Photo/Illutration A guard stands watch over the “After ‘Freedom of Expression?’” exhibit at the Aichi Triennale 2019. (Asahi Shimbun file photo)

NAGOYA--The high court here chided Nagoya Mayor Takashi Kawamura for withholding funds from an art exhibition he found offensive.

The Nagoya High Court on Dec. 2 upheld a lower court ruling which ordered the Nagoya city government to pay about 33.8 million yen ($252,000) that it withheld from the organizing committee for the Aichi Triennale 2019.

One part of the international art festival was the “After ‘Freedom of Expression?’” exhibit that was shut down within days after protests and threats of violence if it continued to be held.

The Nagoya city government was part of the organizing committee that also included the Aichi prefectural government. Prior to the art festival, Nagoya decided to contribute 171 million yen toward the event, but only fronted up around 137 million yen after it objected to the “After ‘Freedom of Expression?’” exhibit.

Kawamura took offense to a video of portraits of well-known people being burned, including a photo of Emperor Hirohito, posthumously known as Emperor Showa. Kawamura said the exhibit “trampled on the emotions of the Japanese people.”

In 2020, the organizing committee filed a lawsuit against Nagoya seeking payment of the remainder and the Nagoya District Court in May ruled the city government should cough up the rest.

The district court ruled that artistic endeavors should not be simply dismissed just because they can cause discomfort or repulsion among viewers.

In appealing that ruling, the Nagoya city government argued once again that the exhibit lacked political neutrality and was a form of harassment. It also argued that providing public funds for such an exhibit “carried the risk of losing the trust of local residents and said there was a rational basis” for Kawamura’s decision not to pay.

The Nagoya High Court upheld the district court order and said, “it is unavoidable if art stirs up discomfort among those who view it.”

The court also ruled that Kawamura’s decision to withhold partial payment on grounds the contents of the exhibit violated the public interest “overstepped his discretionary power.”

The high court also argued that Kawamura was not legally allowed to legitimize the decision to withhold payment of funds.

Yoko Shida, a professor of constitutional and speech law at Musashino Art University in Tokyo, said, “If public entities are allowed to ban exhibits they do not like or withhold subsidies after the fact, public support for the arts will wither and avenues for displaying art works and viewing them will be lost.”

She said the latest ruling should serve as a guide to prevent such acts.

(This article was written by Toshinari Takahashi and Akari Nakagawa.)

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