Eye On Enlightenment

Eye on Enlightenment: John Cooper Robinson Photographs from Meiji-Taisho Japan



The late 19th century was a time of great transformation in Japan as the country reestablished regular international trade and discourse for the first time in more than 200 years. Canadian missionary John Cooper Robinson was one of the first foreigners to enter and photograph this new Japan, using innovative photography techniques to capture the transition. Recently rediscovered and preserved for future generations, the images will be displayed at USC’s East Asian Library in between touring Canada and Japan.

Please join us on April 13 for the exhibition opening from 2-5pm in the East Asia Seminar Room, Doheny Memorial Library. From 2-4pm light refreshments will be served. The official program begins at 4pm, including talks by the great-granddaughter of John Cooper Robinson, Jill Robinson, and Professor Michelle Liu Carriger of UCLA, speaking on the social context of the photographs.