So... Is This Permanent?

According to the Merriam-Webster website, the definition of a tattoo is a permanent marking fixed upon one’s body by inserting a selected color under the layers of skin or scarring the body(1). Tattoos have been mentioned in cultures for many centuries by now. People all around the world have tattoos. Not every person will approve of tattoos while some people go all out making their entire body a walking canvas for the tattoo artists. Now, you might be thinking to yourself “where are you going with this, Kelly?” Well, let me tell you the history of Japanese ink and its significance in Japanese society among the people and culture.

Let’s start off by discussing the different tattoos in Japanese culture. As Shura, a tattoo artist from Osaka had stated, “There are tattoos that you can show and ones that you can hide. Traditional tattoos are okay to show at festivals, certain public baths, and during fights. The cute, fashionable ones, they are okay to show whenever”(2). These tattoos, in which Shura broken up into two types, are based on where they were influenced; the Japanese-influenced and Western-influenced. The Japanese people distinguish the different tattoo styles by calling them wabori (Japanese style) and youbori (Western style). Irezumi is an example of wabori(3).

Traditional Japanese tattoos are referred to as irezumi. They are the most well-known tattoos that American can associate with Japanese tattoos. These tattoos are called “full body suits” by non-Japanese speakers for they cover “the entire body, from the neckline, back, and chest to the ankle”(4, page 5). The design behind this type of tattoo is based off the ukiyo-e woodblock prints; themes that are commonly seen include dragons, craps, peonies, Kannon (the Goddess of Mercy), sakura (cherry blossoms), the seasons, demons, and more. Irezumi were developed during the Edo period in the mid 18th century(5, page 321). During these times of feudalism, the term irezumi referred to disciplinary tattoos, whereas horimono referred to general tattooing. As a result of the [continuous] negative association of irezumi, Japanese traditional tattooists prefer to use the term horimono to describe their art(6, ibid).

A common pattern of tattooing within the irezumi is the munawari. This tattoo design is shaped like an “unbuttoned vest.” It was designed with a long path of “non-tattooed” skin along the midline of the body to be able to be viewed without the tattoo, covering the chest and back, to be seen. This was ideal for men’s kimonos as well as Western clothing.

Kishobori is dubbed “the vow tattoo” for its practice among the geishas (professional performers) and yujos (prostitutes) during the Feudal Edo Period. It expressed the geisha or yujo’s pledge of love to their client – or actual lover – by tattooing said person’s name onto the inner of their arm (7). However, not only lovers had this type of tattoo done. People who were going to prove their devotion to Buddhism had a Buddhist scripture tattooed onto their bodies as their vow. Nowadays, people get these vow tattoos as a way to pledge their desire to avoid making wrong decisions or having wrong behavior according to an interview with traditional Japanese artist “Horikazu”(8, page 328).

As noted above, the backgrounds on these tattoos are adaptions of the ukiyo-e prints. However, the emblements are what truly stand out on the irezumi. There are common themes that make up the irezumi: “various flora and fauna, to religious motifs, and to representations of various heroes and folk figures”(9, page 40).

The flora aspect of irezumi is mainly limited to the peony, chrysanthemum, cherry blossom, and maple leaf. Each flower has its separate meaning. The peony associates itself to the gambling days of the Edo period. Gamblers who wore their tattoos proudly were often seen playing placing bets on games like hana-fuda, which corresponds with the seasons, months, and flowers. June is represented by the peony. This flower now represents gambling and mannish debauchery like those of the Edo gamblers. The chrysanthemum represents having determination and being committed to one’s goals. The cherry blossom, one of Japan’s well known flowers, symbolizes the briefness life. According to Donald Richie, “the implications of a man wearing such an indicate cherry blossom pattern are that he is in accord with the nature of things, sad though this nature may be, and that his own flesh is as fragile as the petals of the blossoms, but that is the way things are”(10, ibid). Finally, the maple leaf represents an undying love. Each of these characteristics represents the way the wearer views him/herself or how they want to be seen as others (11, page 41).

