For all of those interested, we're having our last event this Sunday for the Japanese Package Design Exhibition: Meet the Package Design Enthusiast! This is a chance to meet Bianca Beuttel, the one and only Package Design Enthusiast. She's right into Japanese Packages and will be taking everyone through all the packages on display in fine detail.
I got one of those once-a-year type awesome jobs earlier this year. You know? The jobs that are SATISFYING, FUN and generally AWESOME. This job was to translate the picturebook Yamanoiede • やまのいえで (The Mountain That Ran Away), by the awesome Miroco Machiko.
Itohen published the book under their own independent publishing label Kite Press, and asked me to do the translations. I met Miroco Machiko at the official release exhbition at Itohen back in April. She's wonderful, brimming with energy. Honestly, for ¥840 "The Mountain that Ran Away" is a steal.
Currently, Miroco and Naoya Fujimoto (Burnt Blue) are having a dual exhibition at Gallery Tambourin Gallery in Tokyo. ミロコマチコさんと藤本直也（Burnt Blue）が東京の「Tambourin Gallery」で開催することとないました。
Well well. Looks like I've finally found a way to get FLAG on my blog, for those who can never get anywhere to pick one up. これはこれは、驚いたね。やっとFLAGの表示できる方法探しましたんだ。消して貰えない方に便利でしょう。
A designer or an illustrator, any kind of creator without a network is like a dial up modem. Remember those? It took AGES to download anything. Yes, I was one of these dial up modems, but since Shovel has started I feel like I've switched to optic fiber.
I met Inomata san from Air Osaka, a very nice little artist in residence type hotel in the south of Osaka (cheap too, check it out), a lovely young lady called Emi Makita who's now helping us out with FLAG, also Iwabuchi San from 208 came along to talk about his project for Suito Osaka at the time.
If you're a creator looking for a network, Shovel is for you. It's only ¥500, with the first drink included.
"シャベル • Shovel vol.2" 場所 • Venue： OOO 日時 • Date and Time： 10月31日（土）19:30 - 21:30 参加費 • Participation Fee：500円（1ドリンク付き • with one drink） お申し込み／お問い合わせはoootoiawase@gmail.com まで For more information, please contact us at oootoiawase@gmail.com
*「クリエイティブな人」は、「職業クリエイター」という意味ではありません。 "Creative People" doesn't mean "people in the creative industry". クリエイティブなことに関心のある方なら誰でも参加できます。 Anyone who's interested in creative things is free to participate.
If you're a creator whether in profession, or on the side, come and join in!
Workroom (Clockwise from top left • 左上から時計回り): Inada San, Endo San, Sugitani San, Adachi san, Tsukamura San (face hidden • 隠された顔), Yoshida San.
Guess who appeared in Cycle a little earlier on this summer? That's right! How'd that happen? Was it guuzen•偶然? Not in Kansai, where everyone creative knows everyone else creative.
I share the office with Cahier, One of Osaka's best web production companies. I almost fell off my chair when I heard that Ozaki San from Cahier was engaged (and is now married to) Endo San from Workroom. Creative people in Kansai say that it's really 'semai' (crowded) here, and they're not joking when then say it too. So in the end two lovely girls, Endo san and Inada San from Workroom came to interview me, and I'm now in issue No.02!
A perfect excuse to stick my foot in the door at Workroom and bother them with annoying questions! Workroomで足掛かりをつかんでブログの取材の迷惑な質問を聞いて完璧な口実だ！よし！
Workroom is a Publishing/Editing company who have been around in Osaka for 20 years. Their published material focuses mainly on culture, and they produce excellent books about bicycles and cycling, food and eating, Kimonos and tea; of which I recommend 大阪自転車ホリデー (Osaka Jitensha Holiday) and 京都自転車デイズ (Kyoto Jitensha Days), which has just come out recently. They also organize and edit a few pages for TOKK, Hankyu Railway's free paper.
Workroom consists of 6 members, working in a sparkling clean office in the Mengyoukaikan in Kitahama. Cool building! Totally Jealous. Workroomは北浜にある綿業会館のピッカピカする事務所で６人の組です。かっこいいビル。いいなぁ。
Endo San is the newest member in Workroom. She gives Design support, takes most of their photos and retouches the pictures, and does work on the web (like the Workroom homepage and the Cycle homepage). She enjoys meeting people through work who are interested in art and culture.
