Japanese Photographer Perfectly Captures His Grandmother’s Playful Nature In Touching Portraits
Portrait photography becomes compelling when the photographer seems to capture something about the subject through the image, something that becomes clear to the audience as soon as they look at it. Continue reading »
No One Knows Who Took These Superb Hand-Colored Albumen Prints Of Japan In The 1890s
In the 1850s Japan permitted Western barbarians to trade in its ports for the first time in an age. The weird foreigners were corralled in zones of tolerance, unable to roam freely and kept apart from the Japanese. Continue reading »
Japan Now Sells “Shiba Inu Stuck In Wall” Toys
Back in 2016, a trio of shiba inu dogs in the southern Japanese island of Kyushu adorably peeking out from holes in a wall went viral, attracting a steady flow of visitors to the quiet neighborhood eager to see the scene for themselves. Continue reading »
Japan’s Realistic Napping Cat Hat Puts A Purring Kitty On Your Head
Thanks to hat designer KENT HAT, cat lovers can show off their feline fondness with their latest addition: a napping kitty hat! Continue reading »
21 Days In Japan: Artist Recreates Scenes Of Japan Through Pleasing Pastel-Colored Illustrations
From the bright crimson of toriis and temples, to the rainbow of neon lights in Shinjuku and all the way to the distant blue of Mount Fuji—Japan is full of colors that stay with you no matter where you go. So it comes as no surprise that artists from all over the world take inspiration from this to create beautiful artwork of Japan that leaves just as much of an impression as the colors do. Continue reading »
Night And Day: Striking Street Photography In Japan By James Takumi Shyegun
Stunning street scenes by James Takumi Shyegun, a talented photographer, videographer, and model from Tokyo, Japan. Takumi focuses mainly on urban, architecture, and street photography. Continue reading »
Japanese Illustrator Suzusiro Puts Maids On Skateboards And We Can’t Complain
If you’re a fan of Japanese manga and anime, you may have seen skateboarding characters before (Misaka Yata in K comes to mind), and there’s a very strong probability that you’ve seen maid characters before (Roberta from Black Lagoon, Ram and Rem from Re:Zero Beginning Life In Another World, etc.), but unless you’re a fan of Japanese illustrator Suzusiro, you’ve probably never ever seen the two of them combined! Continue reading »
Godzilla Haikus Are Exactly What You Need Today
When he’s not terrorizing people and destroying their cities, did you know that Godzilla is actually a pretty sensitive creature? So next time you see Godzilla emerge from the sea with that crazy look in his eye, remember that beneath that rough exterior is a poet with a heart of gold. Here are some of the monster’s best haikus. Continue reading »
Women And Cats: Contemporary Bijinga Paintings By Kazuho Imaoka
The tradition of bijinga (美人画, “beautiful person picture”) is said to have originated in Kyoto around the mid-Edo period as an art form that portrayed not only external beauty, but inner beauty. The style continued to evolve through the Meiji and Taisho periods of Japanese modernity but now, a group of young Kyoto-based painters are taking the genre and adding a fresh coat of paint. One of those is Kazuho Imaoka. Continue reading »
Singaporean Artist Depicts How Strange She Feels In Japan
Being silent on a train or not seeing a trashcan anywhere are just some of the things you can only experience in Japan. After spending some time there, the Singaporean artist Evangeline Neo decided to demonstrate the differences between the Japanese culture and her homeland. Continue reading »
Japanese Photographer Captures Breathtaking Images Of Gifu Castle Against Reiwa Era’s First Cold Moon
The last full moon of December is known as the Cold Moon, but this past week’s holds a special value in Japan as being the first Cold Moon of the newly crowned Reiwa Era. Japanese photographer @ta2funk may have provided the perfect commemorative photo of Reiwa’s first Cold Moon with these stunning pictures of it gorgeously looming over Gifu Castle. Continue reading »
Japanese Photographer Captures Stunning Images Of “Time-Traveling Samurai”
A series of stunning images recently posted by architect and photographer Atsushi Kobayashi have been trending lately, and understandably so. Representing a collaboration with traditional Japanese armor enthusiast Naga x Masa, these photos shot in Kakogawa City, Hyogo Prefecture, seem to depict a formidable warrior from the Sengoku Era (1467-1600) suddenly transported into present-day Japan. Continue reading »
Photographer Tatsuo Suzuki Captures Fascinating Black And White Images Of Daily Life In Tokyo
