Title: Transnational collaborative work and the arpillera collection at the Oshima Hakko Museum, Japan

Author: Tomoko Sakai, Associate Professor, Kobe University (Japan)

Abstract: This paper reports on a collection of Chilean political tapestries in Japan, and the long-lasting international collaborative work that has given the collection a unique feature. Arpilleras, hand-sewn tapestries originally from Chile, are known for their testimonial character denouncing the military dictatorship in the country. Oshima Hakko Museum, Japan, has a large collection of arpilleras that were made mostly between 1988-1990. They were bought in Santiago and brought to Japan as part of the activities of the Japanese Solidarity Movement with Chilean People. The organisation was founded immediately after General Pinochet seized power and it was active until the end of the dictatorship.

Since the 2010s the museum developed domestic and international connections, including that with Conflict Textiles, Northern Ireland, re-discovering arpilleras' potential to impress people worldwide. Arpilleras at Oshima Hakko Museum have been shown in a number of exhibitions so far, in the museum's local neighbourhood, in major cities in Japan, and in international settings, conveying an idea about alternative ways to depict one's own experience and social/political thought through needle and thread.