Yoshida San is a Designer and does layout work. She is supported by Endo san from time to time. In her job she really enjoys organizing things by herself and seeing them come into being.
Inada San collects information for Workroom's publications, and also translates and interprets. Her English is great. She's also interested in Designing and enjoys meeting new people through work.
Tsukamura San is the representative of Workroom, and she's proud to have brought a group of good people together. Working with them is a daily success in her opinion.
Sugitani San, nice enough to organize a day where everyone was present for me, collects information, writes and illustrates the little strip in cycle for Workroom (Yurunori Kun). She loves going all over the place, and enjoys working in the Mengyoukaikan. I mean, who WOULDN'T.
Workroom also have their own 自習室•Jishuushitsu (translates as 'private study room') called Workroom*A, which is where they hold lectures, workshops, exhibitions and events. I found a cool flier last year about English lessons in Workroom, specifically about art. What a great idea! I thought. They've had Chinese, Wine lessons, English and even Ukulele lessons. After creating good links with people through work, they wanted to keep up real connections, not just on paper. Real interaction was important, and Workroom*A is a place where it all happens.
In the future Tsukamura San, Workroom's Representative, wants them to continue making books; keeping up the good work they've already done. She wants the company to become a bit cooler and a bit more international (she said things could always be better). Well, I'm sure Workroom will always be doing something interesting!
Keep an eye on Workroom*A's event calendar (participate, even if you don't speak Japanese!). Make sure you bookmark Cycle's website. Very soon they'll be translating some of their articles into English, like awesome riding courses around Kansai including information about where to rent bikes, recommended cafes and courses to follow. I guarantee you won't find anything about these in English! And don't just read: participate! Workroom*Aのイベントカレンダーをよく見てください。Cycleのウェッブサイトをブックマークしてね！もうすぐ、記事は英語でもでます；関西にあるサイクリングコースについて、レンタル・カフェ・コースの流れ。英語でこの情報珍しいですよ！読むだけしないで：参加しましょう！
Workroom: Making Osaka cooler than it already is! ワークルームが、大阪をもっとええ感じにするで！
The movie "Raise the Castle", has finally started screening Osaka. I caught up with the co-writer of the script—Kansai's own Hitoshi Hamagashira—for an interview about his highschool experiences and his first big movie.
The first movie he went to see was Star Wars (ep.4). Dragged to the cinema by his father, 8yr old Hamagashira san didn't know the first thing about Star Wars, and wasn't interested in watching it. After getting over the idea of subtitles, which he didn't understand (why go to a movie to read?), he found he actually enjoyed the experience. From then he started attending the cinema regularly; gunfights, action and comedy were high on the list.
When he was 13 he he watched "The Third Man" on TV, and like a smack in the face realized that there was more to movies than just story and action. Seeing the attention to detail in things like framing, lighting and shadow, Hamagashira San got a shock. Even now, The Third Man is Hamagashira's Bible.
Personally, he's my movie critic. I get all the latest advice from Hamagshira San, who will, in a week, attend the movies at least once and watch 2-3 DVDs. I know there's probably people out there who watch more; but I know Hamagashira San is a reliable source. It's not just his objective criticism or the way he follows other critics in the news to compare reviews that I like, it's the small things he does to really analyze a movie. He watches movies and times them to analyze the scene lengths and the construction (introduction, development, turn and conclusion), and will if necessary, watch the same movie a number of times over; with subtitles and without; dubbed; and with both the dubbing and subtitles, to compare the difference.
