Generally associated with the image of the little red heart with black eyes, the brand COMME des GARÇONS, shortened to CDG, did not stop at this single success. It was founded in 1969 by the enigmatic Rei Kawakubo, who at the time was dissatisfied with the clothing available in stores. Its name inspired by the yé-yé pop…

Revitalizing crafts for the 21st Century NEWSLETTER, Spring 2022 Journalist Richard Varner interviews Steve Beimel for an update on JapanCraft21 activities. Varner: Well, Beimel-san, before you update us on what’s been happening since the successful conclusion of last year’s JapanCraft21 contest, could you clarify what you mean by the word “crafts?” It’s a broad term…

  In his book published in 2008, L’Esprit Mingei au Japon (‘The Mingei Spirit in Japan’), general curator of heritage Germain Viatte reveals the secrets of the success of this new artistic movement, between tradition and modernity. Facing a country that only considered aristocratic art and the uniformity of globalisation, Japanese philosopher Soetsu Yanagi (1889-1961) decided to…

Gobō (burdock root; Arctium lappa) most likely arrived in Japan from the Asian mainland in the 10th century AD. Early written records indicate that gobō was, at that time, valued not as a food but rather for its medicinal (diuretic), anti-inflammatory properties. In addition to boiling the root and leaves, dried bits of peel were brewed and steeped…

  Gin, an alcoholic with his life in ruins, Hana, a transgender woman and Miyuki, a teenage runaway, play the anti-heroes in the third animated film by Satoshi Kon, Tokyo Godfathers (2003). On Christmas Eve, the three eccentric protagonists find a newborn baby in a heap of rubbish and name her Kiyoko (‘pure child’ in Japanese). Following…

The ridges in a suribachi, a Japanese mortar, help crush ingredients without bruising them, keep ingredients in the bowl, and yield a pleasantly toothsome textures.When I first got my suribachi and surikogi, I was nervous. Growing up, neither of my parents used any kind of mortar and pestle regularly, so I had no idea how…

Could the architecture of Kyoto’s historic machiya townhouses offer modern lessons in remote work? While the pandemic has turned many kitchens and bedrooms into makeshift home offices around the world, there’s one style of housing in Japan that’s been mixing business and living space for centuries. The city of Kyoto is known for its stock of unique historical structures…

“Have you seen the video of the tap dancing kabuki actor?” asked my American friend living in Japan. For real??, I asked.  “I’ll send you a link.” “Tap dancing kabuki actor” felt like an oxymoron for my mental inventory of a tap dancer.  Think:  The Nicolas Brothers, Gene Kelly, Sammy Davis Jr., Bill “Bojangles” Robinson,…

My early years in Japan were flooded with hatsu taiken (first-time experiences), especially at table. Among those were my first bite of URUI (Hosta sieboldiana), memorable for its elusive wild-grass flavor. Urui prepared as ohitashi showered with smoky flakes of dry-cured bonito was my very first encounter with this amazing garden green,. When, several days later I was served slender stalks of urui napped with…

To mark important milestones in Japan, women will often wear special clothes referred to as Haregi or ‘your Sunday’s best’. Marusho Kimono Shop is a long-established Kimono rental store in Yokohama, with a mission of handing down traditional Japanese culture through Haregi. People often wear Kimono’s for weddings, summer festivals funerals and for ceremonial occasions.The…