It’s summer gift-giving season, known as ochugen, in Japan right now. And if you’re looking for an unusual, outside-the-box gift we have the perfect answer for you. Kagurazaka Saitou is a new shop that opened recently in the Tokyo neighborhood of Kagurazaka and they specialize in one thing and one thing alone: karaage, or fried chicken. And it’s the most-beautifully packaged fried chicken we’ve ever seen.
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Traditional Japanese silk kimonos are handmade and typically cost between $2000 – $20,000 usd. They’re reserved for special occasions like coming-of-age day and weddings. Some estimates put the total value of kimono that are stored away in closets all across Japan as high as $300 billion usd. In an attempt to extract some of that value and inject it back into society, a group of designers began the Tokyo Kimono Shoes project.
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all images courtesy Hitokotonushi Shrine
In the height of summer, when temperatures are soaring, safe access to drinking water becomes critical for all animals. And yes, that includes even bees! At the ancient Hitokotonushi Shrine in Japan’s Ibaraki prefecture, which was founded in the year 809, a particular breed of care and kindness is paid to the local bees.
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all images courtesy Nazuka Underground
The Contemporary artist Hiroki Tsukuda was born in Kagawa in 1978 and grew up in Japan during the 80s and 90s. Like many of us, he steeped himself in the fantasy and science fiction-based franchises of the time including Star Wars, Gundam and Monster Hunter. The dark and bleak futures depicted in the works of fiction seemed to be just that: fiction. But we continue to find ourselves in times war, poverty and social unrest. It is this discrepancy that is the driving force behind the artist’s work, which includes disassembled and reassembled “collaged” figurines from the artist’s personal collection, as well as dystopian, detailed drawings that present themselves like advertisements from an alternate reality.
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In all honesty, I’m not a huge fan of 3D printing. Most of the products I’ve come across have felt cold and mechanical. In other words, not something I would want to use on a daily basis. But this series of products called tilde, created by Kyoto-based studio Shingei-sha, is the closest thing I’ve seen to getting 3D printing right.
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Tyrannosauruses posing for a picture at the Tyrannosaurus Exhibition | all photos courtesy Tottori Prefectural Museum
It was a surreal scene today at the Tottori Prefectural Museum. Over a dozen Tyrannosauruses, perhaps the most fearsome animals of all time, freely roamed the halls of the museum. But thankfully they weren’t there to feed. They were there, in fact, to see the new Tyrannosaurus Exhibition which had just opened.
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The Nio (Benevolent Kings) are wrathful and muscular guardians that stand outside Buddhist temples across Japan and other parts of East-Asia warding off evil spirits with their fierce and intimidating expressions. But that’s only when they’re on duty. When they’re not working, the guardians must certainly have ways to wind down, take the edge off and relax those muscles, right? That was essentially the idea that led artist Miyoshi Momoka to create a series of terracotta sculptures.
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Product design typically results in materials being molded or modified to meet our needs. But the “Nosemono” series from Kyoto-based Shinkogeisha takes the opposite approach. The natural material–in this case, stone–is left untouched. Instead, it is 3D-scanned, enabling it to become a vessel for human-made parts and pieces that attach to it like a puzzle piece and render it a functional object.
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all photos by Hiroto Gozaoka courtesy Morito Project
Morito Project is an initiative aimed at highlighting the circular relationship between forests and woodworkers. Specifically, designer Shinnosuke Harada worked with artisans to source hinoki wood that was leftover from the thinning process. While necessary to cultivate healthy forests, wood leftover from the thinning process is typically discarded as it is considered sub-standard. But the designer came up with a range of lifestyle products that could be made from the wood, each inspired by the forest itself. The collection was on display at the Milan Furniture Fair this week.
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There’s a reason why you don’t find many cemeteries in the middle of cities. When land prices come at a premium, the economics of sprawling tombstones simply don’t make sense. But as lifestyles change and evolve, so too does our relationship with the deceased. And in turn, so do the cemeteries and ossuaries that look after our deceased and offer a sacred space where we can revisit their memories.
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Five Unique Experiences at Harajuku’s Latest Development Harakado
Myaku-Myaku Footwear, Inspired by the Googly-Eyed Mascot for the Osaka Expo
All of Japan’s 47 Prefectures Captured In Expressive Typography
Japan’s Stationery Award Offers a Return to the Primitive
Japan Quietly Shines at Milan Design Week
