Reconsideration of Shunsuke Tsurumi's “Marginal Art”

Abstract

 This paper reconsiders Shunsuke Tsurumiʼs famous term “Marginal Art” by re-examining his theoretical works on art.
 “Marginal Art” is a highly popular concept, and several social scientists have quoted and mentioned it in connection with studies of Japanese culture. They have regarded it as an analytical concept of culture, and a new category of art that is distinguished from “Pure Art” and “Popular Art.” Tsurumi himself placed it in the “marginal” field of art and life. However, my examination reveals that Tsurumi tried to find a way of restoring human activity through creating artworks in daily life. Particularly, his works in the 1960s emphasized that “Marginal Art” relates to acquiring a private field of mind and freedom of spirit, by enjoying art and resisting the authorities.