as the first Japan-India anime.

Born in Kagoshima Prefecture, Toshiaki Miura is a graduate of the School of Political Science and Economics of Waseda University, and has completed a master's program at the Graduate School of International Christian University. He joined Asahi Shimbun in 1984. After working for the political department and the AERA editorial team, as well as working as a correspondent in Washington, Miura is currently an editorial writer in charge of politics and foreign diplomacy. Between August 2009 and July 2010, he was a researcher for the Program on U.S.-Japan Relations at Harvard University. From April 2011 to March 2013, Miura was a commentator for TV Asahi's program, Hodo Station. Since April this year he has been working as Chief Editor of GLOBE.

Aoyama’s career with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government began in 1967, serving in capacities such as manager in the Bureau of Urban Development, general manager in the elderly care division, general manager of planning, and chair of the policy press room.
From 1999 through 2003, Aoyama served as the Vice-Governor of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and during this period was responsible for areas including crisis management, urban structure and finance. He began as Professor at the Meiji University Graduate School of Governance in 2004, specializing in urban policy and crisis management.
Aoyama is also a published author, with works such as “Experimental Studies on Urban Governance”, “Policy Creation for Municipalities” (Sanseido), and “History of Deep Regret of Edo Tokyo” (Shodensha), as well as “Shinpei Goto” under the pen name Sentaro Go (Gakuyo Shobo).

Bill Kistler leads Kistler & Company offering advisory, investment and development services to cities and the real estate industry. He recently co-founded Knowledge City Partners, a network of academic, business and government leaders. Previously, Kistler was the Senior Partner at Korn/Ferry International leading the Real Estate practice in EMEA.
From 2003 - 2009 he was President of the Urban Land Institute–EMEA a non-profit, research and education institute dedicated to the built environment.Before joining ULI, Kistler was Managing Director of Equinox partners, an advisory and executive search firm focused on the real estate industry with offices in Europe and the US. The firm’s clients included developers, investors, corporations and governments. Prior to this he was General Manager of the Disney Development Company, responsible for Val d’Europe at Disneyland Paris. His career includes senior roles at JMB Properties in Chicago, Cushman & Wakefield in New York and IBM where he oversaw the company’s real estate in New York and Paris.
Bill Kistler is a Trustee of the Urban Land Institute. He is an Architect and holds a BS in Architecture from the University of Southern California.

Working with AECOM since 2006, Adam studied in Australia majoring in planning, design and urban policy. He leads teams delivering integrated, broad-based solutions for a variety of masterplanning projects globally. Adam’s key interests include exploring the relationship between urban form and urban society.

Adam is based between Melbourne and Rio de Janeiro, leading a multi-disciplinary team on the design and development of the Rio2016 Olympic and Legacy Park Masterplans, which includes the design of seven Olympic venues and a 70,000sqm international broadcasting centre. In addition to this, he is responsible for a number of significant urban regeneration projects in Sao Paulo and Belo Horizontes.

Previously, Adam was the project director for the London 2012 Olympic and Legacy Masterplans. This project was essentially a large scale housing-led regeneration scheme that utilises the investment of the Olympic Games to achieve a positive change for East London. One of the most significant milestones for this project, apart from the Olympics, was the submission of Europe’s largest planning application, which has since been granted full planning consent. Adam’s specific responsibilities included leading the overall design coordination; affordable and market housing analysis; submission of the application; consultation programme; and liaison with investors and development partners.

Adam has previously held a number of significant positions internationally, ranging from a senior policy advisor in the Victorian State Government (Australia), the World Association of Major Metropolises in Barcelona, and the Solomon Islands Government.

Kazuhiro Suzuki, Managing Director for Enterprise Sales Operations in Cisco Japan, manages sales operations for corporate enterprise customers. Prior to joining Cisco, Suzuki was Executive Officer, Senior Director at Microsoft Co., Ltd. to lead industry sales, global accounts sales, and server platform business focusing on areas of financial, retailing & service, and manufacturing. Before that, he was responsible for sales and business development for service providers at IBM Japan, Ltd. During his tenure in IBM, Suzuki was assigned to Tivoli Systems Japan and appointed as President. In addition, he has extensive management experience in the information and communications technology industry including President and CEO at Doubleclick Japan Inc. Suzuki is a graduate of Keio University, Economics Faculty.

Manuel J. Borja-Villel (Burriana, Valencia, 1957) received his degree in Art History from the Faculty of Geography and History at the University of Valencia in 1980. In 1981–82 he was Special Student at Yale University and was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship between 1981 and 1983. In 1987 he did a Master of Philosophy in the Department of Art History at the City University of New York and in 1988–1989. In 1989 he received a PhD degree on Art History from the Graduate School of the City University of New York. He has written on Rodchenko, abstract expressionism, Bourgeois, Brassaï, Giacometti and Contemporary Spanish Art, amongst many others.