As for animals, the carp and the dragon are among the most common themes. The carp is seen as a brave creature for their ability to swim up the waterfalls and if they are caught and about to be cut up, the carp would lay uncaringly on the cutting board waiting for the knife to dismember its body. Thus, the wearer wants to be as courageous and apathetic as this majestic creature. The dragon is seen as an example of ying-yang for it breathes fire yet lives within water. This combination represents certain wholeness. There are many factors that go into the dragon and its meaning – such as the position of its body, if it is holding something, the amount of paws/claws are raised, etc. The wearer does know that the dragon means strength and true wisdom, which may be what the wearer wants to be like (12, page 45).

And finally, there are many tattoos that have a Buddhist influence. Unlike the West where the wearer would represent religion using the significant person, the Japanese use the minor deities in their tattoo designs. The main three deities are: Nio, Kannon, and Fudo. Nio consists of two muscular kings that were traditionally guardians. These two represent strength and power. Kannon, the Goddess of Mercy, is known to act as a mediator in conflicts. Fudo or the God of Wrath/Guardian of Hell, which is often confused for being an evildoer, is actually a good deity that punishes wrongdoers. He is depicted as holding a rope in his left hand to bind the bad guys and a flaming sword in his right. Reasons as to why someone would want to have Fudo as a tattoo would be because Fudo is similar to them: lives in a bad neighborhood and has many difficult social drawbacks, but he is a hard worker and has what would be considered to be pronounced virtues (13, pages 45-49).

To create these pieces of work, a traditional tattoo master prefers to use the tebori. Tebori comes from the Japanese words te, meaning “hand,” and bori, “carve"(14). Tebori is a very long process; to give you an idea of how long this process could take, it’s about year or more to be fully complete. It is done completely by hand in multiple sessions – usually once a week – doing a section of the design. The needle that the tattooist uses is not like Western needles which are a single needle. Japanese tattooing needles are usually a bundle of needles – ranging from 2 to ten or more based on the design of the irezumi – attached to a wooden handle (15, page 85). What the tattooist does is he or she dips their needles into the ink and moves their right hand up and down at ankle as moving very quickly. While moving their right hand, they stretch out the skin of their client with their left thumb and pointer fingers. The tattooist actually lines his or her needles against the thumb (16).

While it seems as though people in the West of Asia are interested in getting tattoos that resemble Eastern culture (such as getting “cool-looking kanji”), Japanese people are more interested in getting tattoos inspired by the West. These Japanese people are usually young in their 20s. To them, western tattoos are fashionable, have no connections to the Japanese mafia (the yakuza), a little bit more acceptable in Japanese culture rather than traditional tattoos, can give a sexy vibe for the women wearers, can be masculine for the men, and can be expressive of who they want to be. As the Japanese tattoos that I have discussed above have very elaborate backgrounds (or backgrounds in general), the Western tattoos do not have anything in the background of the tattoo (17). This may be another reason as why Western tattoos are more preferable among this group of Japanese.

Meiko Yamada had conducted an experiment with Japanese students studying in Canada in which half of the students had confirmed that tattooed people in Japan are treated differently than those without tattoos. It is not enough to be treated differently for having a tattoo, but those with tattoos are treated differently based on their tattoos. “If people have traditional Japanese tattoos, they are regarded as members of the yakuza. If they have Western tattoos, they are considered to be ordinary people or non-yakuza" (18, page 9). This reinforces what Shura had been describing. The youbori wearers would be regarded as regular people, thus allowing them a little bit less discriminated against than those who wear wabori.

So, my next points are going to bring out the idea of why the youbori are more acceptable in Japanese culture than wabori. As I had mentioned above, to the Japanese, the traditional Japanese tattoos are associated with belonging to the yakuza. People with these full-body suits are often stigmatized wherever they go, due to the fact that they have a tattoo. These people are banned from entering public places that one could reveal their bodies – onsens (hot springs), pools, saunas, bathhouses, and most recently, the Suma Beach in Kobe. Outside of these establishments are signs that more or less prohibit anyone with a tattoo to enter. In some cases, as long as the tattoo is out of other’s sights – in other words, hidden from plain view – then those tattooed people may have the privileged to enter.