Tatsuo Suzuki is a Japanese street photographer, living and working in Ota, Tokyo. Using long exposures and intense contrasts to capture the frenetic atmosphere of the Tokyo streets, Suzuki’s work is a prescient homage to our ever-changing urban behaviours. Continue reading »
Japanese Illustrator Gives Thought-Provoking Chills With Haunting Artwork
Japanese illustrator Avogado6 doesn’t offer much of a description of himself in his Twitter profile, simply stating that “I’m an ordinary person who likes chemistry. I create video works,” but one look at his thought-provoking artwork reveals that his interests run far deeper than that. Continue reading »
Rare Photos Of Hachiko, The World’s Most Loyal Dog
Hachiko, a golden brown Akita, was born on November 10, 1923 at a farm located in Ōdate, Akita Prefecture, Japan. In 1924, Hidesaburō Ueno, a professor in the agriculture department at the Tokyo Imperial University, took Hachikō as a pet and brought him to live in Shibuya, Tokyo. Continue reading »
Japanese Figure Maker’s Vitruvian Man Is Here To Beat The Hell Out Of Your Other Toys
Sometimes it’s just not enough to have super hero and anime figures duke it out, you’ve got to add some historical and artistic firepower to your action figure duels. Fortunately, Japanese figure maker Figma has your back with their Table Museum series, a lineup of action figures that brings history’s most famous works of art to life (such as The Thinker and Michelangelo’s David). Now joining their lineup is perhaps the most formidable of masterpiece art–a multi-armed monstrosity in the form of a badass Leonardo Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man action figure. Continue reading »
Artist Celebrates Japanese Art And Culture With Strong And Beautiful Women Illustrations
Born in Chiba prefecture, illustrator and graphic designer Nadesico Rin’s style focuses on more traditional aspects of Japanese art and culture. On her official website, she cites a love for Japanese art and culture, the aesthetic of which has raised her and led her to the focus of her artwork. Continue reading »
Fearsome Palm Tree Japanese Folklore Dragon Gives Goosebumps In Okinawa
The Shimadakara (“Island Treasure”) Art Festival in Urama, Okinawa celebrates the people, culture, and nature of Japan’s southern islands. One aim of the festival is to showcase the talent of local artisans in handmade crafts, as well an appreciation for utilizing the limited natural resources they must rely on in life through art. Continue reading »
Japanese Artist Crafts Epic Beast And Plant Hybrid Sculptures
YAGIGURA is a Japanese sculptor and mixed media artist. Specializing in ceramic modeling and pottery since a student, much of YAGIGURA’s clay sculptures are impressive expressions of nature that construct epic beasts out of plant motifs. Although there’s still plenty room left for charming meerkats and rabbits as well!. Continue reading »
Life, Death And Dreams: The Beautiful And Fashionable Art Of Shikimi
A Tokyo-based illustrator with a broad fan base, Shikimi combines a refined sensibility for fashion and design, an ability to create striking compositions, and an an eye for detail and aesthetic balance, resulting in exquisite and detailed tableaus centered on characters. Continue reading »
Kawaii In The Afterlife: The Playfully Religious Art Of Japanese Illustrator Hasuimo
Japanese illustrator hasuimo makes no secret about the orientation of her art. The tweet pinned to the top of her account clearly states: “I like spiritual things.” Continue reading »
Photographer Spent 3 Weeks In Japan And Captured Cyberpunk And Noir Film Inspired Photographs
According to a photographer Teemu Jarvinen: “I spent 3 weeks in Sapporo this January, shooting streets during snowstorms. I’ll share some of my favorite photos in this post. Continue reading »
Alice In Wonderland Re-Imagined With Japanese Artwork: Gorgeous Watercolor
Alice in Wonderland is beloved and celebrated for its surreal charm and dreamlike atmosphere. As it turns out, the fairy tale setting and characters translate very seamlessly (and awesomely!) into a world based on Japanese culture. Continue reading »
Beautiful Vintage Color Photographs Of The Japanese Warriors Captured Over 150 Years Ago
A group of officers in the service of a prince from the north of Japan, circa 1865. (Photo by Felice Beato/Spencer Arnold) Continue reading »
Japanese Plastic Food Samples That Look So Real, But Too Artistic To Eat
An octopus cooking up some takoyaki
Anyone who has ever traveled in Japan without knowing much of the language can appreciate the abundance of beautifully crafted plastic food samples placed outside of restaurants. It’s a great convenience for foreign visitors, and even if you know the language it gives you an immediate idea of what a shop has to offer. Continue reading »
