Japan Type Map by Bold and Noble. Caught my eye. It goes with few of my Ork Posters…
My hometown “Takamatsu” is on there, too! :)
When I visited Kinokuniya book store last Friday, I saw so many great stationery and paper goods besides Japanese books. And I had to get this “Origami” (in Japanese below, it says “Origami Origami”) — isn’t this so cute?!
Comes with a lot of everyday-use origami instructions like these:
and it comes with so many cute and fun patterns, I wanted to get more, but the ones I liked were all gone… but this polka-dots & bunny stickers sure came home with me :)
Hope you had a nice weekend… let the new week begin!
Bluemoon Letterpress in Japan is organizing an earthquake fundraiser letterpress exhibition called “Letterpress of Pray” at BOOKS KUBRICK gallery in Fukuoka this summer and Heartfish Press is more than proud and honored to be a part!
They are still looking for more letterpress work for the gallery, if you are interested, please visit their page and participate. Japan still needs our support!
Your letterpress work will be displayed and viewed by many Japanese people. It’s ok that if you made it before. It’s better that the letterpress has message for Japan. If you could also include few extra, people can purchase them and 100% of the proceeds from this exhibition will go directly to earthquake child support group in Iwate prefecture (Concerning the establishment of a fund for the financial aid of the earthquake and tsunami orphans.).
Beautiful book jacket cover by Bluemoon Letterpress:
I never actually seen Japanese metal types in action — interesting!
and if you are in Japan, please look forward to the exhibition this summer.
(photo via the Atlantic)
I just had to take a moment here and send all my thoughts out to Japan… what a shocking and devastating news… it broke my heart when I first heard the news and all the photos, videos, news on TV make me tear up. I am praying all day all week… until things get better…
My family is in the south side of Japan so everyone is okay (thank, God) and my friends seem to be okay, too… but I can not imagine how horrifying that is and how worried people are if their families and friends are missing… and that hurts me to even think about that…
I am going to donate funds at Red Cross. I wish I could do more. Stay strong, Japan!!!
Here are some pages… aren’t they pretty?
We are having a small dinner party this weekend and making some Japanese hot pot, plus we are thinking of cooking some of the appetizers or salads from this book :)
Happy Friday, everyone! and Happy Weekend!
A week ago on January 11th, while Heartfish Press was launching, a new letterpress studio opened on the other side of the planet — in Tokyo, that is!
It’s called PLY. (pronounce just like “play”) and the studio is not only for the founders megropress and smb et smb, but also, it’s going to be a public shared studio where you can visit, print and create together.
The place looks great! They worked on everything from the floor to building the tables. Amazing!
If you are in Tokyo area or if you are visiting there soon, please contact them and see if you can stop by. This would be my must-go spot next time I go back to Japan! Congratulations on the launch, PLY.!
(images via PLY.)
(found via veryverybeautiful)
Today, I will share some photos I took from the Museum outdoor works and Benesse House Park work — I wanted to spend a little more time! Never enough time.
George Ricky Three Squares Vertical Diagonal , 1972-82:
These were moving by the wind and you can touch them and move them around, too.
Always changing by the weather, by the people… very interesting…
Walter De Maria Seen/Unseen Known/Unknown , 2000
We saw a huge work of Walter De Maria work at the Chichu Art Museum, this seemed like a piece from the work…
Shinro Ohtake Shipyard Works: Cut Bow , 1990
Shinro Ohtake Shipyard Works: Stern with Hole , 1990
These were side by side, right by the private beach. Love the atmosphere and backdrop with the art…
When we got to the Park area, we had a nice lunch and explored a little bit inside of the Park building (wish we had more time) — on the way, we passed this beautiful wall of art, I was so drawn to it. The colors, thousands of mirror-like squares, the patterns… it was really breathtaking. I want a wall like this in my house… someday. :)
Teresita Fernández Blind Blue Landscape , 2009
George Rickey Peristyle V , 1963-95
Another work from George Rickey and these were moving by the wind as well. Very cool and soothing to look at.
and this has been used to represent Naoshima art in a lot of places so I wanted to see it in person.
Yayoi Kusama Pumpkin , 1994-2005
and here it is! Photos taken by me :)
It’s placed in a little pier itself and it looks so awesome! I don’t know why, but it feels very summer vacation to me… doesn’t it?! :)
I will be back, Naoshima!
A Kaiseki dinner at the Museum restaurant Issen. I love kaiseki — it is work of art indeed. So. very. pretty. and goooooood.
A Basquiat work:
After the dinner, we went up to the Oval area. Only hotel guests at the museum or the oval can visit this area with a little cable car. These blue doors are to the hotel rooms, there is an oval shaped water fountain in the middle and the top is also oval shaped, opened to the sky.
The sky, the reflections, the lighting… it was beautiful…
Next morning, we went up to this area again for another look. A view from the little cable car you take…
Morning Oval — it looks so different!
You can go up and walk around and look down…
Cool surroundings: fountain.
The rectangle area is like a painting, but that’s a glass wall and crosswalk.
I highly recommend visiting/staying there if you ever have a chance! Thank you to my best friend, Mitchy, too!!! Love you! xoxo
It’s a ferry boat ride away from Takamatsu port…
We are going to Chichu Art Museum today…
Pretty flowers were everywhere…
The word ‘chichu’ means ‘in the ground’ and true to its name, the Museum is built almost entirely into the hill. The bold design thus maintains harmony with the natural landscape. The architect used only the most basic materials – concrete, steel, glass and wood – to create this masterpiece. (via SIAF website)
It is designed by Tadao Ando — his work is truly amazing, the space, the concrete, the atmosphere… you have to be there and feel the space to know what I mean, you just get stunned by the whole space! Oh, I loved it.
Inside of the museum is strictly no photography… you just have to go there :) Even though there are only few work from Claude Monet, James Turrell, and Walter De Maria, the each room takes your breath away, I could only say “amazing” over and over again!!
There is a little outside area from the cafe…
and of course the great Seto Inland Sea view…
The building you see is the Benesse House hotel — where we stayed! I’ll talk about that later…