Borja-Villel was director of the Fundació Antoni Tàpies (Antoni Tàpies Foundation) in Barcelona from its opening in June 1990 until July 1998. From July 1998 until January 2008 he directed the Museu d’Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA).

As from January 2008 he is the director of the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía (MNCARS).

On the other hand, he was president of the CIMAM (International Committee for Modern Art Museums and Collections, linked to ICOM) from August 2007 to November 2010. He is currently a member of several international organisms, like the American Center Foundation.

David Elliott is a curator and writer who has directed contemporary art museums and institutions in Oxford, Stockholm, Tokyo, Istanbul, Sydney and Kiev. He is currently working on two traveling exhibitions for the UK and USA; is President of the Board of Triangle Art Network/Gasworks in London. on the Asia Advisory Board of the Guggenheim Museum and a Guest Professor in Curatorship at the Chinese University in Hong Kong.
A specialist in Soviet and Russian avant-garde, as well as in modern and contemporary Asian art, he has published widely in these fields as well as on many other aspects of contemporary art. In 2008-10 he was artistic Director of the 17th Biennale of Sydney and in 2011-12 directed the inaugural International Biennale of Contemporary Art in Kiev, Ukraine. He has also advised the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charitable Trust on the development of the former Central Police Station into a centre for contemporary art and heritage.

Art Historian. Former Director of the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo. Professor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo. Docteur h.c. de l'Universite de Paris I, Pantheon-Sorbonne.

Born in Tokyo: February 5, 1932.

Study and Training

1949-54: University of Tokyo (Licencie es Arts Liberaux, 1953)

1954-59: Institut d'Art et d'Archeologie, Universite de Paris, and Musee du Louvre.

Occupations

1959-65: Assistant Curator, the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo.

1965-71: Curator, ibid.

1971-79: Associate Professor, University of Tokyo (Art History).

1979-92: Professor, ibid.

1992-2000: Director of the National Museum of Western Art, Tokyo.

2000- : President of the Western Art Foundation.

2002- : Director of Ohara Museum of Art.

2004-2008: Principal of Graduate School and Director of International Reseach Center for Comparative Art Studies, Kyoto University of Art and Design.

Stays abroad

1967-68: U.S.A. (Fellow of the J.D. Rockefeller 3rd Fund).

1974 : U.K. (Guest of the British Academy).

1977-78: France (Guest Professor at the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris).

1981-82: U.S.A. (Fellow of the National Humanities Center, N.C.).

1983 : Italy (Lecturer at the Fondazione Cini, Venezia).

1987 : France (Guest Professor at the College de France, Paris).

1990-91: U.S.A. (visiting Scholar at Harvard University).

Awards

1971: Prize of the Minister of Education for Arts (for the Light and Darkness of the Renaissance).

1972: Prize of the Best Translation of the Year (for the translation of The Nude by Kenneth Clark).

1981: Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France.

1988: NHK Prize for Broadcasting.

1989: Officer de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France.

1997: Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France.

1997: Meijimura Prize.

1998: Japan Inter Design Forum Grand Prize.

2000: The Medal with Purple Ribbon

2001: Chevalier de l'Ordre de La Legion d'honneur, France.

2002: The Japan Art Academy Prize and Onshi Prize.

2003: Grande Ufficiale, Italy.

2005: A Person of Cultural Merits.

2012: Order of Culture

Publications (Principal works)

- Seikimatu Geijutsu (Art of the Fin de Siecle)

- Geijutu Kukan no Keifu (Essays on the Artistic Spaces)

- Bi no Shisakuka-tachi (Twentieth Century Art Historians)

- Meiga o Miru Me (How to Look at Pictures), 2 vols

- Renaissance no Hikari to Yami (Light and Darkness of the Renaissance)

- Nihon Kindai Bijutushi-ron (Studies in Modern Japanese Art)

- Kindai Kaigashi (History of Modern Painting, from Goya to Mondorian)

- Nihon Kindai no Biishiki (Art and Aesthetics in Modern Japan)

- Rekishi no nakano Onnatachi (Woman in Art)

- Seio Geijutu no Seishin (Studies in Western Art)

- Renaissance Yawa (Essays on the Renaissance)

- Picasso Hyosetsu no Ronri (Picasso: His Borrowings from Other Artists)

- Sozoryoku to Genso. Seio Jukyuseiki no Bungaku Geijutu (Imagination and Illusion. Studies in Nineteenth Century Art and Literature)

- Nijuseiki Bijutsu (Twentieth Century Art)

- Nihon Bijutsu o Miru Me (Japanese Art in Western Perspectives)

- France Kaigashi (History of French Painting)

- Mozart no Shouzo o Meguru 15shou (15 chapters about Mozart's Portrait)

