Dr. Ataru Sotomura

Chair of East Asian Cultural History, Senior Lecturer for Japonikum and Japanese Language

Career

Born in 1960, Ataru Sotomura has been a lecturer at the University of Würzburg since the winter semester 1990/91, a senior lecturer since the winter semester 2015/16. In the winter semester of 1997/98 he was guest researcher at the National Research Institute for Cultural Properties in Tôkyô (Tôbunken). In the summer semester of 2002 he substituted a C4 professorship in Japanese Studies at the Institute of East Asian Cultural History of the University of Würzburg. In the summer semester 2005, he was guest scholar at the Institute for Research in Humanities (Jinbun kagaku kenkyûjo) at the Kyôto University. In the summer semester 2007 he was visiting professor at the department of Oriental Studies at the Institute for Research in Humanities in Kyôto University. In the winter semester of 2013/14 he was visiting research scholar at the International Research Center for Japanese Studies (Nichibunken) in Kyôto, Japan. In the winter semester 2015/16 he was Japan Society for the Promotion of Science Fellow and guest scholar at the Institute for Research in Humanities in Kyôto University, Japan.

Award

2017 Hamada Seiryo Award (Hamada Seiryō shō 濱田青陵賞) (see announcement here)

Main Research Interests

East Asian art history (landscape, urban planning and garden art; music and historical musical instruments)
Cultural transfer India-China-Korea-Japan
Buddhism
1992 – 2010 Member of various research teams on Living Space and Design in China at the Institute for Research in Humanities, Kyôto University
2012 – 2014 Member of the Team Research Project ‘The Japanese Garden in This World and the Other World’ at the International Research Center for Japanese Studies, Kyôto
2019-2022 Leader (Hanchô) of the Team Research Project ‘An Interdisciplinary Study on East Asian Works of Arts and Culture Concerning the Visible and/or Invisible Entities’ at the Institute of Research in Humanities, Kyôto University
2021-2022 Leader of the DFG Research Project ‘Transformation of Invisible Entities of Traditional East Asia, as seen from Art Historical and Archaeological Perspectives’; (2022) Co-organizer of the DFG & JSPS German-Japanese Bilateral Workshop with the same title at the University of Würzburg
2020-2023 Member of the Team Research Project ‘Reconsidering "Japanese Traditional Culture"’ at the Institute of Research in Humanities, Kyôto University

Academic Career

1979 – 83: B.A. in landscape architecture at Kyôto University
1983 – 84: One year study abroad in the USA
1984 – 86: M.A. degree at Kyôto University
1986 – 90: Study visits to Germany, England, the Netherlands and Korea, among others
1987 – 88: One-year postgraduate course in Town and Country Planning with a Master of Arts degree at the University of Newcastle-upon Tyne (Great Britain)
1994: Doctorate in Landscape Architecture at Kyôto University
2003: Formal recognition of academic achievements as Habilitationsäquivalent by the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Heidelberg

Scholarships

1987 – 88: Rotary International Foundation Scholarship: Postgraduate Studies in Town and Country Planning at Newcastle-upon-Tyne University, Great Britain
1990: Scholarship from the Dutch government: research stay at Rijksmuseum Amsterdam and the Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde in Leiden
1998: Research stay on invitation of the National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, Tôkyô / Tôkyô kokuritsu bunkazai kenkyûjo
2005: Research stay on invitation of the Institute for Research in Humanities, Kyôto University funded by the Kyôto University Foundation for Research and Education
2007: Resesearch stay on invitation of the Institute for Research in Humanities, Kyôto University
2010: Research stay on invitation of Prof. Dr. TANAKA, Tan and his research team at the Institute for Research in Humanities, Kyôto University sponsored by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS)
2013/14: Research stay in Kyôto upon invitation of the International Research Center for Japanese Studies, Kyôto
2015: Research stay on invitation of Prof. INAMOTO, Yasuo and his research team at the Institute for Research in Humanities, Kyôto University sponsored by the JSPS
2016: Reesarch stay on invitation of the Institute for Research in Humanities of Kyôto Universitiy, sponsored by the JSPS
2017: Research stay on invitation of Prof. INAMOTO, Yayuo and his research team at the Institute for Research on Humanities of the Kyôto University sponsored by the JSPS
2019: Research visit on invitation of the Institute for Research in Humanities of Kyôto University sponsored by the Kyôto University
2019: Research stay on invitation of Prof. Dr. OKAMURA, Hidenori and his research team at the Institute for Research in Humanities of Kyôto University sponsored by the JSPS
2020: Research stay on invitation of the Institute for Research in Humanities of Kyôto University sponsored by Kyôto University
2021: Research stay on invitation of the Institute for Research in Humanities of Kyôto University, sponsored by Kyôto University and the DFG
2022: Research stay on invitation of the Institute for Research in Humanities of Kyôto University, sponsored by Kyôto University