Electric transformer boxes painted with the silhouettes of Ultraman monsters can be seen on the streets of Sukagawa (Fukushima prefecture), the hometown of sci-fi special effects master Eiji Tsuburaya.
Ultraman [photo]
Gomess [photo]
Ultra Seven [photo]
Clockwise from top-right: Antlar, Guts Seijin, Telesdon, Mephilas, Gomora [photo]
Borg Seijin [photo]
Pegira [photo]
Interactive media artist Mio I-zawa’s “mechanical tumor” is a quivering hunk of fleshy, organic-looking material that expands and contracts depending on the amount of stress your computer is experiencing.
+ Video
Equipped with a series of motors and pneumatic actuators, the mechanical tumor pulsates gently when the CPU load is low. When the CPU load is high, the tumor’s air compressor is activated, causing the lump of flesh to inflate.
The size of the tumor fluctuates according to the CPU utilization rate, giving the user a very tangible reading of the computer’s stress level.
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Other biologically inspired interactive devices by Mio I-zawa include “external heart,” a squishy latex heart on wheels that beats and rolls around in sync with the user’s pulse…
…and “elastic cell,” a system of 46 soft pulsating cells that react to human touch in a complex, lifelike way.
[Link: Mio I-zawa]
Here are a few samples of Japanese graphic design featured in the “Design X” special anniversary edition of IDEA magazine, 1995.
“I’m Here” poster, Katsuhiko Shibuya [+]
“I’m Here” poster, Katsuhiko Shibuya [+]
Poster for “Life” exhibition, Mamoru Suzuki, 1994 [+]
Poster for “Life” exhibition, Mamoru Suzuki, 1994 [+]
Garbage bag design, Gento Matsumoto, 1994 [+]
“Hiroshima-Nagasaki 50″ poster for JAGDA exhibit, Mamoru Suzuki, 1995 [+]
“Hiroshima-Nagasaki 50″ poster for JAGDA exhibit, Mamoru Suzuki, 1995 [+]
“Hiroshima-Nagasaki 50″ poster for JAGDA exhibit, Mamoru Suzuki, 1995 [+]
Iconova – Portrait of Towa Tei, Keiji Itoh, 1994 [+]
Poster for E Company, Tatsuo Ebina, 1993 [+]
Poster for E Company, Tatsuo Ebina, 1993 [+]
Editorial design for Hanatsubuki magazine, Katsuhiko Shibuya [+]
Poster for Yume-No-Yuminsha theatrical troupe, Noriyuki Tanaka, 1989 [+]
Poster for Yume-No-Yuminsha theatrical troupe, Noriyuki Tanaka, 1989 [+]
“Life/Elements” poster for “Life” exhibition, Keiji Itoh, 1994 [+]
Voice, Ken Miki, 1993 [+]
Primitive, Ken Miki, 1993 [+]
Delicate Technology, Ichiro Higashiizumi, 1991 [+]
Editorial design for “Dress-up Vol.1,” Noriyuki Tanaka, 1994 [+]
Editorial design for “Dress-up Vol.1,” Noriyuki Tanaka, 1994 [+]
Modera Tone, Kazumasa Nagai, 1995 [+]
Godiva advertising poster, Osamu Fukushima, 1992 [+]
Godiva advertising poster, Osamu Fukushima, 1992 [+]
Laforet advertising poster, Takuya Ohnuki, 1991 [+]
Poster for Sapporo wine museum, Kotaro Hirano [+]
Poster for “Life” exhibition, Osamu Fukushima, 1992 [+]
Poster for “Life” exhibition, Osamu Fukushima, 1992 [+]
In the 1960s and 1970s, Japan saw an explosion in the popularity of sonosheets — cheap, flexible phonograph records printed on thin sheets of vinyl. Widely available from a variety of publishers, the most popular sonosheets featured theme music from TV anime, manga and tokusatsu, and they often came packaged inside booklets featuring colorful artwork. The sonosheet boom was short-lived, though — many companies went under as the market became flooded in the 1970s, and the phenomenon all but disappeared by the 1980s. Here is a small sample of the vast array of sonosheet cover art from that era.
Batman vs. Iceman
Batman (front cover) [+]
Batman (back cover) [+]
GeGeGe no Kitaro (front cover) [+]
GeGeGe no Kitaro (back cover) [+]
Falcon of Shidenkai [+]
Kaiki Daisakusen (front cover) [+]
Kaiki Daisakusen (back cover)
Daikaij?sen
Space boy Soran [+]
Tetsujin Tiger Seven/ Inazuman/ Diamond Eye
Ultraman (front cover)
Ultraman (back cover)
Henshin Ninja Arashi
Frankenstein [+]
Robot Detective (front cover)
Robot Detective (inside) [+]
Space Monsters
[More]
Post-apocalyptic artist Yanobe Kenji has constructed an animatronic fire-breathing dragon boat for the ongoing Aqua Metropolis festival in ?saka.
+ Video
Named “Lucky Dragon,” the 15-meter (49-ft) long aluminum cruise boat is outfitted with a 7-meter (23-ft) tall mechanical dragon that moves its neck and wings, spits fire and water, and flashes glowing red eyes. The boat is scheduled to entertain onlookers with periodic fire-breathing performances in the local waterways (?kawa river and D?tonbori canal) until October 12.
Lucky Dragon spits fire at Suminoe shipyard, September 5
The vessel is named after the infamous Lucky Dragon No.5 (Daigo Fukury? Maru), a Japanese fishing boat that was exposed to fallout from a US nuclear weapons test on Bikini Atoll in 1954. Yanobe, a native ?sakan, hopes Lucky Dragon will encourage people to think about peace while sparking the local economy.
[Source: Mainichi]
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In 1975, graphic artist Tadanori Yokoo produced hundreds of pen and ink drawings for Genka (”Illusory Flowers”), a historical novel by Harumi Setouchi that recounts the struggles of Tomiko Hino, the wife of shogun Yoshimasa Ashikaga (1435-1490). The fanciful illustrations, which do not appear to directly reflect the content of the story, were published along with the novel in a long series of installments in the Tokyo Shimbun newspaper.
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This is just a small sample of the work. For 350+ more, see hiroyasu-tangerine (16 pages): 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16.
[Via: @ColinPeters, @jaypea_aitken, @assemblyman_eph, The Cabinet of the Solar Plexus]
Asphalt [+]
Masakatsu Sashie’s fantastic “orb” paintings depict large, city-like spheres that float gently above the remains of a failed civilization. The giant orbs, which seem to be self-contained worlds unto themselves, are pieced together from the scraps of old Showa-period buildings and bits of consumer culture, such as vending machines, pachinko parlors, fast food signs, and video game components. Part retro and part sci-fi, the orbs appear to hover gracefully between the worlds of a nostalgic past and a dystopian future.
Secret Base [+]
Slingshot [+]
Electric Mushroom
Closed Town
Cradle
Bazaar [+]
Hoodia
Scratched Achievement
[Link: Masakatsu Sashie]
Graphic artist Aquirax Uno, a prominent figure in the Japanese underground art scene of the 1960s-1970s, is famous for creating psychedelic posters featuring strange (and occasionally grotesque) eroticism, bright colors, and elements of collage.
First Love Inferno, 1968 [+]
Keiko’s at Marubutsu Department Store, 1967 [+]
Michelangelo’s Expression, 1968 [+]
Display Exhibition, 1969 [+]
Untitled, from “Mono Aquirax” [+]
Sailor 21 Gold Fountain Pen, 1968 [+]
“Aquirax Uno Collection” Exhibition Poster, 1968 [+]
Mini Books, 1967 [+]
The images here (and more like them) are from the website of Tara Sinn, who has also posted a 2007 interview with Uno.
A selection of Uno’s original posters can also viewed at Kawasaki City Museum as part of the “Graphic Design in the 60s and 70s” exhibit that runs until October 4 (free).
Maywa Denki president Nobumichi Tosa has created a video detailing the inner workings of the manually-operated WAHHA GO GO laughing machine.
+ Video
According to the video, WAHHA GO GO is activated by spinning the torso-mounted metal disk (an optional crank arm can be used for greater speed). The disk’s rotational energy is transferred to the machine’s left and right arms via a gear assembly in the lower back. As the arms rotate, the accordion-like lungs expand upward, drawing in air that is then exhaled through the machine’s artificial vocal cords.
Another set of gear wheels in the spine transfers some of the spinning disk’s rotational energy to the head assembly, which includes a pair of tiny arms that stretch and relax WAHHA GO GO’s artificial vocal cords (thus regulating the pitch), as well as an arm connected to a valve that controls the flow of air from the lungs. This arm also opens and closes the mouth, which alters the so-called “formant characteristics” (resonant frequency) of the laugh, producing the “wa” and “ha” sounds.
By incorporating a series of mechanisms that work together to control the pitch, resonant frequency, and amount of air supplied to the artificial vocal cords, WAHHA GO GO is able to produce an uncanny human-like laugh.
[Link: YouTube]
Here to haunt the waning days of summer are three chilling ghost paintings by Meiji-period artist Kawanabe Ky?sai (1831-1889).
Ghost painting by Kyosai, 1868-1870 [+]
Ghost painting by Kyosai, 1870 [+]
Ghost painting by Kyosai, 1883 [+]
Related:
- 19th-century ghost scrolls at Zenshoan temple
- Sketches of hell by Kyosai
