Nature has a funny way of imitating itself. Have you ever picked up a stone and thought it resembled an animal? Indeed, many of us probably have. But Akie Nakata takes that thought one, two and even three steps further by breathing a life and soul into the stones she finds.
excavate notable landscapes as you exhaust the Omoshiro Block note pad
Leave it to the stationery-loving Japanese to come up with a new way to enjoy writing notes. The Omoshiroi Block (loosely translated as ‘fun’ or ‘interesting’ block) utilizes laser-cutting technology to create what is, at first, just a seemingly normal square cube of paper note cards. But as the note cards get used, an object begins to appear. And you’ll have to exhaust the entire deck of cards to fully excavate the hidden object.
Naomi Watanabe is huge in Japan. With 7.5 million Instagram followers, the comedian is a distant 1st; at least 2.5 million ahead of any of her Japanese Instagram peers. Appearing on TV, radio and in ads left and right, she’s often referred to as Japan’s top influencer. But behind every well-crafted image, as we’ve found, is a strong design team. And for Watanabe, she’s increasingly teaming up with art director Yuni Yoshida.
Happy New Year of the Dog! Many readers will be familiar with our annual tradition here at Spoon & Tamago of choosing some of our favorite designer New Year’s cards of 2018. We began this tradition in 2010 (if you’re interested in going back in time, here are the archives) so we’re slowly making our way to having a full 12-zodiac animal archive! Now prepare yourself for lots of tail-wagging and howling as we post our favorites, in no particular order.
2017 marked the 4th-year of running our little shop alongside our blog, which this year turned 10. Both continue to be entirely bootstrapped and operated internally for maintaining both quality and experience. Doing everything in-house poses several challenges but it enables us to form relationships with our favorite artists, makers and designers and be the bridge between them and the world. That gives us so much joy and is what keeps us going. With that said, here are the top 5 products we carry that our readers and customers loved the most.
Do you have a million yen to blow on your cat? Well boy do we have the cat tree for you. Reconsidered and redesigned from the bottom up, the Neko Cat Tree looks like a modernist architectural sculpture that wouldn’t appear out of place in a museum or gallery.
Kenji Yanobe’s “Ship’s Cat” on display at Tsutaya Books within the Ginza Six department store
The Japanese sculptor Kenji Yanobe is known for his large-scale robotic and nightmarish toys. But animals too have always played an important role in Yanobe’s work too. And in his latest work titled Ship’s Cat, Yanobe has created a series of large-scale cat sculptures in various positions wearing protective helmets.
all photos by Tetsuya Emura
Amongst a group of finalists who had submitted proposals for a world heritage center to be built at the foot of Japan’s Mt. Fuji, one proposal clearly stood out from the rest. All the architects had proposed a roof that mimics Mt. Fuji except for one, which had the shape of a mountain but inverted; turned upside down on its head. Thinking it would be impossible to compete with Mt. Fuji no matter what kind of beautiful roof he proposed, Shigeru Ban decided to peruse a different, opposite path. His proposal was selected and, on December 22, 2017, the Fujisan World Heritage Center opened.
The Microsoft Excel program, which comes pre-installed on most PCs, is typically reserved for financial analysis, or bookkeeping. But for Tatsuo Horiuchi, a 77-year old retired man living in Japan, it’s his acrylic paints; his watercolors; his canvas.
Tokyo is Gearing Up for an Art-Filled Fall. And the Entire City is Here for It
Japanese Aquarium Drops 2026 Version of Flowchart Illustrating Their Penguin Relationships. This Year There’s an English Version.
Winners of Japan’s 2027 Packaging Design Awards
Candidates Announced for Suica Penguin’s Successor. A Public Vote Will Decide the Outcome
Detailed Cross-section of the Kowloon Walled City Created by Japanese Researchers
