With a mohawk and thick black beard, Akira doesn’t immediately come off as a proponent of the Kimono – the traditional Japanese garment worn for over a 1000 years. Then again, the 37-year old stylist isn’t exactly a purist either. Entirely self-taught, Akira blends elements of photography, graphic design, kitsuke, styling and make-up to create radical, neo-pop imagery, which he’s been posting online since 2008.
Now you can dress your kids in adorable garments featuring their favorite Studio Ghibli characters, and also be environmentally conscious while doing so, thanks to Anofuku (meaning, “that garment”), a new Japanese brand of kids clothes. Anofuku takes vintage and dead stock clothing and adds hand-embroidery to them, transforming them into a one-of-a-kind pieces. And for their first line they’ve collaborated with Studio Ghibli.
In 2013, renowned Japanese architect Arata Isozaki and British-Indian sculptor Anish Kapoor teamed up to create the world’s first inflatable concert hall. Dubbed Arc Nova, the mobile venue toured the earthquake and tsuami-ravaged areas of Tohoku, delivering hope and encouragement in the form of music. Resembling, from the outside, a gigantic purple balloon, the concert hall has now landed in central Tokyo, where it will host film and musical events through October 4, 2017.
abstract visuals, crated by Japanese visual design studio WOW, are based on the satellite’s achievements
For 13 years the Cassini satellite has explored Saturn and its moons. On Friday, September 15, 2017, it will become a streak of ash when it completes its Grand Finale: a self-disintegrating final mission to plunge into Saturn’s atmosphere at 77,200 mph and end its own life. To celebrate the life and death of one of Nasa’s most successful satellite programs, Japanese visual design studio WOW has created in immersive installation in that is opening in New York City on September 15th, the same day that Cassini’s mission comes to an end.
Every now and then we come across a work of architecture that makes us desperately want to uproot our city dwellings and relocate into the mountains. This stunning glass and wood cabin, recently completed in mountainous Japan, is one of those times.
Japanese artist Yukiko Morita always loved bread. Not only was it delicious but there was something about that special combination of flour and yeast that produced wonderful flavors, beautiful tones, and adorable shapes that make people feel warm inside. This profound passion for pan (Japanese for bread and was borrowed from Portuguese) eventually led Morita down a unique path that combined lighting design and baking.
With a little bit of creativity and a strip of this new Japanese packaging tape, you can personalize any package with your very own comic strip!
Yayoi Kusama is having, what you might call, a moment. Then again, it seems as though the older she gets the more energy she has. Now at 88, she as easily Japan’s most recognizable contemporary artist. She currently has a major show that’s touring the U.S. and next month she’s opening her own museum in Tokyo. Now the artist has teamed up with curator at MoMA and a NY-based illustrator to tell her story to children.
Did you go anywhere fun and inspiring this summer? Did you wish you could share the experience with someone? Well now you can with this one-of-a kind mailing card that comes with a specimen window.
Peony, Raspberry Charm
In 1827 the French artist Pierre-Joseph Redouté published his seminal work Choix des plus belles fleurs (The most beautiful flowers), a series of 144 watercolor paintings of flowers. Replicating the botanic subject with perceptive realism, it would become the most well-known botanical encyclopedia. 190 years later, the Japanese photographer Kenij Toma has created a highly contemporary and hyper-realistic tribute to the genre inspired, surprisingly, by traditional Japanese painting style.
The Humble Beef Bowl, Elevated to Fine Cuisine at New Gyudon Specialty Restaurant Kikiya
In Rare Exhibition, Kenya Hara Offers a Look Into His Design Process
Tanjiro Emerges in the Fields as Gyoda Unveils 2025 Rice Paddy Art
Japan’s Jimi ‘Mundane’ Halloween Costumes of 2023
New Architecture Opening in Japan in 2026
