With the latest redesign of my site I had to get rid of my Tokyo Art Beat listings in the sidebar, which is a bit unfortunate. You all know how much I live and die by TAB listings, and so I think that at the very least I should post my list of recommended events maybe on a weekly basis here. And remember, you can also subscribe to a feed of my recommended TAB events.
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Mar 25, 2006
Mar 23, 2006
I was out in Akihabara yesterday — full “out of the closet” disclosure: I wanted to go to the Yellow Submarine RPG shop to check out the board and card games (picked up a pack of this cool new “constructible strategy game” called PIRATES) — and it’s just insane to see how much the district has changed. I don’t really go to Akihabara anymore, and so was just shocked to see all the huge high-rises (like the Cross Field complex pictured here) surrounding the area. The sad thing is that it’s sort of turning into any other Tokyo shopping area. On the bright side, these new complexes are being built in a part of the district that wasn’t really used before (for retail), so the original tiny “circuit streets” are still there. Last week I saw a thing on TV that reported on how the area is now attracting non-otaku women to the area, and not just for shopping, but also as a place to live!
And since I’m on the topic of games (not the video kind), I’m wondering if there’s anyone playing PERPLEX CITY? I just ordered a starter pack that includes a few boosters — looks like fun.
Mar 23, 2006
When I’ve written stories for various publications, I’ve sometimes been asked if I knew of any Tokyo-based professional photographers that they could use for the pieces. I’m afraid that up to know I usually don’t have any good suggestions to make, and so I figured I’d make a call-out. I’m not promising any jobs or anything, but if ever I get asked again, I could possibly refer to whatever feedback I get in the comments section. Let me be clear that this is call-out for professional photographers, not just anyone with a camera in Tokyo who likes to take pictures (like me) — when I get asked, they do request for professional work (i.e. you’ve already done that kind of work).
Update
A reader points out that the proper term is probably “editorial photographer.”
Mar 23, 2006
JDN has a bunch of pics up from Tatsuo Miyajima’s “Fragile” exhibition (until April 8) at SCAI THE BATHHOUSE. I really need to go see this show. Link via Dezain.net.
Mar 23, 2006
Last week I posted about Production I.G.’s plans to follow-up their GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX series, and it turns out that instead of a new series, we’re getting a movie.
Mar 23, 2006
You can read all of my Gridskipper posts here (or even subscribe to a feed).
Mar 22, 2006
Damn, sounds like I really should have gotten in touch with this Shinobu Akimoto for Canadian Style. But then again, there’s always CS2!
On this evening, in conjunction with Videoart Center Tokyo, Toronto based Japanese artist, Shinobu Akimoto will give a lecture on the approaches to the medium by contemporary Canadian artists along side a programme of selected work entitled “Sometimes we make it, sometimes we use it, and a lot of times, we hang out for it.” Ms. Akimoto originally had curated this programme in the spring of last year at the invitation of the gallery in Nagoya for the Canadian component of the gallery Video Award/Exhibition last July.
Included are award winning video works by Akimoto, Matthew Evans, Emily Vey Duke and Cooper Battersby, Maura Doyle and Tony Romano, Jean-Paul Kelly, Sandy Plotnikoff and Tanya Read. (Shift Blog)
Mar 20, 2006
GENEVEtokyo has updated with a few new tee designs, which you can either purchase online at their site or at Beams.
Mar 20, 2006
Who says I don’t eat ramen anymore? Sure, I don’t go out to ramen shops nearly as much as I used to, but I do still partake in the heavenly noodles every once in a while. This shot was taken a week ago at the Harajuku branch of the Santouka chain. Had a bowl of shio ramen.
Mar 20, 2006
Omotesando station, the steps leading down to the Chiyoda line platform.
Mar 20, 2006
Yes, it’s been rather quiet here for the past few days, and there’s a simple explanation for that: I’ve been bitch-slapped by a nasty cold, leaving me with little energy to do much of anything. I’m slowly getting back into the swing of things, and there’s actually a lot of new things I want to talk about here, and I’ll do so over the coming days. Also, it’s looking like next week I’ll have a weeklong break from work, so expect more updates, more projects, and new podcasts.
Mar 20, 2006
This is going to make a lot of GHOST IN THE SHELL: STAND ALONE COMPLEX fans happy.
Mar 19, 2006
This looks promising (from AICN):
18th Century, just before the French revolution, multiple religious cults of the dark side were engaged in secret maneuvers under the name of Revolution. “Le Chevalier D’Eon” (Knight D’Eon) a diplomat and a special agent working for Louis XIV, is fighting against those cults, and also on a mission to find the killer of his own sister. A mysterious cult organization called “Rose Cross” stands in his way, using vicious powers to create a dark creature, “Gargoyle” to over take Europe…
Production I.G. have a good track record, so looking forward to at least checking out the first episode. On the anime front, right now I’m enjoying ERGO PROXY, which is up to episode 3.
Mar 17, 2006
You can read all of my Gridskipper posts here (or even subscribe to a feed).
Mar 16, 2006
PauseTalk is a regular series of events that take place at Cafe Pause on the first Monday of every month, with a start time of 20:00. The idea is to create a forum where Tokyo-based creatives can get together and discuss their own projects, as well as cultural currents of the city. The next edition happens June 4.
We hereby define a new term, that of the magaziner, described as a person who exerts an unhealthy amount of love for all things magazine. The Magaziner is a site that mostly focuses on the intersection between magazines and the digital frontier, and what it means for the medium. This does not preclude the inclusion of a healthy amount of print love.
Jean Snow is a contributor to Arcade Mania, your guide to the arcade gaming scene in Japan (Amazon US/Amazon Japan). He also provided assistance on Tokyolife: Art and Design, a guide to Tokyo's cultural output of the past few years, covering the works of over 80 influential creatives.
He will be contributing to the upcoming fifth editions of The Rough Guide to Tokyo and The Rough Guide to Japan, due for release in 2011.
Jean Snow is Executive Director of the PechaKucha organization. He also helps run the PechaKucha Night in Tokyo -- please get in touch if you are interested in presenting at a future event. For a more intimate salon-like discussion group, join him at his monthly PauseTalk event.
A longtime resident of Tokyo, he lives and breathes design, pop culture, and gaming, sustained by an unhealthy addiction to magazines and frequent visits to his favorites cafes. He has reported on these obsessions for various online/offline publications, including the following: Time, Inside (Australian Design Review), Gizmodo, Gridskipper, Kotaku, 1UP, Tokyo Q, Superfuture, OK Fred, Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, I.D. (International Design), Metropolis, Azure, MoCo Loco, Kateigaho International Edition, Wired's Game|Life, PingMag, CNNGo, Phaidon, and The Japan Times.
You can subscribe to an RSS feed of this site, and also follow him on Twitter and Facebook, or get in touch by email.
