From autumn 2012 onwards, a selection of the Princely Collections will be exhibited in Japan. A delegation from a Japanese daily newspaper, Asahi Shimbun, took this as an opportunity to travel to Liechtenstein and to visit, among other places, the University of Liechtenstein.
The Princely Collections of Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein is one of the most significant private collections in the world and includes European artwork spanning across five centuries. From October 2012 until June 2013, a part of the art collection can be seen in three Japanese cities – Tokyo, Kochi and Kyoto. The exhibitions in Japan are being organized by the Asahi Shimbun daily newspaper, which with around eight million readers is one of the biggest newspapers in the world. Three of their staff took this opportunity to travel to Liechtenstein and get to know the Principality of Liechtenstein: the exhibition organizer Nishimura Rena, culture editor Onishi Wakato and the photographer Nishida Hiroki.
On Thursday, 16 August 2012, a visit to the University of Liechtenstein was on the programme. Accompanied by Professor Peter Staub from the Institute of Architecture and Planning and the Japanese students Hayato Mizutani and Yuichiro Mizuno, the delegation first visited the exhibition “Salon Liechtenstein 2012: Architects in Residence” in the Liechtenstein Art Museum – a state exhibition with projects from the Master’s degree programme design studio. Afterwards, Hansjörg Hilti, Vice-Rector Research and Head of the Institute of Architecture and Planning, gave the Japanese guests a guided tour of the university campus and answered questions on the range of courses. The journalists were particularly interested in sustainability, a topic to which the university has committed itself in many ways.
At the end of their journey, Nishimura Rena drew a very positive conclusion: “Liechtenstein is a very beautiful country. We have been warmly received everywhere and have seen many interesting things. We would love to come back again!”