Prague, Nov 3 (CTK) – Czech art historian, Japanese studies scholar and gallery head Vlasta Cihakova Noshiro will receive a high Japanese decoration, the Order of the Rising Sun, for her support for culture exchange and mutual understanding between both countries, the Japanese embassy in Prague said on Friday.
“I am naturally pleased. I will take over the order on Sunday,” Cihakova Noshiro told CTK.
November 3 is the national day of culture in Japan and orders are awarded on this occasion, she said.
Cihakova Noshiro, born in 1945, former chairwoman of the Czech-Japanese Society, is now director of the Gallery of Critics in Prague centre. She lived and worked in Tokyo where she organised exhibitions and was teaching at art schools in the 1970s and 1980s. She has been living in Prague since 1989.
Cihakova Noshiro is head of the Association of Art Critics and Theoreticians of the Czech Republic, deputy chairwoman of the national section of the International Association of Art Critics (AICA) and a member of the expert commission for the International Biennial of Contemporary Art in Florence, Italy.
She also established the national critics’ award for young painters. She writes books and articles on modern and contemporary art.
Two years ago, Cihakova Noshiro published a book about the life of Mitsuko Ayoama (1874-1941). She was one of the first Japanese women who dared to marry a foreigner in Tokyo at the end of the 19th century and left for Europe with him. One of her sons was Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, founder of the Paneuropean Union peace movement that is considered the cradle of the European Union (EU).
The Order of the Rising Sun was established in 1875 by Japanese Emperor Meiji as the first national decoration. The order is awarded to those who have made distinguished achievements in international relations, promotion of Japanese culture, development of welfare and conservation.
One of its Czech holders is gymnast and Olympic winner Vera Caslavska (1942-2016).
