Comics, films, food and much more – East Asian pop culture has a decisive influence on global mainstream culture. With ASIA POP, the NRW-Forum presents the first comprehensive exhibition in Germany dedicated to this development and its cultural, political, economic and aesthetic influences. From kawaii characters such as Hello Kitty to animated films by Studio Ghibli, K-pop bands such as BTS and games such as Black Myth Wukong, ASIA POP brings the diversity of East Asian popular culture to life. In Düsseldorf, the city with the largest East Asian population in Germany, the NRW-Forum is creating a visual, auditory and culinary panorama of East Asian pop culture on 1,200 square metres and with around 400 works.
The presentation focuses on China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. They all use popular culture in different ways as so-called soft power. The export of cultural products opens up economic and political influence on an international level. The show highlights these strategies and asks how authenticity, identity and appropriation are negotiated in this context. The exhibition is thematically structured according to the different areas of life such as beauty, fashion, film and television, games and music, in which the characteristics of Asian pop are evident.
