Spoon & Tamago

Page 10 of 408

Spoon & Tamago’s Most-Popular Posts of 2024

December 15, 2024 / Johnny / Comments Off

As we wind down our 17^th (!) year of blogging, we embark on our annual exercise of ranking our most popular posts based on viewership. It’s always fun and interesting to see what captivated readers the most. Japan began 2024 on a rough note as a large earthquake wreaked havoc on the Noto region. But spirits improved as Shohei Otani and numerous Japanese athletes in the Olympics displayed sportsmanship and athletic excellence, encouraging the Japanese Kanji Proficiency Society to proclaim 金 (gold) as the kanji of the year.

Japan is also undergoing an unprecedented surge in global interest and tourism, which is bringing a new set of challenges. But as Japan plans to host the World Expo in Osaka next year, we’re confident the country will emerge stronger and and healthier than before. And now, on to our top 10!

You Can Experience a Day in the Life of a Showa-era High Schooler at an Abandoned School in Rural Chiba

December 1, 2024 / Johnny / Comments Off

all photos courtesy yourhighschool_kimitsu

There’s a large swath of Japanese manga and anime that takes place in high school. There’s also a large and growing fan base of Japanese manga outside Japan. Plus, Japan just happens to have a lot of abandoned schools owing to their shrinking population. All those forces have converged, resulting in Kimino High School (君ノ高校), a full-day immersive experience that lets you live the life of a showa-era Japanese high schooler.

DesignTide Tokyo is Returning After a Decade-Long Hiatus. Here’s What We’re Excited to See

November 24, 2024 / Johnny / Comments Off

Wow, it’s actually back. DesignTide Tokyo, the annual design event held each fall from 2005 to 2012, is returning to Tokyo this week to reclaim it’s rightful title of “A Place to Trade Ideas.” The last time we wrote about DesignTide, London had just hosted the Summer Olympics and Obama had been reelected as U.S. President. Japan, though, was still reeling from the 2011 tsunami and nuclear fallout, which crippled tourism and travel. And a slew of unfortunate events, from a tragic fire to a pandemic, cast doubt on the future of design festivals in Tokyo. But with DesignArt Tokyo filling the vacuum and now DesignTide being restarted, we are so back.

Starting on November 27th and running through December 1, 2024, the event will host 30+ exhibitors who will present their most recent projects, along with various panel discussions and even a selection of student artwork, all on display at Nihonbashi Mitsui Hall. Here are just a few things we’re excited to see.

Casanet: a New Brand of Eco-Friendly, Stackable Food Containers from the Makers of Wasara

November 17, 2024 / Johnny / Comments Off

Wasara, our favorite brand of sustainable and compostable tableware, is launching a new brand called Casanet. A riff on the Japanese word for stacking (kasaneru), the new brand features the same elegance, minimalism and eco-friendliness, but applied to transportable food containers with lids.

PAP Coffee in Harajuku is a Haven for Coffee and Paper Lovers

November 16, 2024 / Johnny / 2 Comments

What happens when a specialty paper company opens a specialty coffee shop? Well, you get the utterly delightful PAP Coffee, located on a small, quiet backstreet and removed from the bustle of Harajuku. The unlikely owner is Sanyo Shigyo, a 55-year old Tokyo-based paper company whose bread and butter is specialty paper and printing.

Discover a Library of Trees at the New Karimoku Research Center in Tokyo

November 14, 2024 / Johnny / Comments Off

photos courtesy Karimoku Research Center

Karimoku, the leading manufacturer of wooden furniture in Japan, recently opened a new exhibition and archival space in the Nishiazabu neighborhood of Tokyo. Driven by the company’s ethos of “high tech and high touch,” the Karimoku Research Center combines a mixture of technology and hands-on craftsmanship to survey, archive and innovate the many different ways people live.

Samurai Armor-Inspired Randoseru Made from Scrap Leather

November 10, 2024 / Johnny / 2 Comments

Randoseru are Japanese backpacks typically reserved for schoolchildren. Known for their quality and durability, randoseru are meant to last a lifetime. Leather craftsman Noriki Okada decided to create an even more sustainably-minded randoseru using scrap parts discarded from the production process. And for visual inspiration, he turned to the historic armor worn by samurai warriors.

Straw-Based Artwork Created by ARKO

November 10, 2024 / Johnny / Comments Off

all photos courtesy ARKO

Another discovery from last month’s DesignArt Tokyo was ARKO, a Tokyo-based, self-described ‘straw artist’ who has been applying her creative approach to traditional craft since 2002.

Our 5 Favorite Things From DesignArt Tokyo 2024

November 9, 2024 / Johnny / Comments Off

DesignArt Tokyo was back again this year from Oct. 18 to 27. The sprawling annual celebration sees Tokyo transform into a living, breathing museum with venues all across the city opening their doors to artists and craftspeople. This year’s theme, “Reframing,” challenged designers to address the commoditization of ideas that has resulted from our instant access to vast amounts of information.

From kumiko furniture and smoke sculptures to furniture for robots, below are five of our favorite things from the event.

Keisuke Oka’s Arimaston Building in Tokyo, Made Entirely by Hand

October 31, 2024 / Johnny / Comments Off

all photos by @husky_003 | used with permission

Almost 15 years ago, on a tiny plot of land in eastern Tokyo, a young architect named Keisuke Oka began to construct a tower of concrete entirely by hand. Located just a short walk from Mita Station, the Arimaston Building (蟻鱒鳶ル) is an intricate, organic structure whose uniqueness has earned it the nickname, the “Gaudi of Mita” after Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí.