Here is a collection of posters by graphic artist Kazumasa Nagai from the 1960s and 1970s.
Kōrakuen Jumbo Pool, 1973
Growth - Life Science Library, 1966
Toshiba IC, 1967
The Mind - Life Science Library, 1965
Expo '75 - International Ocean Exposition, 1975
Artist Yoriko Yoshida's "Asialphabet" illustrations depict the Roman alphabet (minus Q and X) as Japanese cultural items and traditions.
A [Akita]
B [Bonsai]
C [Chanoyu]
D [Dashi]
E [Ekiden]
Osamu Tezuka's manga characters appeared in a series of fire safety posters featured at a disaster prevention exhibit at the Shinjuku Keio department store in March/April 1979.
Supervise children around fire (Astro Boy/Uran)
Always maintain adequate ventilation (Kimba the White Lion)
Plan at least two escape routes (Unico)
Be alert for irregularities (Black Jack)
Provide safe rooms for children and the elderly (Son-goku the Monkey)
Artist Tatsuya Morino puts a unique twist on the great monsters of Gothic literature in a series of illustrations featured in the book Kaibutsu Gensō Gashū.
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley, 1818 [+]
The Fly - George Langelaan, 1957
Moxon's Master - Ambrose Bierce, 1919
The Hound of the Baskervilles - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1901
The Voice in the Night - William Hope Hodgson, 1907
Here is a collection of videos and photos of Gundam-style dekotora art trucks from Japan.
[Photo: Satoshi Minakawa via today and tomorrow]
[Photo: ART SEKI]
[Photo: FREEDOM遊遊フレンド☆はぐれ雲]
Fukui-based yōkai painter Matthew Meyer has been researching and painting a different traditional Japanese monster each day this month. Here are a few of the lovely horrors featured in the collection, which will continue to grow until the end of October. [Link: A-Yokai-A-Day]
Hari-onago ("Hooked woman" with deadly hair, from Ehime prefecture)
Kijimuna (Okinawan tree sprite)
Kerakera-onna ("Cackling woman")
Gagoze (Demonic ghost haunting Gango-ji temple in Nara prefecture)
Aonyobu ("Blue wife," the ruined aristocrat)
The Tamori Club late-night variety show recently took a boat cruise through a system of drainage tunnels beneath central Tokyo.
+ Video
Here are a few highlights of the trip.
1:00 - The boat approaches the tunnel entrance, located on the Kanda River next to Mansei-bashi Bridge near Akihabara. The drainage tunnel -- known as the Ochanomizu Diversion Channel -- runs 1.3 kilometers and rejoins the river upstream near JR Suidobashi station. The tunnel is not designed for boat traffic.
2:10 - Tamori tests the echo inside the tunnel.
2:25 - The painted numbers indicate the distance in meters from the entrance.
2:35 - The tunnel measures about 8 meters from floor to ceiling. The water level easily reaches the ceiling after a heavy rain.
3:00 - The boat approaches a round section of tunnel dug with a shield machine. This portion of the tunnel is 8.8 meters in diameter and 760 meters long.
3:50 - The passengers view the rails of a ceiling-mounted crane system used during construction. The crane was used to erect a water barrier to keep the construction area dry.
4:00 - The boat passes a floodgate tunnel on the left.
5:00 - The boat passes a sign reading "Eidan Ochanomizu Station." This type of sign was placed in the tunnel during construction to indicate the nearby infrastructure. Due to its proximity to the subway station, this part of the tunnel is built with extra reinforcements.
5:30 - The boat passes a similar sign for Ochanomizu-bashi Bridge.
5:55 - The boat passes a similar sign for Century Tower, a 19-floor office building.
6:00 - A smaller tunnel branches off to the right. The tunnel is too small for a boat, and the guide is not sure where it leads.
6:50 - The round section of tunnel opens up into a large chamber. During construction, this was a vertical shaft used to lower the shield machine underground. The rails of a ceiling-mounted crane system are visible overhead. A ladder leads up to a manhole on the street.
7:50 - The exit comes into view. Another tunnel continues past the exit for another 1.6 kilometers.
8:30 - The boat exits the tunnel and continues up the Kanda River.
9:30 - The boat passes a pipe pumping water out of the leaky Suidobashi subway station (Mita line).
11:00 - The boat enters another tunnel (Suidobashi Diversion Channel No.2), which runs for 500 meters.
Tetsujin 28-gō, the famous Japanese robot manga series written and illustrated by Mitsuteru Yokoyama, ran as a monthly insert in Shōnen Magazine from July 1956 to May 1966. The manga follows the adventures of a 10-year-old boy named Shotarō and his giant crime-fighting robot named Tetsujin 28 (a.k.a "Gigantor" in the US), which was originally built by the boy's late father as a secret weapon for the Japanese military during World War II.
Here are some scans of the manga covers (from the mook Yokoyama Mitsuteru Manga Taizen).
July 1956
September 1956 [+] // October 1956 [+]
February 1957 [+] // April 1957 [+]
August 1957 [+] // October 1957 [+]
November 1957 [+] // December 1957 [+]
April 1958 [+] // November 1958 [+]
June 1958 [+] // December 1958 [+]
March 1959 [+] // July 1959 [+]
August 1959 [+] // September 1959 [+]
April 1960 [+] // June 1960 [+]
July 1960 [+] // August 1960 [+]
October 1960 [+] // November 1960 [+]
December 1960
March 1961 [+] // August 1961 [+]
November 1961
January 1962 [+] // May 1962 [+]
February 1962
September 1962 [+] // December 1962 [+]
August 1962
February 1963 [+] // April 1963 [+]
November 1963 [+] // December 1963 [+]
January 1964 [+] // July 1964 [+]
Visitors to the Digital Content Expo in Tokyo last weekend were treated to a choreographed dance routine featuring AIST's feminine HRP-4C robot and four humans.
+ Video
The performance, called "Dance Robot LIVE! - HRP-4C Cybernetic Human," is the culmination of a year-long effort to teach the humanoid to dance. The routine was produced by renowned dancer/choreographer SAM-san (a member of the popular music group TRF who has worked with numerous well-known artists like SMAP and BoA), and the lip-synced song is a Vocaloid version of "Deatta Koro no Yō ni" by Kaori Mochida (Every Little Thing).
Here are a few photos of the performance.
[Video: kmoriyama // Photos: Pink Tentacle]