But where did the Japanese come up with associating tattoos with the yakuza and banning all tattooed people from certain places? Well, the answer is simple: history. As Meiko Yamada puts it, “because of its historical and socio-cultural background, tattooing in Japan is associated with dark and negative imagines in the minds of many people" (19, page 5). Let’s take a somewhat brief look at Japan’s tattooed past. In the year 279 AD, the Chinese had noticed the tattooing on the Japanese men in the famous Records of Wei – or Gishiwajinden. To the Chinese, tattoos were to only be used as punishment and associated with being barbaric (20). In these records, Japan was referred to as “wa;” this could be an indictator of why the word for Japanese tattoos is "wabori" (21). Almost five hundred years later, Japan had adopted the idea of marking criminals with a tattoo, rather than cutting off an ear or nose like the older system. This made it easier to identify who was a criminal and from where based on the design and location of the tattoo.

Tattooing was reserved solely for major crimes. By the end of the seventeenth century however, other forms of punishment were being thought up. Decorative tattoos, though they were frown upon in society, were being popularized and allowed criminals to hide themselves with the new decorative designs (22). As the Japanese were opening its doors open for the outsiders, it began ruling against tattoos. All tattoos were to be prohibited regardless of what it was - including tribal customs such as those of the Ainu people or religious. This goes back to the idea of tattoos being barbaric and wanting to impress as well as be up-to-par with the westerners in their modernized society (23). In an ironic twist of fate, the westerners had wanted to receive the tattoos from the Japanese thus allowing the Japanese tattooist to work on westerners, but not Japanese people (24). Tattoos would be banned for Japanese people until the end of World War Two (25, page 321).

Now that you are familiar with the history behind tattoos in Japanese culture, let’s look at the tattooed people themselves. I had categorized these people into three main groups: Ainu people, yakuza, and non-yakuza people. I will discuss how tattoos influence these people and how they are/were treated.

First, I will start with the Ainu people of Japan. The Ainu are the indigenous people of the Hokkaido region of Japan. The Ainu people, particularly the women, tattooing was a tradition that was not only spiritual, but also a signifier of a girl becoming a women and ready for marriage, repelling spirits from entering the body, and enabled her to achieve life after death. The Ainu women would be tattooed at a young age and each interval of the girl’s life, the tattoo would be expanded (26). The way these people had their tattoos done were to first create a small cut on the girl’s upper lip by using a knife and then to rub soot into it to form the first dot. Every year, a few more incisions would take place until she had reached marrying age (27). By that time, the initial dot should be surrounding her mouth and worked its way up to the ears (28). For those with bad imaginations, think of the Joker’s makeup from the Batman series. Other than the tattoos on the girl’s face, the Ainu women had tattoos among their arms and hands to also repel the evil spirits away from their bodies and to repel diseases. These tattoos were engraved into a girl around the same time she received her first tattoo. When the Japanese government banned people to receive tattoos, the Ainu women cried in an outraged as their tattoos were a qualification for the afterlife as part of their religion and for marriage. One report of these outrages includes the Ainu people saying: “They say the gods will be angry, and that the women can’t marry unless they are tattooed. They are less apathetic on this than on any subject, and repeat frequently, ‘It’s part of our religion’” (29). Even though tattoos were banned in all of Japan, the Ainu people had continued their tradition in secrecy (30).

The Ainu people had been tattooing for centuries before criminal and decorative tattooing took place. Many people believe the yakuza came about around the time that criminals tattooing were being put into place and replaced by covering them up with decorative tattoos. Anyone with a tattoo during these times had been ostracized by their own families; thus, the tattooed members got together and created a new family, a family now known as the yakuza (31). The townspeople were already scared of the criminals with one marking on their forehead or arm, so the yakuza began combining and expanding their tattoos to cover their criminal tattoos. Tattoos, during the feudal years, were done by tebori as mentioned before. Because of the process to get tebori, yakuza thought of it as a challenge to prove their loyalty, courage, and commitment to their new “family”(32, page 322). These members of society were often causing trouble, which links to the idea of the Japanese people that all people with tattoos are bad people. In today’s society, the number of yakuza that are going out and getting tattooed to prove their loyalty to their respective groups had decreased significantly compared to years prior to the 1990s (33, page 324). The members of the yakuza are now trying to hide their ties with the yakuza by deciding not to get tattoos. This is so they would no longer be discriminated against by society and to get a well-paying job or loans.