To give you an idea of his tastes, here are his favorites: 彼のお気に入り：
1. a. Favorite Movies The Third Man (1949)「第三の男」 It's a Wonderful Life (1946)「素晴らしき哉、人生」 The Natural (1984)「ナチュラル」 Angels with Dirty Faces (1938)「汚れた顔の天使」 The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain (1995)「ウェールズの山」 Paper Moon (1973)「ペーパー・ムーン」 C'era una volta il West (1968)"Once Upon a Time in the West"「ウエスタン」（Italy） Ai qing lai le (1997) "Love Go Go"「ラブ・ゴーゴー」（Taiwan） The Truman Show (1998)「トゥルーマン・ショー」 The French Connection (1971)「フレンチ・コネクション」 Time Bandits (1981)「バンデッドＱ」 Le roi de coeur (1966) "King of Hearts" 「まぼろしの市街戦」（France） Shaun of the Dead (2004) 「ショーン・オブ・ザ・デッド」 Zoolander (2001) 「ズーランダー」 Blades of Glory (2007) 「俺たちフィギュアスケーター」 Broadway Danny Rose (1984) 「プロードウェイのダニー・ローズ」 Some Like It Hot (1959) 「お熱いのがお好き」 Amadeus (1984) 「アマデウス」 Unforgiven (1992) 「許されざる者」 Cool Hand Luke (1967) 「暴力脱獄」
2. Favorite TV Series The Black Adder 「ブラック・アダー」 Fawlty Towers 「フォルティ・タワーズ」 The Office 「オフィス」 Suika 「すいか」（Japan） I Love Lucy 「アイ・ラブ・ルーシー」
3. Favorite Directors Frank Capra フランク・キャプラ（USA） Sergio Leone セルジオ・レオーネ（Italy） Henri-Georges Clouzot アンリ・ジョルジュ・クルーゾー（France） Billy Wilder ビリー・ワイルダー Edgar Wright エドガー・ライト（UK）
4. Favorite Scripts Cyrano de Bergerac「シラノ・ド・ベルジュラック」（French Play） The Front Page (1931)「フロント・ページ」 Tange Sazen yowa: Hyakuman ryo no tsubo (1935)「丹下左繕餘話／百萬両の壺」（Japan） A Big Hand for the Little Lady (1966)「テキサスの五人の仲間」 The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)「サブウェイ・パニック」 I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978)「抱きしめたい」 Dave (1993)「デーヴ」 Shakespeare in Love (1998)「恋に落ちたシェイクスピア」 Galaxy Quest (1999)「ギャラクシー・クエスト」 Million Dollar Baby (2004)「ミリオンダラー・ベイビー」
5. Favorite Script Writers Woody Allen ウディ・アレン, Richard Curtis リチャード・カーティス, Shinobu Hashimoto 橋本忍, Sadao Yamanaka 山中貞雄
So how did Hamagashira San get into script writing? "In high school, I was in a movie circle. I though it was just a club for watching movies, but it turned out to be a film making club, and since I was the only person joining that year, I couldn't escape once I was in." Once the club got it's projects underway, he became interested though. When the other students graduated, Hamagashira San was the only member left, and in his last year, he wrote the script, recruited, shot and edited the movie he created all by himself.
During the schools Cultural Festival, Hamagashira's Movie was all set to be screened to the public, but the Animation Club next door decided they would illegaly screen a Miyazaki animation ("Nausica of the Valley of the Wind"), at the same times. Over a 2 day screening period, 200 students attended from the school, which was a bit below the average. Most students had gone next door.
His movie "My Little Girl" had gained a reputation in this short time though, and students who had made the mistake of going to see Miyazaki's animation at the Animation Club next door were regretting the decision and demanding a rescreening. The teachers let Hamagashira San borrow a room for a rescreen, enough to seat 40 people.
この短い間でも、浜頭さんの映画「My Little Girl」は好評だったので、アニメの映画見に行ってしまった人々は後悔をして再び上映してほしかった。上映のため、先生たちは、４０人入る部屋を使わせた。
100 people attended, squashed into the room. That is what has had Hamagashira hooked these years. "I can't escape from that feeling." Is it still possible to see "My Little Girl", then? Hamagashira San says that it's staying locked in his closet. "Now, I will never show it to anyone. NEVER. I don't want to see again, either. It's a blushing memory from my stupid high school days."
部屋が缶詰めで１００人が参加しまして。浜頭さんはずっとその気分にやみつきです。『逃げられない』って。さ、My Little Girlをまだ見えますか？押し入れの奥にしまいこんでます。『今はもう、誰にも見せたくない。絶対に。自分でも二度と見たくない。おバカな高校時代の赤面思い出です』
So how did Hamagashira San get involved in Raise the Castle? Well, the producer of Raise the Castle had previously worked with Hamagashira San, and one day brought in a DVD; a 1 hour short film from an unknown director. She just said "Have a look". After watching it, Hamagashira san said, quite objectively, that it was rough, but it had power and a good idea behind it.
