You are cordially invited to our next session of our /Gender and Sexuality in East Asia/-Lecture Series:

*Ryokan: Mobilizing Hospitality in Rural Japan *(please click here <https://dij.tokyo/ryokan> for online version)

*March 16, 2022 / 6.30pm (JST)/10.30am (CET)*

Chris McMorran, National University of Singapore

What does it take to produce one of Japan's most relaxing spaces: the ryokan? In this talk, I share the behind-the-scenes work required to keep a traditional Japanese inn running smoothly, from the daily tasks of cleaning, serving, and making guests feel at home, to the generational work of producing and training a suitable heir who can carry on the family business. I highlight the strictly gendered work found in the ryokan, and I contrast the generational work of ryokan owners from the daily embodied labor of their employees. Based on nearly two decades of research in and around Kurokawa Onsen (Kumamoto Prefecture), I show how Kurokawa's ryokan mobilize hospitality to create a rural escape in contemporary Japan.

*Chris McMorran* is Associate Professor of Japanese Studies at the National University of Singapore. He is a cultural geographer of contemporary Japan who researches the geographies of home across scale, from the body to the nation.

The DIJ /Gender and Sexuality in East Asia/-Lecture Series is organized by Nora Kottmann. All are welcome to attend. Please register for this online event via email to *kottmann@dijtokyo.org* until *March 15, 2021*. Log in data will be provided after registration.