Independent Film Curator, Arts Administrator, Researcher, and Writer
Mr. Cumming spent 6 weeks in Tokyo and Fukuoka as an Ishibashi Foundation/The Japan Foundation Fellow for Research on Japanese Art. He was one of the first Canadians to receive this honour.
During my time in Japan I undertook research for a future exhibition about video art exchanges between Japan and Canada from the late 1960s to the early 1980s, exploring the transnational circulation of technology, pedagogy, and artistic trends. While in Tokyo I examined primary materials in archives, libraries, and the personal collections of artists, while also interviewing key figures involved in the early history of video in Japan.
The research I was able to conduct has been invaluable for my current projects, while I’ve been able to establish relationships with artists and institutions that will be of great value for my future work as a curator and researcher.
During his time in Japan, Mr. Cumming was able to meet translator and art critic MICHISHITA Kyoko.
Meeting and speaking with MICHISHITA Kyoko was a great privilege, given her multi-faceted career as an artist, curator, writer, and translator. She was able to speak to many different elements of my research and was extremely generous with her time.
