BABU Skateboards and Makes Art But You Can’t See His Face
Feature photo ©︎Shu Nakagawa BABU is a street artist based in Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka. He skateboards in the post-earthquake disaster areas like Fukushima and Noto Peninsula. He makes art from…
Sakura and the Spirit of France: “LIGHTS OF FRANCE” Exhibition Illuminates Oji This Weekend
As Tokyo’s cherry blossoms reach their peak, the historic district of Ōji in Kita-ku offers more than just floral beauty this weekend. Nestled among the blooming sakura trees, a rare…
Pedaling Through Paradise
Cycling the Shimanami Kaido: A Sporty Journey Through the Seto IslandsBy Salomé Le Corre Pedaling Through Paradise There’s something invigorating about the crisp sea air in winter—especially when you’re experiencing…
Art and DEI Get Cozy at the agnès b. Gallery in Aoyama”
These are weird times when everyday, the news brings yet another series of incredulous, synapse-shredding headlines. One can’t be so naive as to believe that art will step in and…
Going Gently Into That Good Night May Not Be So Bad
‘Teki’ means enemy. The 77-year old protagonist Gisuke Watanabe in Teki Cometh (Japanese title: Teki) can’t quite figure out the exact identity of that enemy but he’s aware it’s coming to destroy him.…
90 Million Yen Settlement for “Women’s Trouble” continues with Nakai Masahiro Losing His Shows
By Tori H. Tale In the December 19th edition of Josei Seven, it was reported that 90 million yen was paid by Nakai Masahiro in a settlement awarded to a…
Is there space on shelves for foreign authors? Book industry professionals give tentative encouragement
Japan is the second largest market for publishing books in the world — a fact that probably comes as no surprise to people living in Japan who only need to…
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Performing Kaoru’s Funeral
"Performing..." is also a funny, melancholic and classic Japanese love story. Classic because within the traditional Japanese relationship, a man and woman only realize the depth of their love for…
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Yakuza
The Real-Life Kamurochō: A Yakuza History Lesson with Tokyo Noir’s Jake Adelstein
The Real-Life Kamurochō: A Yakuza History Lesson with Tokyo Vice’s Jake Adelstein We explore Tokyo’s Kabukicho, the inspiration behind the central setting of the series formerly known as Yakuza. (originally…
Telepathy (以心伝心) and Other Coincidences (奇遇)
I was writing to a former intern at Japan Subculture Research Center, Fresca, and asked her to send me her thesis to read—just as she mailed me. I think I…