The producer told Hamagashira San that the plan was to remake this short film into a feature length movie. Hamagashira San advised the producer to get someone famous to have a look at the script. 2 months later, the Producer brought the script back, now rewritten, but the director had done it himself. So Hamagashira San advised as best he could: cut this, change the construction, more character building here. After a number of suggestions, the producer said "You do it. Getting a pro in is too expensive." And he's been on board ever since.
Aside from scripting writing, Hamagashira has also been involved in the advertising and PR of the movie; he's been in charge of the brochure, the posters and fliers, and has been a general behind the scenes man. Once the script is written, the script writer has free time.
So what was the biggest challenge? Working and script writing at the same time. Hamagashira San said he found the "Sunday carpenter" role (or sunday script writer) difficult.
The best thing? Watching famous people read his lines. It's a impressive feeling, but the whole time he's waiting for the candid camera crew to jump out from behind the bush and say it's all just a big joke. He said it's like someone's playing a trick on him.
If he had to do it all over again, what would he do differently? Squeezing this idea into a 2hr movie was difficult. "when you write, it naturally gets longer; the first version was 3 hrs". If he did it again, it would be a TV series, with more details and character building. Building a castle in 2 hrs is too fast.
So what's Hamagashira's plans from now? Continue writing as opportunity permits: scripts/novels. This time with Raise the Castle, Hamagashira was just a co-writer. Next time he'd like to be more involved, like one of the Die Hard creator members. "There is a big advantage and a big disadvantage to being a co-writer. The merit is that if the movie is complimented, you can take all the credit. If it's bad, you can blame the other partner. The demerit is exactly the opposite: the other partner can do the same to me".
My student, Hamagashira San, invites me to a restaurant. He says to me "maybe you'll blog about it". I know that he has read my blog, and because of that I know that he's not going to take me to any regular place; part of me was curious, and part of me was a little anxious.
Honestly, I didn't know what to expect. I knew there would be counter seating; I knew the restaurant was only open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays; I knew the owner was from Okinawa and lived in Spain for a while, and cooked Okinawan-Spanish food.
Saturday night my wife and I meet up with Hamagashira San and a friend of his, Tsurumi San. From JR Taisho Station, we jump in a cab, we get out and walk until I really have totally lost my bearings. Eventually the party arrives at Toshi's restaurant.
It's not really a restaurant, more of a hideaway with a reputation for good food. The place is filled with personal mementos, wine bottles and odds and ends. Toshi himself is a wonderful personality. He's got a bristling beard, a broad smile and round spectacles, speaks Japanese, Spanish and English. He's actually Tsurumi San's Spanish teacher.
And by golly can he cook. The food was what was the most memorable of the evening. We had hardly sat down before Okinawan Oden was placed before us; this was followed up by bouillabaisse, and two types of paella, one done with abalone and squid ink. See the pictures above and below. I was pretty manpuku • 満腹 by the time I left.
I'm pretty sure that no one who reads this blog has been there (except those I went with). I've put the link on the Tsunagari D google my maps: call up Toshi, make a reservation, print out the map, see if you can find it and go and have a good meal!
このブログを読んでくれる人は行ったことないで間違いないと思います（一緒に行った人以外）。繋がりDのGoogle My Mapsにリンクを入力をした；トシさんを電話して予約をし、地図を印刷して見に行ってよ！
One nice warm March day, I had an appointment out at Cosmos Square (to see a man about a horse). On the way back, I got off the Chuou-sen at Osaka-ko, to visit this place called CASO (Contemporary Art Space Osaka), which I'd heard about before.
３月のすてきで暖かい日、コスモススクエアで用事ありました（『to see a man about a horse』って行き先をはっきり言いたくない場合の代用表現だよ。覚えてね）。帰る道、中央線の大阪港で降りて、聞いたことあるCASOって伺う目的だった。
At first I was supprised at the size of CASO. It's actually very very large, and it's clearly an old warehouse. The gallery itself has with 6 rooms with high ceilings and plenty of wall space. There's also a lounge on the 2nd floor for visitors and exhibitors, with a library and internet access, also used for parties and lectures. CASO is also know as the Kaigandori Gallery • 海岸通ギャラリー.