Often wives, daughters, and mistresses undergo getting an irezumi tattoo to prove their loyalty and obedience to their yakuza man (34). Author Shoko Tendo was the daughter of a yakuza boss, who also got a tattoo in the style of irezumi when she was only 20 years of age. She, however, did not get the tattoo to express her association with the yakuza but as way to describe her troubled past. This tattoo, as described by Shoko herself, was the mark of a new life for her that did not involve violence or drugs (35).

As Shoko Tendo, there are many people who have tattoos that are not a member of the yakuza – such as celebrities and average, regular people. Shoko Tendo had said in her interview about her book Yakuza Moon: Memoirs of a Gangster’s Daughter "Musicians and artists can get away with showing off their tattoos, but a delinquent like me does her best to hide them." Namie Amuro and Ayumi Hamasaki are both currently famous singers that have tattoos. Because of these singers, younger people are now beginning to have an interest in getting a tattoo (36). However, when these two women appear on Japanese national television, their tattoos are normally covered by clothing or censored out. Though, not all stars have tattoos give a positive influence on society, for example Sakai Noriko. She was involved in a drug scandal and media had pushed the old idea about anyone that is tattooed is a bad person based on her ankle tattoo. Yoichi Wada, Square Enix boss, had showed up at the launch party for Final Fantasy XIII with the l’cie symbol “tattooed” onto his hand. He had messaged his fans on social media site “Twitter” that he may not be able to go return to Japan because of the tattoo. Wada was not joking about not being able to return back to Japan. However, at the event, Wada had washed off his tattoo to reveal that it was indeed a temporary tattoo, which I will get to later (37).

In the experiment conducted by Meiko Yamada, one tattooed person had reported that many women in her workplace in Japan had cosmetic tattoo done, which makes it seem okay to others (38, page 12). For those that are unaware of what cosmetic tattoos are, they are basically make-up tattooed onto the woman’s skin. This was popular do to in the 1930s in America and in the Southern states in today’s society (39).

While in Canada, the people wear their tattoos proudly; when they return to Japan, they hide their tattoos from the public and when they cannot, they simply tell others that their tattoo is temporary (40, pages 15 and 17). Telling people that you have a temporary tattoo is okay in the Japanese eyes for it is not going against the idea that your body is given to your by your parents. If you ink your body, you are basically going against and disrespecting your parents. At the beginning of the interview, all the participants can indicated that their tattoos were for fashion; however, by the end of the interview, their tattoos was being used to definite themselves (41, page 20). “While their tattoos might symbolize rebellion or resistance against authority or the norms of society, their tattoos also express an understanding, respect for, and acceptance of their home culture” (42, page 21).

In today’s society, most Japanese people would not acknowledge the existence of tattooing being done in their country and if they do, they believe that it is only yakuza members that would do such a thing to their body (43, page 26). As you had just read, the views on tattoos in Japan are very negative due to their historical past but few are seen as okay in the minds of the Japanese people depending on what the situation may be – i.e., are they temporary tattoos or cosmetic?

Sources: ____________________________________________________________________ http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tattoo?show=3&t=1333483567 (1) ____________________________________________________________________ Manami Okazaki, “Tattoos come out of hiding,” The Japan Times, http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/fs20080826a3.html (2)(36) ____________________________________________________________________ Meiko Yamada, “Japanese Tattooing from the Past to the Present” http://www.tattoos.com/mieko.htm (3)(17)(21) ____________________________________________________________________ Mieko Yamada, “Meanings of Tattoos in the Context of Identity-Construction: A Study of Japanese Students in Canada.” (4)(18)(19)(38)(40)(41)(42) ____________________________________________________________________ Mieko Yamada, “Westernization and cultural in Tattooing Practices in Contemporary Japan,” (5)(6)(7)(32)(33) ____________________________________________________________________ Donald Richie, “The Japanese Tattoo,” (9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(15)(43) ____________________________________________________________________ http://www.ehow.com/info_10043392_tebori-tattoo-technique.html (14)(16) ____________________________________________________________________ http://www.vanishingtattoo.com/tattoo_museum/chinese_japanese_tattoos.html (20)(22)(23)(24) ____________________________________________________________________ http://www.vanishingtattoo.com/tattooing_among_japans_ainu.htm (26)(28)(29)(30)(31) ____________________________________________________________________ http://inventorspot.com/articles/art_yakuza_japans_tattooed_men_w_6920 (34) ____________________________________________________________________ http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/jun/27/books.japan (35) ____________________________________________________________________ http://kotaku.com/5488997/in-japan-getting-a-tattoo-means-you-can-never-go-home (37) ____________________________________________________________________ http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2008/07/31/lip-tattooing-is-the-latest-fad/ (39) ____________________________________________________________________

