Japan’s relationship with tattoos is notoriously complicated. Even at the height of their popularity during the Edo period, the samurai class made attempts to ban these creative decorations that depicted designs that were considered subversive. Because of their popularity, the bans were ineffective and so the culture of horimono — literally “engraving” — remained strong for…

Two years ago, at the age of 58, potter Zenzo Fukushima was tapped to become what is commonly known as a “Living National Treasure.” The title, one of Japan’s highest honors, is often misunderstood to be recognition of an individual’s superior accomplishment. In fact, it is a directive from the nation to preserve something that…

The solo exhibition of celebrated artist, Fujikasa Satoko will be held at Joan B Mirviss LTD. May 1 – June 21, 2019 Joan B Mirviss LTD 39 E 78 Street, New York, NY 10075 Among sophisticated collectors and informed curators, the single most sought-after Japanese clay artist is the extraordinarily gifted Fujikasa Satoko. Both visually…

Baby step: Bought a book at a local independent book store. Goal: support local retail culture Baby step: Baby step: Planted a begonia in a pot, placed next to my apartment door. Goal: beautify neighborhood, support local retail culture. Baby step: Baked a bread and shared with a neighbor whom I don’t know well. Goal:…

KYOTOGRAPHIE has been successful partly because photographic images have the ability to transcend linguistic differences through ishin denshin: wordless communication, heartstrings vibrating in harmony.“Vibe,” which situates ishin denshin within a specific locale, is a fitting theme for the photography festival, now in its seventh year. Of the eleven main venues, “The Forms of Nature: 100…

SORA MAMÉ Fava Beans Fava beans have been part of the eastern Mediterranean diet (Egypt, Greece, Italy) for at least 4000 years. There are stories of monks from India traveling through China bringing favas to Japan in the Nara Period (710-794 AD). However, the first written evidence they were consumed in Japan is mention in…

From Steve Beimel: I interviewed Pico Iyer in 1993 about his book, The Lady and the Monk, for first issue my former publication, The Kyoto Diary. He had been living for a short while in Japan at that time, and we discussed many aspects of his book and Japan in general. Now, 26 years later,…

No matter how much a woman enjoys lovemaking, it has to be fit in around the more mundane activities of life, whether that be cooking, child rearing or work. It therefore seems appropriate that a new exhibition examining the lives of Japanese women as pictured in ukiyo-e paintings and prints, originally envisioned as a show…

For National Geographic magazine’s Cities Issue, I walked across Tokyo, the world’s most populous city. The distance, from boundary to boundary, is about 60 miles. But photographers, like me, never walk in a straight line. Searching for pictures, we zigzag and we back-track. We wander in circles. We get lost. So, by the end of…