LiveArt Tokyo

Art of Fire - Survival rice cooking

2007-10-20T15:42:00.000-07:00

Art of Fire! - It isn't the art you think of here, but the one you'd need to survive when your life line is cut.

What if earthquake hit you and you have only cans of beer, water, rice and milk pack from the garbege? Yes, you can use this method. Click "Secret of Saba-meshi" and the video.

from www.asahi.com

For the real ART of Fire, you can refer this site. From ceramic exhibition
held at Meguro Museum of Art, Kumin Gallery, 86 works were
exhibited which were made by amatuers except the last four pieces
on the second page. I personally liked the following pieces:

Naoto Tabata, Ishikawa Pref.

Motohiro Nagano, Saga Pref. Reiko Hashimoto, Tokyo Sanae Date, Shiga Pref.

Invited artists were; Tsubusa Kato, Katsumi Ueno and Junji Nomura,
showed the following works.

"Standing Animal" Tsubusa Kato

"Tall Vase with Kin-yo Glaze" Katsumi Ueno

"Yakishime Kingin-sai" Junji Nomura

"Akae Yutanpo Vase" Junji Nomura

New hot spot in Kyoto

2007-04-06T22:10:00.000-07:00

A new cafe named "Berry Cafe" opened along side of the long corridor of the Kyoto Station
on the Shinkansen-side. They have a eat-in space and there is always a long line
of people waiting outside the cafe.

Looking at the show-window is also so much fun although having a piece with a cup
of coffee sounds a lot better!

Chuya Nakahara Museum

2007-04-06T21:41:00.000-07:00

entrance of the Chuya Nakahara Museum, Yamaguchi Pref.
memorial of the poet, Chuya Nakahara

There is a unique museum comemorting the poet Chuya Nakahara (1907-1937)
in the central Yuda Onsen (famous hot spring resort town), Yamaguchi Pref.,
650 miles Southeast of Tokyo and 240 miles of Kyoto.

Inside of the building, there are numerous of his writings, photos and documents
on the poet being displayed and full of memories of the poet who is compared
to the French poet Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (1854-1891).

Nishiki Market in Kyoto

2006-12-23T00:37:00.000-08:00

Tachikichi ceramic store in downtown Kyoto, displaying the seasonal flowers.
A shop of the tea cups for green tea, tea pots and tea leaves. They even serve soft ice cream!
Young people wearing Kimono. When you wear Kimono,
you are supposed to wear Zori (Japanese style sandals), but these girls are wearing boots! Young people make their own style.
There are many "pickles shops" in the market.

Many people from outside of Kyoto say that they love Kyoto but not the people there. It is mainly because that Kyoto people (Kyoto-jin) are hard to understand. Kyoto-jin are said that they hide their true feelings and thoughts in a polite manner and that they'd laugh at you later when you take their words straightforwardly.

There was a TV commercial plot once which was funny and cynical: An elegant lady wearing Kimono greets the guest with full of smile in her face, sitting on the floor of the entrance hall with a formal Japanese style.

"Welcome to our house! Please stay for dinner, we are so happy to have you here."

In the hallway behind her, there shows a broom being hung upside down.
There is a famous saying, 'if you want your guest leave right away, hang a broom upside down at the back, you'll make your wish come ture.'

These jokes would add even more curiosity and interests to the people who plan to visit Kyoto. Kyoto is undoubtedly a marvelous place and a treasure of Japan if you like it or not.

Fasten your seat-belt!

2006-11-23T00:13:00.000-08:00

'Watch out' sign on the highway service area. "I wish I had fasten the seat-belt!"

when you drink Sake in a Japanese restaurant

2006-11-22T21:17:00.000-08:00

Sake cups called 'Choko' are popular form of drinking vessel of Sake, of a small hand-held size.

When you go into a Japanese restaurant for a drink, they'll bring you a basket full of various 'choko's and you'll select one you like to drink Sake from.

You'll be also asked which brewery in which region and what kind of sake -dry or mild- you'd like.

Sake are often tasted hot during winter. Hot sake and 'surume', the dried cuttlefish by the 'robata', fireplace is a popular relaxing elements for the coming season.

Enjoy!!

Lucie Rie and Hans Coper

2006-11-20T15:52:00.000-08:00

Lucie Rie and Hans Coper will be shown at the Shizuoka Art Gallery near Tokyo 12/12/06-1/28/07. This is the third and the last venue of the above exhibition which started at the New Otani Art Museum in Tokyo. About 70 pieces will be exhibited. Since Issei Miyake, a worled renowned fashion designer, first introduced Lucie Rie holding her solo exhibition in 1989 at the Sogetsu Art Gallery in Tokyo, Lucie Rie gained an enormous audience in Japan.

"Human Form in Clay" at the Museum of Ceramic Art, Hyogo

2006-11-15T21:43:00.000-08:00

Museum of Ceramic Art, Hyogo, Japan
"Human Form in Clay" has travelled from Shigaraki to the Museum of Ceramic Art, Hyogo, which is about 600 kilometers south-west of Tokyo. Tokyo venue was not realized, but it will come to Shizuoka, a half way to Tokyo.

The exhibition shows variety of works of 26 artists from 11 different countries including Robert Arneson, Peter VandenBerge, Tony Natsoulas, Viola Frey, Paul Day, Carmen Dionyse, Gertraud Mohwald, Shin Fujihira.

The museum building which opened last fall is somewhat like a Japanese castle, but the inside is very modern.