You have probably seen his work on album covers, t-shirts and various other paraphernalia. Yoshitomo Nara (or, Nara Yoshitomo to you western folk) is rather popular here in Japan.
Viz Pictures has “An intriguing collection of six documentaries introducing modern Japanese pop artists who posses unique views and inspirations to create captivating works of art.” The first installment, Yoshitomo Nara’s DVD was released on September 15th. Others to follow will include Yayoi Kusama (a very, very interesting lady).
Traveling with Yoshitomo Nara is a record of the journey that the world-renowned Japanese pop artist Yoshitomo Nara took along with Hideki Toyoshima and graf AtoZ team, and the many others who contributed to the creation of his handmade exhibit AtoZ. As their journey began and the project progressed, more and more people contributed to the project and touched the heart of the team. The people, the experience, and the works all came together and settled at the AtoZ exhibit in his hometown of Hirosaki. With Nara as their leader, this large creation began taking form and lead to a surprising outcome for both Nara’s artwork and himself.
These Star Wars light saber chopsticks will be on sale in Japan from November for approximately 10 USD from Kotobukiya. You may also visit here (Japanese only) for more info. C’mon, you know you want them.
Yes! Apparently Tokyo is number 1, but for the wrong reason. Since I live here, I thought I’d share what the BBC has reported and what we expats have thought here for a while now:
Tokyo has knocked Moscow off the top spot as the world’s most expensive city for expatriates, a survey suggests.
The strengthening yen meant the Japanese capital now had the highest cost of living, followed by Osaka, said data firm Mercer.
Look over to the right on my sidebar and notice that clothing store Uniqlo has come out with a tilt-shift video calendar. I love it and it also has music by Fantastic Plastic Machine. Click the calendar to go full screen mode.
While I’m at it, also go to Slide:ology to hear an interview with Daniel Pink on his creative process for his book Johnny Bunko.
For some strange reason, I really want to see this. The news has been circulating a lot recently through Japanese/tech blogs and to mark the 30th anniversary of Gundam’s arrival, toymaker Bandai has constructed a full-scale reproduction of it in Tokyo’s Odaiba Shiokaze park. It will be unveiled on July 11th and apparently remain there until the end of August. Go around dusk as it also lights up.
I have seen a few of these around Japan and even a few tiles on sidewalks depicting historic scenes from local areas. Thanks to Toxel, here are a few more to view. A bit more interesting than a simple circular piece of metal and just as good as the storm drains from Brazil.
Two stumbles today. The first is on Daikichi Amano, a photographer who mixes the macabre, horror and manga through portraits. Then there is horror writer Koji Suzuki (author of Ring) who…
…has teamed up with a Japanese paper manufacturer to have his latest stomach-churning novella published in a very convenient form – on toilet paper. Story here.
Read only once? Buy your own multiple rolls? Not bad for approx 210 yen (2USD). 12 normal rolls would set you back between 250-400 yen here in Japan. Disposable book or proper recycling?
Kaneuji produces works by pasting together and assembling ready-made objects such as maps, musical instruments, toys and plastic bottles. His “White Discharge” series would make an interesting MS/HS studio lesson (pictured above). He arranges found objects covering them in resin and allowing them to drip dry.
He also has several pieces involving coffee stains and found driftwood which work quite well together.
It’s his first solo exhibit and ends May 27th. Flickr photos may be viewed here.
The year 2009 marks the 150th anniversary of the 1859 opening of the Port of Yokohama. To commemorate this anniversary, the city of Yokohama is sponsoring “EXPO Y150”, a grand exposition focusing on the history and attractions of the city, based on the theme “Set Sail”.
Y150 kicks off today in Yokohama (website link in English). What’s interesting was the performance group La Machine. For weeks I have been seeing these 2 ‘creatures’ docked at the harbour. Click on the photos to enlarge them.
Watch the video below to see what it was all about. Looks like a slow motion version of ‘War of the Worlds’ set to music.
Received this through my Google reader. Not sure if I get it, but since I live in Japan, I thought I’d share (as far as I know, it’s only available here). Don’t know what to really make of it though. Perhaps I’ll go out looking for it this weekend? Sorry to those looking for IT or educational info, but really? Runners/trainers that change into toy robots? Is Transformers 2 coming out this summer or something? More pics here. Perhaps it may be useful for that ever famous teaching unit on designing the perfect trainer? If you know anything about this, could you let me know?
You have probably seen his work on album covers, t-shirts and various other paraphernalia. Yoshitomo Nara (or, Nara Yoshitomo to you western folk) is rather popular here in Japan.
