Spoon & Tamago

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Sp!n: the Spinning Top Koma!

You guys! This new spinning top from Japanese brand +d is brilliant!! It’s called Sp!n and when you spin it, an optical illusion of levitation reveals an exclamation point!!! Playfulness aside, it’s not every day that punctuation, or spinning tops, makes us this excited.

A Mesmerizing ‘Movement Act’ by Shun Onozawa

January 29, 2019 / Johnny / Comments Off

Graduating art student Shun Onozawa has created a mesmerizing device as part of his graduation thesis project. Titled “Movement Act,” a total of 16 balls are loaded onto a star-shaped platform that continuously “juggles” the balls from side-to-side. The 16 balls move back and forth from 8 different directions, all passing through the middle, yet never colliding. It reminds me a little of Shibuya crossing.

A Renovated Machiya in Narai-juku by Tsubame Architects

January 26, 2019 / Johnny / Comments Off

unless otherwise noted, all photos by Kai Nakamura

Narai-juku is a historic, picturesque part of Nagano that retains a historical row of Edo-period townhouses, or machiya. It was 34^th of the 69 stations of the Nakasendo route that connected Edo to Kyoto and sits at the highest elevation of all stations. Steeped in history, Narai-juku is a nationally designated architectural preservation site with a grant system in place for renovations. But people aren’t exactly lining up to live here.

The Color of Ryukyu: Glass Accessories from Okinawa

January 24, 2019 / Johnny / 1 Comment

Ryukyu Glass is a fascinating craft from Okinawa that is heavily influenced by history

Ryukyu glass is a type of handmade glass craft distinct to the island of Okinawa, part of the Ryukyu island chain in Japan. It’s said to have originated around the time of the Meiji Era (late 1860s) but took on a unique turn after World War II.

Interactive Map Plots Ukiyo-e in Location They Depict

January 23, 2019 / Johnny / 2 Comments

The interactive Ukiyo-e Map has pins of exact locations that Ukiyoe depict

One of the most appealing aspects of Ukiyo-e, at least for me, is that many of them depict actual locations. In particular, Utagawa Hiroshige was known for his landscapes; the most famous being The Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido, which was the result of a procession between Edo and Kyoto. Now, an online Open StreetMap called Ukiyo-e Map has plotted over 200 of Hiroshige’s prints on a map of Japan so you can pin down the exact location they depicted several hundred years ago.

A Giant Fusuma Defines This Renovated Home and Architecture Office in Tokyo

January 21, 2019 / Johnny / 2 Comments

When Kaori Kikushima and Ikki Nagasawa of Tokyo-based architecture firm knof purchased this 33-year old apartment in the Kiyosumishirakawa district, it was compartmentalized into 5 separate rooms. An aggressive renovation plan opened the space up to create a multi-functioning area that could breath and morph between home and office.

Custom-Fitted Pokemon Dress Shirts

January 18, 2019 / Johnny / Comments Off

Contemporary Pokemon fans have always been able to carry around their favorite Pokemon in their smartphones. But now, they’ll be able to carry them in another way: on their backs. The Pokemon company has teamed up with Original Stitch, a Japanese manufacturer of custom-made shirts, to create custom-fitted dress shirts in original designs that feature your favorite Pokemon.

A Pencil That Amplifies the Sound of Writing

January 18, 2019 / Johnny / 1 Comment

The Kokuyo Design Award Grand Prix went to “Sound of Drawing” by Takuma Yamazaki

The Kokuyo Design Awards are one of the most interesting design awards in Japan that have helped commercialize simple yet groundbreaking new stationery products like the Nameless Paints and the Kadokeshi Eraser. Winners of the most recent 2018 Design Awards were just announced this week and the top prize went to Takuma Yamazaki, a young designer who has created a kit that amplifies the sound of the pencil, adding a new, musical dimension to drawing/writing.

New Abstract Sculptures Made From Cut Stacks of Paper by Noriko Ambe

January 17, 2019 / Johnny / Comments Off

Parallel World 5 (2018) | all images courtesy lora reynolds gallery

For roughly 20 years now, Japanese artist Noriko Ambe has been creating sculptural works rendered by cutting into stacks and stacks of paper. Her work resembles three-dimensional topographical maps. Ambe has always been inspired by nature and landscape, but in a recent showing her work has taken a slightly more abstract form.

2019 Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence Program

January 16, 2019 / Johnny / Comments Off

Spoon & Tamago is proud once again to partner with the Ronin | Globus Artist-in-Residence Program. As media sponsor and judge, we’ve supported the program since its inauguration and are excited to be coming back for a 4th year. Open to Japanese artists, this annual program seeks to stimulate cross-cultural dialogue by providing the opportunity for Japanese visual artists to live, work, and exhibit in New York City.