Tattoo: Update #2

I am almost finished with my final paper but, sadly, it won't be finished until sometime this weekend due to the amount of work and papers I have to complete. So I'll just get into the current update of my project: (I hope you don't mind my copying and minor modifying of the previous post): I first start out by discussing the different influences of tattoos - wabori (Japanese) and youbori (Western). Within the wabori section, I broke it down irezumi, munawari, and kishobori. I also included a paragraph on how the traditional tattoo master inserts the ink. I then moved onto the youbori tattoos. After I described all those, I briefly mentioned the thoughts of Japanese people according to a study I had found conducted in Canada. I did take notice of how it's not completely accurate because it was conducted with few people. After that, I had talked about the history of tattoos in Japanese culture. Next, I talked about the different tattooed people - which I had divided into three groups. Those groups are Ainu people, yakuza, and non-yakuza people. In the non-yakuza people category, I included everyday people, celebrities, and perhaps the tattoo master themselves. Within the categories, I discussed the thoughts of the tattooed people and those those around based off the interviews and articles I had read. I still have to write about the symbolism of the tattoos themselves - so the meaning behind the background print, the character they chose, and the detailing (such as flowers). Would this be more appropriate in the first section where I discuss the different tattoo styles or after the people? I am also thinking about including videos but keeping it short and figuring out which would be the most beneficial. Thank you for taking your time to read this. I truly appreciate any and all input. ^_^

Tattoos: the Update

As I have been working on my project thus so far, I'm about 2,000 out of the 2,400 to 3,000 words in. Here is my progress as of now:

I first start out by discussing the different types of tattoos - wabori (Japanese) and youbori (Western). Within the wabori section, I broke it down irezumi, munawari, and kishobori. After I described all those, I briefly mentioned the thoughts of Japanese people according to a study I had found conducted in Canada. I did take notice of how it's not completely accurate because it was conducted with few people. After that, I had talked about the history of tattoos in Japanese culture. Next, I talked about the different tattooed people - which I had divided into three groups. Those groups are Ainu people, yakuza, and "ordinary" people. In the "ordinary" people category, I am including everyday people, celebrities... basically anyone who is not an Ainu or yakuza. I have not completed writing the yakuza or "ordinary" people categories yet. From there, I am planning to write about how the tattooed people feel about tattoos in Canada and in Japan.

This is what I have planning and have been doing. One thing that I am curious about is if I should recall the "ordinary" people to "non-yakuza?"

Here are my sources as of now (I will be including more or fixing some of the sources):
Donald Richie, "The Japanese Tattoo"
Meiko Yamada, “Meaning of Tattoos in the Context of Identity-Construction: A Study of Japanese Students in Canada”
Meiko Yamada, “Japanese Tattooing from the Past to the Present” http://www.tattoos.com/mieko.htm (2000)
http://www.ehow.com/info_10043392_tebori-tattoo-technique.html
http://blog.modernmechanix.com/2008/07/31/lip-tattooing-is-the-latest-fad/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/jun/27/books.japan
http://inventorspot.com/articles/art_yakuza_japans_tattooed_men_w_6920
http://www.vanishingtattoo.com/tattooing_among_japans_ainu.htm
http://www.vanishingtattoo.com/tattoo_museum/chinese_japanese_tattoos.html
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/fl20110315zg.html
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/geopedia/Daisetsuzan
http://kotaku.com/5488997/in-japan-getting-a-tattoo-means-you-can-never-go-home
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/fs20080826a3.html

I have plenty of pictures to examine or that goes along with the text. As for videos, I am still examining a few videos (such as the one in the previous post).

Just a preview of what's to come...














