I like to eat apples and bananas. Yuni Yoshida, the creative director known for her mind-bending visual illusions, likes to alter them, creating visually arresting compositions that make you look, and then look again. Often incorporating food into her work, Yoshida has an ongoing series in which everyday fruits are meticulously peeled, diced and rearranged to create works of art that display her subjects in new light.
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Yuho Tanaka (田中幽峰) was an accomplished artist and draughtsman active in Kyoto during the late-1800s. At the height of his career in the 1890s he created numerous graphic patterns inspired by butterflies that were eventually compiled into a book titled hyaku-cho-zuan, or One Hundred Butterfly Designs.
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all photos courtesy Eizan Electric Railway
Along Kyoto’s Eizan Electric Railway is a section known as “Maple Tree Tunnel” (momiji tunnel, in Japanese) that is lined with hundreds of maple trees. They are, of course, beautiful any time of year. But maple trees are particularly stunning in the fall and the railway goes out of its way to accentuate their beauty while allowing riders to get the most of all the sights.
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Ah, it’s Halloween weekend. And that means it’s time for our favorite Japanese festival Jimi Halloween, where people dress up in costumes so mundane they have to be explained.
The tradition was started in 2014 by a group of adults at Daily Portal Z who “kind of wanted to participate in the festivities of Halloween, but were too embarrassed to go all out in witch or zombie costumes.” So instead of the flashy and flamboyant costumes they had been seeing gain popularity in Japan, they decided to dress up in mundane, everyday costumes.
You can comb through social media using the hashtag #地味ハロウィン but below we present to you some of our favorites from this year’s festivities. We’ve been covering this event since 2018 so you can also take a look at some past years too!
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Tsuchiya Kaban, the 58-year old Japanese leather bagmaker known for their highly-specific bags, has released their very first line-up of pet products. And their doggy randoseru is absolutely adorable. For those who aren’t familiar, randoseru are backpacks for kids. Typically made from high-quality leather, they are expensive but are made to last for the entirety of a child’s time in school. Tsuchiya Kaban’s new line of pet products are made with the same handmade quality and care that goes in to any of their bags.
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If you’ve boarded the Tokyo Metro this month, there’s a good chance you walked into a train car that was…well, different. Perhaps you felt unobstructed, light and fluid as you passed with ease through the typical blockage. If you experienced any of those symptoms, it’s the work of a creative ad campaign for Borraginol Smooth, an over-the-counter laxative developed by Amato Pharmaceutical Products.
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As Japan’s population continues to grow older—one in 10 residents are aged 80 or above—care for the elderly becomes an increasingly important issue. And while elderly populations are typically seen as a burden, there are places around rural Japan that offer glimpses of a more hopeful future. One where innovators and designers are demonstrating what’s possible, not with robotic caregivers, but with a fundamental redesign of what care for the elderly could look like.
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After the tragic and fatal Halloween crowd crush that occured in Seoul last year, Tokyo’s Shibuya ward, which has increasingly become a go-to spot for Halloween parties—often with dangerous consequences—is taking preemptive measures to discourage people from congregating in their ward later this month. Teaming up with art director Koichi Kosugi, this week Shibuya released a massive visual campaign to broadcast their message.
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All images courtesy of Keiji Ashizawa Design
Since opening its London flagship in 1973, The Conran Shop has been a go-to destination for all things contemporary design. And in their latest chapter, the curated shop welcomes you to its new space in Hillside Terrace, a relaxing village of shops and boutiques in the Daikanyama neighborhood of Tokyo. Architect Keiji Ashizawa, responsible for the interior design of The Conran Shop, described Daikanyama as “a very calm neighborhood” amid bustling Tokyo, and his vision was to create a store that offers respite from the city.
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Despite it’s image of neon lights and cyberpunk mystique propagated by the west, Tokyo is very much a mash-up of old and new. It’s a city where Tower Records is still alive and well. Where vinyl record and vintage clothing shops have to employ crowd control measures. And where a hand-written letter sent by FAX machine still holds value. So it was no surprise when we heard that a VHS cafe was opening in Tokyo.
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Myaku-Myaku Footwear, Inspired by the Googly-Eyed Mascot for the Osaka Expo
Demographics Professor Warns that by 2531, Everyone in Japan Will be Named Sato
Japan’s Stationery Award Offers a Return to the Primitive
Shunga: Japanese Erotic Art from the 1600s – 1800s
Death Fes in Shibuya Asks Visitor to Embrace Their End
