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The city of Kobe has prospered as a key location for the transportation both of land and sea since ancient times owing to its geographical and historical backgrounds. The city also has undergone an influx of various arts and cultures as the frontier of cross cultural communications, and its various and rich cultures have settled, coexisted and developed up to today. Moreover, the sensation of the arts that healed the wounds left by the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake occurring on January 17, 1995 and giving its citizens hope and encouragement for restoration, is what will never be forgotten. The arts of Kobe have played a significant role in helping revitalize the city. |
| Celebrating the tenth anniversary of the quake, Kobe declared itself “The City of Artistic Creation” on December 4, 2004, with the fundamental ideal of a bustling city development making the best use of cultures based on its history and experiences. We will hold “Kobe Biennale”, the festival of arts, as an experiment to give the city an opportunity to collect the power of arts, transmit their messages both into and out of the city and endeavor to develop its arts further as well as to revitalize the city. The theme of the Kobe Biennale 2007 is “encounters”. We will offer a place for our arts to encounter each other through the use of the containers, the symbol of development of the city as a seaport. We will aspire to explore creativity in the coexistence and fusion of the multitude such as modern and traditional arts, traditional cultures, fashion and design. |
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 Dates |
October 6 - November 25, 2007
Open daily from 10:00 to 20:00 (to 17:00 on November 25) |
| Venue |
Kobe Meriken Park (Hatoba-cho, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Japan) |
| Theme |
“Encounters - People, Town and Arts”
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| City that creates culture |
Caring for others and power of arts that we have learnt through reviving the city after the earthquake - that is Kobe's culture. |
| Kobe Biennale Grand Prix |
To acknowledge and praise the new creation selected through the competition. |
| City of designs |
From Kobe - the birthplace of western pop culture in Japan - are created the designs that lead the trend. |
| City of universality |
Pleasant living environment is created with univesal design, for people of any nationality, age or gender. |
| Streets of art |
Art is created in this beautiful town and abundant nature. |
| Cross cultural communication |
The most prolific artists from the countries that supported the seaport, Kobe, convey the vitality of their cultures. |
| Arts for children |
Future of art is found in the children's toys. |
| Robot technology |
We strive for the art of next generation that is created with the latest technology and artisitic sense. |
| Tradition and popular cultures |
Traditional arts and popular cultures entice us as the mainstream Japanese culture. |
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Biennale
The name “Biennale” has taken root in our lives as the arts exhibition held once every two years. The word biennale originates from Italian and means “once every two years”. The exhibition has been held for over one hundred years as the exhibition where the city of Biennale of Venice, the origin of the word, invites artists from all over the world. Incidentally, Sao Paulo Biennale also has been held since the end of the Second World War. Since the 1990s these international arts exhibitions have been held all over the world, with one in Gwangju, Korea being among them. Although its purpose is to enhance international communication among residents and those involved in arts, it also plays a vital role in the revitalization of cities.
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