MAM Research 006: Chronicle Kyoto 1990s
- Diamonds Are Forever, Art-Scape, And I Dance with Somebody

In 1990s Kyoto, particularly Sakyo-ku, art, activism and club culture coexisted in an uninhibited outpouring of creative activity, courtesy of a large number of diverse communities that formed loosely around Dumb Type and other Kyoto City University of Arts alumni, from contemporary art to “DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER” drag parties; the APP (AIDS Poster Project) that carried out HIV/AIDS education, activities that questioned conventional notions of sexuality, and Art-Scape, which served as a base for a variety of activities. The catchphrase “And I Dance with Somebody” from the acronym AIDS was conceived by APP for the “X International AIDS Conference, 1994.” Today, as discussion of culture, religion, language, gender diversity, and human rights gathers momentum, this exhibition revisiting the Kyoto of quarter-century ago, an intensely magnetic place to so many, may offer ideas or tips to break through the sense of stagnation in today’s society.