Giant Rubber Duckies
 

Again, this may not "technically" have been built on Japanese soil, and the artist is actually Dutch, but nevertheless, this installation was seen to have made a big spash when it debuted in Japan.

"A 10-meter-tall rubber duck has been seen on the waterways of Osaka, Japan. The humongous bath toy was designed by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman and was met with shouts of “Bathzilla! Bathzilla!”

Although this is not the first time the giant rubber duckie has been seen in a city, this is the first time it has floated in the waterways of Japan. Speaking of odd ducks, how about a round of applause for the randomness of Florentijn Hofman?"

[trendhunter.]

If you are unaware of what this post is meant to entail,
I may advise you to take a quick glance at what gravure
is all about; it was created in Japan, you know.

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kw...j8bso1_500.jpg
川村ゆきえ | Yukie Kawamura

http://27.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ky...8dpno1_500.jpg
I'm still not sure from what show this is from, but it's definitely got Japanese monster-kitch written all over it.

What We're Made Of
 

http://28.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l1...nd83o1_500.jpg
Japan by RobotKid

(I can't believe I actually waited over 2 months, almost 3, to accumulate all the ingredients to finally post this. what I do for completion. As always: Enjoy.)


{If the above embeddable should break, a redirect link: Nunchaku Baseball - by EpicWinNet}

This is a clip showing an actual martial arts master in Sapporo (Japan) who has perfected the art of hitting baseballs with the nunchaku.



(gaw.. viddler.com videos worked all along? (to embed) I waited so long for nothing. :/ )


[japanprobe.]

- - - - -

+ bonus

If the above video showed excellent "ninja" skills, then this video is the expected accompaniment: Samurai Baseball

Seen just two months ago from a Japanese variety show, in which the swordsman revisited to how his technique.


there was also my humorous reply to the above (well, at least I thought it was good)..



[Samurai Warrior Blade vs. 93mph Fastball - TFP Thread.]

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l1...59eoo1_500.jpg
daybreak at the Fukuoka city by kozyyy_t

author's comments:
we can see the Fukuoka Tower, Sea Hawk Hotel, and Fukuoka Dome Baseball Stadium from this place with sunrise.
all of them are the symbol of Fukuoka city.

{ Taken on April 21, 2010 }

This is another one of those "caveats" here, as this painted piece is only on the tenebrous subject of Japan, (or maybe it's inspirational?) but the original artist who created it is not of Japanese descent in the least.

http://img.ffffound.com/static-data/...31da7de0_m.jpg
Yeti Over Mount Fuji II, by Phil Ashcroft ; acrylic on canvas ; 183 x 126cm, 72"x50" ; 2004.

Phil Ashcroft is an artist based in London. Combining influences from abstract expressionism, British landscape painting, Japanese woodcuts, and graphic street art, Ashcroft integrates varied visual styles to generate a crossover between space, object and environment.

"The unknown is a space at once fascinating and fearful by mankind’s technological advances and the romantic notion that there still lies undiscovered elements to the world in which we live. A derelict hospital, oil depots, nuclear power stations, the abominable snowman; collectively these semi-surreal settings and cartoon-like motifs appear as mysterious manifestations, phenomena both real and imagined."

http://27.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kx...uh80o1_500.jpg
The Kagestar ("Za kagesutaa", 1976)

Silly me - I initially, and completely, forgot to mention that the above man, is actually world-renowned photographer Nobuyoshi Araki
(grasping his newest favorite camera, the Pentax LX)

For those who don't speak Japanese:

You are a muscular individual who's protein powder has been stolen! Chase down the thief by flexing with your wiimote/nunchuk in the proper pose.

This guy is also in the game for some reason: Oda Nobunaga - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://img.ffffound.com/static-data/...555fd7e1_m.jpg
Illustrated by 士郎 正宗 | Masamune Shirow.


[moe.imouto.]

http://20.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kr...6ygbo1_500.jpg
Kamen Rider(s)

http://i47.tinypic.com/5tubtx.jpg

According to the web site, the goal of this beverage is to emulate super sour candies and, boy howdy, is it a success.
It smells relatively mild and doesn't look like much since it looks like modestly tinted carbonated water. The first sip
though is like drinking straight out of a bottle of lemon juice. It's incredibly intense and I wonder now if the goal is to
use this as a mixer for liquor rather than to drink it straight.

[japanesesnackreviews.]