Please let me know what you think. ^^

Move Aside LA Ink, Japan is Taking Over

Okay, so maybe taking over isn't the exact phrase to use. However, the Japanese do have a huge influence in the world of tattoos, yes, tattoos. (And you only thought Japan was cute, right?) My project is focusing on tattoos in Japanese society. I will be looking at the history of tattoos in Japan, how they changed society, how people react to tattoo. Some people that I will focus on would be the Ainu people, the yakuza, and average people.

Oh look here, a video... let's watch!


That was just to give you a tiny idea of what you'll have to look forward to hearing. The reason why I chose this project was my interest in body modification (and with Mizenko's help of thinking of different ideas that we wouldn't discuss in great detail during class).

One thing that I feel uncertain about is the lack of articles that Google Scholar would give me the full version of. So far, most of the articles that seem to have detailed information are only available in the abstract form.

(I appreciated any advice that you could offer me that could improve or take my research on a different path. Thank you ^_^)

Here are some links to websites that I think I will be looking at:
http://www.tattoos.com/mieko.htm
http://www.vanishingtattoo.com/tattoo_museum/chinese_japanese_tattoos.html
http://inventorspot.com/articles/art_yakuza_japans_tattooed_men_w_6920
http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/gangsters_outlaws/gang/yakuza/1.html
http://intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2010/04/09/todays_pic_traditional_japanes/
http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/ng-investigates/crime-lords-of-tokyo-facts/
http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/ng-investigates/crime-lords-of-tokyo-pictures/
http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/national-geographic-channel/shows/ng-investigates/ngc-marked-for-life/

Who Am I?

Akane Koide - Wrist Slit

I will not lie, I was attracted to this painting by Akane Koide (artist at age 15) from the moment I saw it. As some may know, I have a fascination of stories that involve a struggle situated in a "real life" setting. Yes, the blood may seem a bit like much, but I'll get to that later on.
Okay... time to actually analyze this! When looking at this painting for the first time, the thing that caught my attention was the girl in the background (and surprisingly not the huge eyeball, go figure). This girl (which I'm going to call Girl B), though she is not the the main focus, had something about her that caught my attention. That something was the look on her face; from a distance/normal view, she looks frightened and concern, perhaps even worried for the main girl in the painting. However, when I had zoomed in on her, I had noticed that her eyes are looking straight at the audience. Could it be that she knows what is going on and maybe looking over it? As she is walking, she placed her hand up against the glass, presumably making a noise, forcing the main girl (Girl A) to turn around and look at her. They are both wearing similar uniforms, signifying that they are still in school. Girl B seems more conservative in the way she dressed compared to Girl A; skirt seems longer and she's wearing a cardigan which covers her up more than the short skirt (revealing some of Girl A's underwear) and opened blouse. Now, let's focus on Girl A. She has two eyes showing, one in the back of her head looking at the audience and one in its normal location also looking at the audience with narrow eyes. The normal eye, to me at least, show her displeasure and dislike towards the audience. It is also as though we were interrupting something and that is her way of telling us.
Let's move away from the girls and their clothing and looks and focus on (basically) everything else. I'm going to start at the front and work my way to the back. In the front, we notice the bandages on the Girl A's wrist - they are loose and undone. Probably used that razor in her hand to cut the bandages along with herself. Notice the new cut that she had created, it's longer than the significantly smaller cut, which the bandages had been previously covering. The blood is just pouring out of her wrist/arm similar to what we see in anime as well as movies like Kill Bill, meaning an unrealistic amount. However, what is in her blood is what draws the audience member in the most - book, lips, eyes staring up at Girl A, beauty supplies. These items have been notoriously known for being related to young females. During the junior/senior high school, these are the things that worry girls the most. They have pressure to do well in school/be intelligent, to look good, to have perfect lips/eyes, and (some cases) look sexy yet maintain that kawaii factor in young girls. Putting the pieces together, I would assume the Akane Koide is making a representation of how some girls handle the stress of being this beautiful object of desire; some cannot handle the pressures so they resort to cutting themselves.
Now connecting to the background. To me, Girl B is the same as Girl A. Girl A is more sexualized and materialized whereas Girl B is the complete opposite. She is more of a conservative kind of girl and placed near nature/the outdoors. To me, this is Girl B staring in at Girl A, deciding whether or not she wants to head down this path that most girls her age take. That may be one of the reasons of why she is looking past Girl A at the audience with her worried eyes.

