Spoon & Tamago

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In a New Pop-Up Exhibition, Erica Ward Presents Tokyo as a Living, Breathing Organism

all images courtesy the artist | used with permission

Erica Ward is a California-born ink and watercolor artist who has called Tokyo her home for over 10 years. Inspired by Japanese designs and imagery, as well as the ever-changing landscape of Tokyo, Ward reinterprets everyday sights and objects in surreal ways within her artworks, asking the viewer to consider the mundane daily objects in their surroundings as things of beauty and symbols of culture. Spoon & Tamago spoke to the artist about her newest pop-up exhibition, currently on view at Daikanyama T-Site Tsutaya Books .

Haneno Suzuki Brings Playful Lines to Shibuya

July 11, 2025 / Fia Mikan / Comments Off

Tokyo-based artist Haneno Suzuki has a way of turning something everyday as paper into something completely unexpected in her solo exhibition “Playful Lines“, currently on view at (Place) by Method in Shibuya. Running from July 4th to 19th, 2025, the show invites visitors to explore a surprising world where paper becomes architectural and organic at once. The gallery is located just a short walk from Shibuya or Omotesando station, open from noon to 7pm, and closed on July 6 and 13.

Earth, Reimagined on the Shores of Ishigaki

July 10, 2025 / Fia Mikan / Comments Off

Sou Fujimoto’s newest project, Earth, is a vacation home that nearly disappears into the landscape of Ishigaki Island. Built for NOT A HOTEL, the circular villa is topped with a green roof and designed to feel like part of the land itself. From above, it reads more like a natural clearing than a luxury home. Inside, it opens up to the sea with an airy living space and a sweeping infinity pool that seems to spill into the horizon. Four glass-walled bedrooms curve along the outer ring, while the lower level hides thoughtful details like an “underwater” sauna lit by the pool above, a gym, and a quiet courtyard with a kids’ pool and firepit.

Kuroneko Delivers More Than Just Packages at Expo 2025

July 4, 2025 / Fia Mikan / Comments Off

If you’re heading to the Osaka Expo, you need to stop by Kuroneko Yamato’s booth. Trust us. And while they do offer baggage storage and shipping, that’s not why you want to go. Running for the duration of the Expo (through October 13), the “Dreaming World of Kuroneko” has an installation over 100 stickers that the company uses to indicate the content of packages and corresponding levels of fragility and speed.

Tanjiro Emerges in the Fields as Gyoda Unveils 2025 Rice Paddy Art

July 1, 2025 / Fia Mikan / Comments Off

Every summer, the city of Gyoda in Saitama Prefecture turns rice paddies into giant canvases, planting colorful rice varieties to form massive works of art. Known as tanbo art, these living murals stretch across nearly three hectares and can only be fully appreciated from above. Gyoda’s rice paddy art holds the Guinness World Record for the largest of its kind, and each year it draws visitors eager to see what design will emerge from the fields.

A Garden on Rails: Mitone Design Transforms Train Car into Monet Museum

June 30, 2025 / Fia Mikan / Comments Off

All photos by Shotaro Hamasaki, courtesy mitone design.

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Kochi prefecture’s Monet’s Garden Marmottan, a beloved recreation of Monet’s iconic garden in France, Kitagawa Village has brought the garden’s peaceful beauty to the Gomen-Nahiri Line in Kochi. Designed by mitone design, this special train is filled with photographs taken over the year at the garden, showing blooming flowers, soft light, and beautiful scenery. Even the ceiling features a custom pattern inspired by Monet’s kitchen tiles, with a hidden character named “Kitagawa Monet-san”, designed by Anpanman’s creator Takashi Yanase.

Tomoe Shinohara Brings 1,300 Years of History to Life in Wearable Art

June 29, 2025 / Johnny / Comments Off

all photos by Sayuki Inoue

Located in Nara, the ancient capital of Japan, the Shosoin is the Imperial treasure house associated with Todai-ji Temple. Constructed in the 8th century, it safeguards nearly 9,000 precious artifacts once belonging to Emperor Shomu, donated by his widow, Empress Komyo. In a new exhibition going on this summer at the Osaka Museum of History, several artists have been selected to reinterpret and create artworks based on the treasures.

If You’re Looking For Good Coffee (and cute packaging design) in Akita, Head to 08coffee

June 22, 2025 / Johnny / Comments Off

08coffee is a quaint coffee shop and coffee bean retailer located in the city of Akita. Set off from the main road, the space is as cozy as its neighborhood. It occupies a large white building with parking on the ground level and the cafe space above it, that serves up specialty coffee from all around the world, which is roasted on premise every morning.

Marie Asaba Captures Expressions in Gentle Illustrations

June 21, 2025 / Johnny / Comments Off

In her latest exhibition ‘FACE’ the illustrator points her gaze to the facial expressions of people, pets and even food

Marie Asaba is a Yokohama-based illustrator who depicts children, animals and plants using delicate expressions and bold compositions. Raised in lush Toyama, Asaba draws on her early connections with nature to inform her work, and her own identity. In a new exhibition titled ‘FACE’ the illustrator points her gaze to the subtle expressions of her many subjects, both animate and inanimate.

RIP Kimiko Nishimoto: Japan’s Most-Creative Obachan

June 9, 2025 / Johnny / Comments Off

We were saddened to learn that Kimiko Nishimoto, known for absurdist self-portraits, passed away on June 9, 2025. She was 97. Nishimoto’s creative journey began, unexpectedly, at the age of 72 when she decided to take a photography class. She immediately fell in love with the medium and began taking humorous, comical and sometimes surreal self-portraits.