- Seiou Kaiga no Kindai (Western Art in the Modern period)

- Nihon Kaiga no Kindai (Japanese Art in the Modern period)

- Seikimatsu no Bishintachi (Muses of the fin-de-siecle)

- Jukyu・Nijuseiki no Bijutsu (Nineteenth and Twentieth Century Art )

- Geijutsu no Patorontachi (Patrons in Art)

- Seiyo no Me Nihon no Me (Western Eye and Japanese Eye)

- Barokku no Hikari to Yami (Baroque Art)

- Daremo Shiranai [Meiga no Mikata]

After working for a private-sector think tank where she conducted research into cultural policies, urban development and arts and culture projects, Kataoka became chief curator at the Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery in 1997. In 2003 she joined the Mori Art Museum in Tokyo. Beginning in 2007, Kataoka concurrently served for two years as international curator at the Hayward Gallery in London. In 2012 she became guest curator at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, and also served as co-artistic director at the 9th Gwangju Biennale in South Korea that same year.

1971-75 Wellesley College, B.A. (Art History)
1976-79 University of Michigan, M.A. (Art History)
1983-93 Columbia University), Ph.D. (Art History)

Career

2012.1-present Director, National Museum of Contemporary Art, Korea

1994-present Professor of art history, Seoul National University, College of Fine

Arts

2006.1-2012.1 Director, Museum of Art, Seoul National University

2006-2008 President, Korean Association of Art Theory

1999-2001 Director of Exhibition, Seoul Arts Center

Publication

* Modern Korean Ink Painting (Korea Foundation/Hollym, 2006)

*(Technical Drawing of the Late Joseon Korea )(SNUPRESS, 2007)

*The Concept of the 'Orient' and Modern Korean Art(SNUPRESS, 2011)

Dr Nittve joined the West Kowloon Cultural District Authority in January 2011. He was formerly a director of the Moderna Museet from 2001 to 2010 and the first director of Tate Modern in 1998-2001. Dr Nittve has over 30 years of international experience as a director, curator and educator of the arts, serving at the University of Stockholm, the Rooseum in Malmo, Sweden, and the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Humlebaek, Denmark. Dr Nittve was awarded an honorary PhD at Umeå University in Sweden and he was named professor at the same university in 2010.

Eugene Tan is Director of The National Art Gallery, Singapore, scheduled to open in 2015. He is also the Programme Director (Special Projects), Singapore Economic Development Board. His previous appointments include Director for Contemporary Art at Sotheby's Institute of Art in Singapore and Director of the Institute of Contemporary Arts Singapore. He received his PhD in Art History from the University of Manchester and was co-curator of the Singapore Biennale in 2006 and curator for the Singapore Pavilion at the 51st Venice Biennale in 2005.

Kiyoshi Kurokawa, MD, is well known both nationally and internationally in the medical and science community in the health, science, technology and innovation policies through his leadership assuming various positions; eg, president of the Science Council of Japan (2003-06), committee of Science and Technology policy of the Government (03-06), Science Adviser to the Prime Ministers and Cabinet (06-08), and his academic career records. He has been professor at UCLA School of Medicine, University at Tokyo, Tokai University School of Medicine, WHO Commissioner, Chairman of Health and Global Policy Institute and Professor Emeritus of the University of Tokyo. Dr. Kurokawa Chaired the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission of the National Diet of Japan(2011.12-2012.7) and is a recipient for this service of "Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Award" of AAAS (2012) and of "100 Top Global Thinkers 2012" of 'Foreign Policy'.

Glenn D. Lowry became the sixth director of The Museum of Modern Art in 1995. He leads a staff of 760 people and directs an active program of exhibitions, acquisitions, and publications.

A strong advocate of contemporary art, he has lectured and written extensively in support of contemporary art and artists and the role of museums in society, among other topics.

Mr. Lowry is a member of the Mori Art Museum International Advisory Committee and the Istanbul Modern International Advisory Board. He is also a Steering Committee Member for the Aga Khan Award for Architecture and is a member of the American Philosophical Society and the National Academy of Arts and Letters.

Born in 1954 in New York City and raised in Williamstown, Massachusetts, Mr. Lowry received a B.A. degree (1976) magna cum laude from Williams College, Williamstown, and M.A. (1978) and Ph.D. (1982) degrees in history of art from Harvard University.

Nicholas Serota has been Director of Tate since 1988. He was previously Director of the Whitechapel Art Gallery and of the Museum of Modern Art, Oxford. During his period at Tate, the institution has opened Tate St Ives (1993) and Tate Modern (2000), redefining the Millbank building as Tate Britain (2000). Tate has also broadened its field of interest to include twentieth-century photography, film, performance and occasionally architecture, as well as collecting from Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. He recently co-curated exhibitions at Tate Modern on Cy Twombly (2008) and Gerhard Richter (2011) and is currently working on the Matisse ‘Cut-Outs' exhibition for 2014.

