Spoon & Tamago

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Manabu Ikeda Unveils a Monumental Pen & Ink Drawing Nearly 3.5 Years in the Making

The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan was one of the most devastating environmental events of our time, with its overall impact rippling across the globe for years to come. But just as stated in Newton’s third law—for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction—so too did the people of Japan respond to the magnitude of the destruction in an effort to rebuild their country anew as captured in this staggering new artwork by Manabu Ikeda titled Rebirth. Starting in July of 2013, Ikeda toiled away on the 13 x 10 foot piece for 10 hours a day inside a basement studio at the Chazen Museum of Art in Madison, Wisconsin. He finished work just last week.

Bujinga Sumi-e Portraits of Star Wars Characters by Masayuki Kojo

November 30, 2016 / Johnny / Comments Off

Bujinga is a very specific Japanese art form that evolved in the Kamakura period. Bujin (武人) means warrior and ga (画) is painting. And so the bujinga portraits were depictions of samurai warriors intended to capture the legacy of the brave and pass them on to future generations. In a contemporary iteration, bujinga artist Masayuki Kojo captures characters from Star Wars, creating versions of Darth Vadar and the Storm Troopers like never seen before.

Using Augmented Reality to Make Hachiko Meet-Ups Not Terrible

November 29, 2016 / Johnny / 1 Comment

Shibuya Station | all photos courtesy Teruaki Tsubokura

It’s perhaps Tokyo’s most-well-known and popular meet-up spot. The loyal akita dog Hachiko, who was memorialized as a bronze statue, now stands outside Shibuya station where it waited for its beloved owner to return. But as media artist Teruaki Tsubokura points out, its fame is also its detriment: there’s only one Hachiko for the thousands of people who meet up there every day.

The Book & Bed Hostel Opens a 2nd Location in Kyoto

November 29, 2016 / Johnny / 1 Comment

Book & Bed is a self-described “accommodation bookshop” with beds built into bookshelves. When the first Tokyo location opened last year, bibliophiles were obviously overjoyed because, for the first time, it was socially acceptable to wander into a bookshop, pick up a book, and then doze off to sleep. Now, the popular concept hotel is getting a 2nd location in Kyoto.

Famicon Stationery Lets Adult Gamers Relive Their Childhood

November 28, 2016 / Johnny / Comments Off

Although I never considered myself a huge gamer, the Famicon certainly occupied a large presence in my childhood memories from growing up in Japan. Even the frustrating blows of air into the cassettes to get them to work properly, and that annoying double-pronged wire that hooked up behind the television, are now fond memories. So I was pretty excited when I saw that stationary company San-Ei was releasing a line of items inspired by the 1980s video game console.

8 Ukiyo-e That Show How Fun Snow Was in Edo Period Japan

November 25, 2016 / Johnny / Comments Off

Yesterday, Tokyo woke up to their first November snow in over 50 years. The last time the first snowfall, called hatsuyuki (初雪) occurred in November was in 1962. But at the time it didn’t even stick. So if you go back to the first accumulation of snow, Tokyo truly hasn’t seen anything like this since records began in 1875. So for a city with typically dry winters, there was understandably a lot of flurry and frenzy in the air.

So we thought it would be fun to take a look at some ukiyo-e that illustrate what snowfall was like in Edo-period Japan (1603-1868).

Now Open: The Sumida Hokusai Museum in Tokyo

November 24, 2016 / Johnny / 1 Comment

the new Sumida Hokusai Museum designed by Kazuyo Sejima

If you’re an Ukiyo-e fan, it’s time to get excited. The much-anticipated Sumida Hokusai Museum, dedicated to world-renowned ukiyo-e artist Katsushika Hokusai, opened this week. And it looks beautiful.

Interior Designer Shigeru Uchida: 1943 – 2016

November 23, 2016 / Johnny / Comments Off

We were saddened to learn that Japanese interior designer Shigeru Uchida passed away earlier this week on November 21, 2016 from pancreatic cancer. He was 73 years old.

A Spoon & Tamago Guide to Ginzan Onsen

November 18, 2016 / Johnny / 5 Comments

all photos by spoon & tamago | taken with iphone 6

Ginzan Onsen is an achingly photogenic hot spring town in the Yamagata region of Northern Japan. Literally meaning ‘silver mountain,’ the location became famous for its old-Japan look and feel after it was used for the site of the period drama Oshin.

A Small Bank, Once Converted Into A Bar by a Legendary Art Director, Reopens

November 15, 2016 / Johnny / Comments Off

“The Bank”

In 1928, Kamakura Bank opened an outpost in Yuigahama, a coastal town just south of Yokohama. The bank merged and became part of Bank of Yokohama in 1941, and was then shuttered the outpost in 1945. But its legacy lived on. The building miraculously survived the war, as well Japan’s penchant for scrapping and building.