I went when the Works 23 Exhibition was on, showcasing 23 graduate school students • 大学院生 from the Naruto Kyoiku Daigaku Geijitsu Course • 鳴門教育大学の芸実コース. Splendid stuff all round! There was something so satisfying about seeing some really large canvases; paintings so large they wouldn't fit in most galleries.
Yagi Sogo • 八木聡悟 was a quiet guy who had an absolutely massive painting of a tree, 'gogonoki' (translates roughly as 'the afternoon tree'). He told me that this was his interpretation of an existing one. Flowing lines, liberal amounts of paint; a really raw earthy feel to his work. I was supprised something so intense could come from such a quiet guy.
Sako Yoshihiro • 左古寛博 had the most 3D of all the artworks. His piece comprised of a number of supported foam platforms on which were placed flowers of different colours and insects, all cut from individual pieces of OHP film. I forgot how long it took him to do it.
Lastly, just before I left, I spoke to Sakamoto Masaru • 坂本優 about his highly realistic imagery in his paintings. In the photo above, the two pictures on the right are part of a set of 3, exploring a theme of naimen, gaimen • 内面／外面 (or interior/exterior). He portrayed himself in these paintings as well, with the windows between inside and outside sometimes clear, at others not.
Anyways, if you're ever in the mood for huge, quiet spaces filled with large pieces of art, then CASO is for you. Even if you're not, you should keep an eye on their schedule, as all kinds of exhibitions pop up, right here in Kansai.
とにかく、広くて静かな空間で大きい絵がある所に気分でしたら、CASOだ。それじゃなくても日程を見て、いろんな展示がでる。Right here! in 関西！
In the bubbling area of Horie, Osaka, there's a very good Zakka and Exhibition space called Art House. I've always walked past it, but never gone in. I've always been shy. I'm naturally shy. I'm a shy guy.
Art house is cool for a number of reasons. Of course it has it's own network of artists and illustrators, but it's also the product of it's own network. All of the Zakka items for sale inside are the products of the artists. If you've been to a Zakka you'll know what to expect (it translates roughly as 'variety store' in English, but that explanation DOES NOT do it justice).
There's 2 exhibition spaces, the left hand wall of the shop, which you can see in the picture above (or below), and on the 2nd floor there's a whole room. Apparently they have ukulele lesson there too! Running the shop is a very nice lady called Yoshitake San. I had a good chat with her, she's very friendly and keen to promote all that's going on.
Climbing the stairs, I found myself in the 2nd floor gallery speaking to Yutaka Miyashita • 宮下裕生. He's a nice young lad. Pictures of young girls, draw in outline. The coolest thing was the prints of the hair and sometimes clothing, which almost seemed like woodblock prints. The dark areas of these prints contrasted with the thin lines of the drawing. Composition was good. Miyashita San said he wasn't an illustrator or an artist, or a designer... Just a guy who liked to do this stuff.
You know I notice that in Japan the lines between of illustration, art and design are more blurred than they are in Australia. In Australia, people usually say with no hesitation what they are, but In Japan, the more people I speak to, the more people just tell me what they do. There's less focus on the profession and more on the results of it. I like that. I find myself following these lines.
A couple of months ago now, I got myself to Itohen just in time for Vol.2 of the 36 Eyes exhibition, showcasing a selection of independent artists in the Kansai area. And even on a weekday afternoon I was able to meet some of the artists participating in the even and ask them a few questions.
Interesting collections of objects imprisoned inside glass cases; not seemingly because they were fragile, but more so because imprisonment seemed the objective of the pieces by Megumi Yamamoto San.
Masato Takeichi San said that he spends the greater part of the day on a single of his artworks. He draws what appears to be mechanical contraptions with no apparent functionality. The details in his drawings are so fine that you can't see the pencil lines, and the shading is meticulous! Personally, I'd get a headache doing these types drawings, and Takeichi San said he spends a lot of time on them.
A collection of interesting shapes and gradients of colors seemed to give depth to Yusaku Kubo San's work. With the work below it was like looking at a jungle, or a machine, bronzes and silvers, flowing lines that fill out into hard shapes.
I've been to all placed marked in Red, and I'm planning to go to all marked in Blue. There's a lot to put it still, so it's not finished. Click below for a larger map!
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I'm an Australian living in Kansai (Japan), wandering around blogging about all the creative stuff I come across. I have a profound interest in Ji-beer (Japanese craft beer). I really like Kansai.