Heizo Takenaka is Professor and Director of the Global Security Research Institute at Keio University. He is also Chairman of the Institute for Urban Strategies at The Mori Memorial Foundation and Director of Academyhills.

In 2001, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi named him the Minister of Economic/Fiscal Policy, the Minister of both Financial Services and Economic/Fiscal Policy in 2002, the Minister of both Economic / Fiscal Policy and Privatization of the Postal Services in 2004, the Minister of both Internal Affairs and Communication, and Privatization of the Postal Services in 2005. The following year, he returned to academia, leaving both the Cabinet and the House of Councilors when Prime Minister Koizumi resigned.

He received his B.A. in Economics from Hitotsubashi University and his Ph.D. in Economics from Osaka University. His academic experience is numerous, including Visiting Associate Professor of Harvard University in 1989, and Professor of Faculty of Policy Management at Keio University in 1996.

He is the author of numerous books, including "The Structural Reforms of the Koizumi Cabinet".

Hiroo Ichikawa, PhD is currently Dean at the Professional Graduate Schools and Dean at the Graduate School of Governance Studies, Meiji University, Tokyo, Japan. He is also an Executive Director at The Mori Memorial Foundation. He majors in urban policy, urban and regional planning and risk management. He has been appointed as chairmen and committee members of Japanese national and local governments such as Urban Planning Council.

Ichikawa graduated from Waseda University with a Bachelor of Architecture and later earned a Master of Urban Planning degree at Waseda University. He continued his study at University of Waterloo in Canada where he was granted a Ph.D. from this institution in Urban and Regional Planning.

He is an author of Future Urban Strategy for Tokyo (2012), Lessons from Japanese Disaster (2011), Creating Japan's Future (2010), Global Front Tokyo: Achieving its world leading status (2007), Urban Space as Culture (2007), Encyclopedia of Metropolitan Tokyo (2002), The Conflicting Futures of the Tokyo Metropolitan Region (2001), Future of Tokyo as Matured Society (1998), Objecting the Relocation of Capital Function (1999), Tokyo's Future reformed by Relocation of Capital and Decentralization (1995), A City of Attractive Diversity and Flexible Form (1994), and Future of World Cities and their Development of Infrastructure – New York, London and Paris (1992).

Fumio Nanjo (b.1949 in Tokyo) is the director of Mori Art Museum since November in 2006. He graduated from Keio University in the faculty of Economics (1972) and Letters (Aesthetics/Art History;1977), where he has been teaching the courses in "art management" and "art & society" since 1991. He organized numerous exhibitions as an officer of the Japan Foundation (1978-1986), as the director of ICA Nagoya (1986-1990), as the representative director of Nanjo and Associates (1990-2002), and as the deputy director of Mori Art Museum(2002-2006). His main achievements include commissioner of the Japan Pavilion at the Venice Biennale(1997), commissioner at the Taipei Biennale(1998), member of jury committee of the Turner Prize(1998), artistic director of the Yokohama Triennale 2001, jury member of the Golden Lion Prize of the Venice Biennale(2005) and artistic director of the Singapore Biennale(2006/2008). He also served as a consultant on several public art and corporate art projects including "Shinjuku I-LAND" Public Art Projects(Tokyo/1995), Hakata Riverain Art Project(Fukuoka/1999), Art Project for Obayashi Corporation Head Office(Tokyo/1999), and VIVO City Art Project(Singapore/2006). He is the member of CIMAM(International).

Joichi Ito is the Director of the MIT Media Lab. He is a Board Member of The Sony Corporation, The New York Times Company, The MacArthur Foundation, The Knight Foundation, Creative Commons and co-founder and board member of Digital Garage an Internet company in Japan. He is on board of a number of non-profit organizations including The Mozilla Foundation and WITNESS. He has created numerous Internet companies including PSINet Japan, Digital Garage and Infoseek Japan and was an early stage investor in Twitter, Six Apart, Wikia, Flickr, Last.fm, Kickstarter, Path and other Internet companies. He is the Guild Custodian of the World of Warcraft guild, We Know (http://weknow.to/). He is a PADI IDC Staff Instructor, an Emergency First Responder Instructor and a Divers Alert Network (DAN) Instructor Trainer.

Ito was named by Businessweek as one of the 25 Most Influential People on the Web in 2008. In 2011, he was chosen by Foreign Policy Magazine as one of the "Top 100 Global Thinkers". In 2011, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Oxford Internet Institute in recognition of his role as one of the world's leading advocates of Internet freedom. In 2011 and 2012, Ito was chosen by Nikkei Business as one of the 100 most influential people for the future of Japan. Ito received the degree of Doctor of Literature, honoris causa, from The New School in 2013.