International Institute for Children's Literature, Osaka

International Institute for Children's Literature Osaka

The International Institute for Childrens Literature, Osaka Prefecture ( Japanese 大阪 府 立 国際 児 童 文学 館 , Ōsaka furitsu kokusai jidō bungakukan , "International Institute for Children's Literature of the Osaka Prefecture", abbreviation: IICLO ) was a specialist library and research facility . May 1984 to December 27, 2009 in the "Memorial Park for the World Exhibition of 1970" ( 万博 記念 公園 , Banpaku kinen kōen ) in Suita in the northern part of Osaka Prefecture . The institute collected children's books from home and abroad and related materials. In 2007, 30 permanent and temporary employees were working at the IICLO. The annual budget was 210 million yen. The total area of ​​the institute was 3100 m².

Beginnings

In 1979, plans began to set up a research institute to mark the International Year of the Child . Initially, the prefectures of Shiga and Osaka fought head-to-head for the institute, until a donation of 12,000 monographs and children's books by the renowned researcher Shin Torigoe tipped the scales in favor of Osaka prefecture, which began preparations in 1980 to establish a legal foundation established the institute over the next four years. The institute was symbolically opened in Suita on May 5, 1984, on Japanese “Children's Day” ( Kodomo no Hi ). The building of the institute was built and maintained by the prefecture; In 1998 it was included in the "selection of 100 public buildings" ( 公共 建築 百 選 , Kōkyō kenchiku hyakusen ). The symbolic symbol of the institute, a Greek Pan playing the flute, was designed by the children's book author and illustrator Anno Mitsumasa . From 1986 to 1990 the writer Shiba Ryōtarō headed the foundation. Since 1987 the institute has been awarding the “ International Grimm Prize ” ( 国際 グ リ ム 賞 , Kokusai gurimu-shō ) for exceptional research in the field of children's and youth literature.

Facility

With approx. 700,000 individual items, books and documents, it was the largest public institution of its kind in Japan and it exceeded the " International Library of Children's Literature " opened in Ueno , Tokyo in 2000 ( 国際 子 ど も 図 書館 , International Library of Children's Literature ) which houses 400,000 books and documents. As a research facility, the institute carries out extensive research into reading material suitable for children, such as children's books and also about manga . The institute is widely known among researchers as well as enthusiasts worldwide due to its extensive collection of manga editions and magazines, especially in the categories Shōnen and Shōjo . In 2008 it was awarded the Osamu Tezuka Culture Prize (in the category: Special Prize). On the ground floor there are rooms for the youngest users (up to primary school age), with Kamishibai and around 30,000 books that can be used and borrowed free of charge. On the upper floor there is a reading room, which is aimed at users from middle school and which has information for Internet research and the possibility of copying materials. In contrast to the legal deposit right of the National Parliamentary Library, private and voluntary participation are the reason for the largest material donations in Japan. Among other things, materials from children's and young people's literature such as light novels , picture books , Kamishibai, Manga- Tankōbon , Manga magazines , Dōjinshi , monographs are collected .

restructuring

In February 2008, Tōru Hashimoto , Governor of Osaka Prefecture, decided to move the institute to the "Central Library of Osaka Prefecture" ( 大阪 府 立 中央 図 書館 , Ōsaka furitsu chūō toshokan ) as part of the restructuring of public finances . The unfavorable location of the institute is the reason for the low level of awareness and the low number of visitors, which is why the central library is to be preferred from a marketing point of view. Hashimoto's plans met with great opposition. The management of the institute, writers, researchers, the Japanese Manga Society ( 日本 マ ン ガ 学会 , English Japan Society for Studies in Cartoon and Comics ) and many local associations in Suita spoke out against a closure and merger with the central library. As a result, many donors asked for the donated materials and documents back. After the decision to close and relocate the institute on March 16, 2009, Shin Torigoe, whose donation laid the foundation stone for the institute, and 29 others filed a class action lawsuit in Osaka District Court to reclaim 1,200 individual items. The lawsuit was dismissed on August 26, 2011.

The institute was closed on December 27, 2009, the books and documents were transferred to the central library from the end of March of the following year, and in May 2010 the materials were again made available to the public in the Central Library - International Institute for Children's Literature of Osaka Prefecture .

Web links

• Website of the International Institute for Childrens Literature Osaka (English)
• Osaka Central Library Website - Children's Literature Institute (Japanese)
• Japan Society for Studies in Cartoon and Comics (JSSCC) website

See also

• List of museums dedicated to ethnology

Individual evidence

1. ↑ 財 団 概要 About the institute (Japanese)
2. ^ The International Grimm Award
3. ↑ Report of the institute (2010) (English; PDF; 64 kB)
4. ↑ Osamu Tezuka Culture Prize
5. ↑ 大阪 府 立 国際 児 童 文学 館 廃 止 に よ り 我 々 は 何 を 失 う の か - 大阪 の 歴 史 と 文化 論 の 立場 か ら
6. ↑ 寄贈 物 の 返還 求 め る 鳥 越 信 氏 ら が 提 訴  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
7. ↑ 寄贈 本 の 返還 請求 を 棄 却 橋下 府 政 で 閉館 の 児 童 文学 館 巡 る 訴訟 ( Memento of the original from January 27, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. 

Remarks

1. ↑ This library is formally part of the National Parliamentary Library .