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l3...5279o1_400.jpg
Kit Kat Kaleidoscope: Far-Out Flavors From Japan : NPR

excerpt:
The Kit Kats you find in American stores offer a quick fix of chocolate and crispy wafers.
But in Japan, Kit Kats go far beyond chocolate, with flavors like ginger ale, soy sauce,
creme brulee and banana. NPR's Lynn Neary talks with Tokyo-based reporter Lucy Craft
about the unique candy market in Japan.

http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l4...4eqoo1_500.jpg
Old Photos of Japan - the first in a series

http://26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l4...uh80o1_500.jpg
科学戦隊ダイナマン -- translated: Kagaku Sentai Dynaman.


*tidbit of trivia: the above scene is from episode 29, of the seventh installation to this series, entitled: Chimera's Cursed Clothes (キメラの呪いの服 Kimera no Noroi no Fuku). The entire Super Sentai series has been alongtime mainstay in Japanese televised children's production, (running continously for over 30 years!) alongside other popular counterparts, such as the Ultra series, and the Kamen Rider series. This series, and in particular, the 16th adaptation of the Super Sentai saga, were the initial basis and spawning of Saban Entertainment's The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, (and all future incarnations) now an ingrained part of North America culture for almost two continous decades now.


[supersentaiseries954.]

(see the gallery of the episode in the link above.)

"Expanding Dreams! Service nation! Expanding hopes! Service nation!
Expanding chests! Expanding, expanding!"


*context: the commercial is for a construction company that is very good at "expanding" all sorts of things.

Pounding your dough, using traditional Japanese methods [Buzzfeed]

The reason it made me smile so is because it is a cartoon scenario set in real life: over-sized props, fast-forward motion and all.

http://9gag.com/photo/747_540.jpg
a manga panel featuring a heap of a whole loads of Japanese characters and anime references.

As I've just learned, the image is a metaphorical one, for the long-standing industry of Japanese Manga, and its gradual decline over the years.

Japan’s Manga Industry in Dire Straits | Sankaku Complex [article]

http://9gag.com/photo/11564_540.jpg
A humanoid robot HRP-2 Promet performs during the Digital Content Expo 2008 in Tokyo (October of 2008).
-- (Photo: Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images)


[LIFE.]

http://i28.tinypic.com/2v01yd3.jpg
Osaka’s Koraibashi, 1910 -- Old Photos of Japan - the second in a series

http://15.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kt...4hbio1_500.jpg
Ai Shinozaki (篠崎愛)


*(every wednesday, whenever I get around to it)

http://28.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kq...nd83o1_500.jpg
Showbiz: Japan

http://img.ffffound.com/static-data/...d6b28c37_m.jpg
Japanese book cover, 1923


[ajourneyroundmyskull.]

Proletarian posters from 1930s Japan [gallery]
 

In the 1930s, a new style of poster emerged that reflected the growing significance of the masses in Japanese society. These artistic posters borrowed elements from Western design and often incorporated bold slogans with political, economic and educational themes.

http://i26.tinypic.com/15zhvnp.jpg
Poster in advertisemtn for the Kusunoki Masashige Festival (by Kenkoku Kai, 1931)


[pinktentacle.]

http://29.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l5...clizo1_500.jpg
Illustrated artwork by Akira Yamaguchi.


[robototoro.]

http://are2.tumblr.com/photo/1280/87...cgoEtrs1qznd83
"Helm" — Tatsuyuki Tanaka

Ribbed for her pleasure. I wonder if that dirty old bastard H.R. Giger was inspired by Japan or vice versa.

Unmasked
 

http://30.media.tumblr.com/CXuwFtVqE...7B6eFx_400.jpg
Kamen Rider(s) - (if not's apparent, I really like these bug-eyed superhero bikers)

fanservice! Wednesday feature

http://8.media.tumblr.com/kcq2O9G2O4...gCYjb0_500.jpg
Ai Takabe

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l4...mmkpo1_500.jpg
illustrated by Hajime Sorayama

BBC News - Tokyo's 'oldest man' had been dead for 30 years [news ; article ; outrageous conclusion?]

http://i34.tinypic.com/wsvajl.jpg
The Erotic Horror Portraits of Daikichi Amano

http://24.media.tumblr.com/cyOSLXuNN...KUhJo1_500.jpg
Super Sentai Red Squadron Leader (Ranger) over the years and eras.

http://30.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l3...5vu7o1_500.png
MUSIC｜シンガーソングライター エミ・マイヤー インタビュー

translated as: MUSIC | Interview with singer-songwriter Emily Meyer (Openers, Japan)

[Classic Covers]

I haven't posted a video in a few pages, and I guess that's what anybody at all really cares about, so here's what I was depriving you of:

http://28.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ky...dg9wo1_500.jpg
戸田恵梨香 | Erika Toda ; for Young Jump Publications [ヤングジャンプ]

http://29.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_kz...7hmlo1_500.jpg

(I don't feel like myself.)

[Classic Covers]