Alex Kerr (born June 16, 1952) is an American writer and
Japanologist
Japanese studies (Japanese: ) or Japan studies (sometimes Japanology in Europe), is a sub-field of area studies or East Asian studies involved in social sciences and humanities research on Japan. It incorporates fields such as the study of Japanese ...
.
Biography
Originally from the
Bethesda area in
Montgomery County, Maryland
Montgomery County is the most populous county in the state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat and largest municipality is Rockville, although the census-design ...
, Kerr's father, a naval officer, was posted in
Yokohama
is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...
from 1964 to 1966. Kerr returned to the states and studied Japanese Studies at
Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
. After studying Chinese Studies at the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
as a
Rhodes Scholar
The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom.
Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...
, Kerr moved back to Japan full-time in 1977. He lived in
Kameoka
is a city in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 87,518 in 29,676 households and a population density of 390 persons per km². The total area of the city is .
Geography
Kameoka abuts Kyoto to the east and is loca ...
, near
Kyoto
Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...
, working with the
Oomoto
''Chōseiden'' in Ayabe
, also known as , is a religion founded in 1892 by Deguchi Nao (1836–1918), often categorised as a new Japanese religion originated from Shinto. The spiritual leaders of the movement have always been women within t ...
Foundation, a
Shintō
Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintoist ...
organisation devoted to the practise and teaching of traditional Japanese arts.
An expert on Japanese culture and art, he frequently writes and lectures in Japanese. Through his experiences in Japan, as related in his books, he has become an avid art collector and patron of Japan's traditional theatre and other arts. He also worked in business, working for
Trammell Crow
Fred Trammell Crow (June 10, 1914 – January 14, 2009) was an American real estate developer from Dallas, Texas. He is credited with the creation of several major real estate projects, including the Dallas Market Center, Peachtree Center in Atlan ...
in the 1980s. Kerr currently has several residences. He lives in
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...
,
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
for half of the year, and Kyoto for the other half, visiting and staying at Chiiori as well.
Chiiori
In the early 1970s, Kerr purchased a decomposing, abandoned, two-hundred-year-old Japanese house in the
Iya Valley
The Iya Valley (祖谷 ''Iya'') region in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan is a scenic area known for its dramatic mountain valleys, thatched roof farmhouses and historic vine bridges. Although access has improved in recent years, the Iya Valley and ...
, a remote mountainous area of
Tokushima prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Shikoku. Tokushima Prefecture has a population of 728,633 (1 October 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,146 km2 (1,601 sq mi). Tokushima Prefecture borders Kagawa Prefecture to the north, E ...
on the island of
Shikoku
is the smallest of the four main islands of Japan. It is long and between wide. It has a population of 3.8 million (, 3.1%). It is south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu. Shikoku's ancient names include ''Iyo-no-futana-shima'' (), '' ...
. He restored the house to a liveable state, including re-thatching the
kayabuki roof using traditional materials. The house was given the name
Chiiori
is the name of an Edo period ''minka'' farmhouse in the Iya Valley, western Tokushima, Japan. Dating from around 1720, the house is believed to be the second oldest in Iya. (The oldest, nearby Kimura House, is designated an Important Cultural Pr ...
, or "House of the Flute". The restoration of Chiiori began a project by Kerr and others to preserve Japan's vanishing arts, culture and traditional lifestyle.
In 2007, Kerr decided to become more personally involved in Iya. He expanded and reorganized the board of directors of the project, and closed the house for a few months for renovations. It reopened in November 2007.
Works
In his book ''
Lost Japan
is a 1993 book written by American Japonologist Alex Kerr.
Background
The book deals with Kerr's life in Japan and on aspects of Japanese culture by which he was fascinated. The text is a collection of personal essays in which he suggests that t ...
'' (1993), he describes what he saw as the sorry modern state of the country in which he has spent more than 35 years of his life. It was originally written and published in Japanese as ''Utsukushiki Nihon no Zanzō'' (美しき日本の残像, ''Last Glimpse of Beautiful Japan''). He was the first foreigner to be awarded the Shincho Gakugei Literature Prize for the best work of non-fiction published in Japan in 1994 for this work. His later work ''Dogs and Demons'' (2002) addressed the same issues of degradation and loss of native culture in the wake of Modernization/Westernization.
In ''Another Kyoto'' (2016), Kerr and co-author Kathy Arlyn Sokol draw on decades of living in Kyoto and reflect on the architecture of the city’s famous monuments.
English-language works
*''
Lost Japan
is a 1993 book written by American Japonologist Alex Kerr.
Background
The book deals with Kerr's life in Japan and on aspects of Japanese culture by which he was fascinated. The text is a collection of personal essays in which he suggests that t ...
'' (1993)
*''Dogs and Demons: The Fall of Modern Japan'' (2002)
*''Living in Japan'' (2006)
*''Bangkok Found: Reflections on the City'' (2010)
*''Another Kyoto'' (2016)
*''Finding the Heart Sutra: Guided by a Magician, an Art Collector and Buddhist Sages from Tibet to Japan'' (2020)
References
External links
Personal websitechiiori.orgKyoto Journalphotograph of Kerr
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerr, Alex
1952 births
Living people
American social sciences writers
American Japanologists
Writers from Maryland