Now for something happy ^_^
Mr. - The New Me

So, no one can deny how adorably cute this is. Mr. is well known for his anime-inspired artwork. This painting is no exception. It has the same details that would be found in an anime: the big eyes, colorful hair, and anything and everything that would be classified as kawaii - animals, sweets, and multicolored backgrounds that hold a close resemblance to a rainbow. There are many options for this girl in the kawaii world as Mr. had depicted. This girl (I assume) is around the typical pre-teen to early teen age. During that time, a girl is at the transitioning period from childhood to adolescence. Should she give give up on the things she loved as a child or grow into a responsible and mature person? By looking at her face and look in her eyes, her decision is quite clear. She is excited by the cuteness and sweetness of the kawaii culture. This is projected into her eyes. It is interesting how Mr. flipped the images seen by the girl and the audience. It is as though her eyes are mirroring the kawaii nature to better illustrate how the girls (and Mr.?) view this trend among the young girls.

And That Makes You Larger Than Life

IWAMI Reika Sea, Evening Calm, 1964

Iwami Reika was born in the year 1927. For 11 years of her life, she worked as a doll-maker and doll-carver after she graduated from Bunka Gakuin Art College in Tokyo. While she attended school there, she studied underneath Koshiro Onchi, Japanese print-maker who fathered the sousaku-hanga movement.She became a print-maker in the year 1954. Until most women in print-making, Iwami focused on solid blacks, gray, and very few colors. Most of her prints involve natures, in particular water. She followed the ideology that all work must be done by the artist themselves. Iwami is still living.

Now, time for my take on her artwork. Let's take a look at the bottom. Here we see five red broken pieces of wood. Now, keeping in mind of the theme of the artwork, these wood pieces could belong to that of a pier or those poles in the ocean (I tried finding out what those were called but no luck. Does anyone know?) As you can see, they are not perfectly straight, they are jagged and the paint is chipping off of them. This is giving the illusion that they have been there for quite some time now. Compared to the rest of the print, these poles are closer to the audience as though it is holding us back from the sea. As we look beyond the red poles, we see complete blackness. Well, not complete blackness because there were specks of glitter (but that really didn't come out all that well in the picture. It's really beautiful to look at, so you should take a walk back to the museum and view this piece again). In the blackness, we see white specks and a red net. The whites are presumably the fish that inhabit that area. The red net, however, could be an old fishing net that broke was was left in the sea by some uncaring people. The next thing we see as we pan upwards is a highlighted section of the sea. As you can see, the moon is dark and ominous. Normally, Iwami dyes the moon in her prints a gold color, but in this one she hadn't? One reason for this could be to focus the eye on the actual sea and not take away from it by the golden moon. The other reason goes along with my next point. Just next to the moon, we see a red-colored object. This object, to me at least, looks like a man's foot. The man's foot is casting a shadow over the sea as though humans are more important and are at a higher level than nature. Now, let's talk about the red color that I have avoiding up until this point. Red represents things that are powerful. The foot is the color red, the human's power can break the calmness of nature; the net is the color red, the power of this could be to hold the fish and sea animals back from getting in the way of humans; and the red poles, power to hold back those undesired to be in that area.

Ukiyo-e

***So here is the background information on this ukiyo-e. This is a scene from the famous story The Tale of Genji. This was done by the "artist" Utagawa KUNISADA sometime during his lifetime (1786 to 1865). This image is entitles Genji kou no zu: Yuugao or Genji Incense Pictures: Yuugao. The Shining Prince had just presented a poem to the servant of the beautiful Lady if the Evening Faces (Yuugao), while his attendants wait by his ox cart. This print series came with a popular brand of incense associated with each chapter of the romance.
***Utagawa KUNISADA was one of the best representatives of Japanese woodblock when it came to their colors. However, due to the globetrotters, his work as well as other top-notch ukiyo-e makers were considered to be inferior to those of the classical ukiyo-e (the ones the globetrotters were more interested in). He had created the Genji prints between the years 1835 to 1850. After he finished his Genji series, other ukiyo-e makers were following in his footsteps by creating similar type of ukiyo-e.

***Let's begin the analysis, shall we? I will begin by looking at the paper condition rather than the image itself. The paper had shown years of aging by its background color. There stains at the top of the paper were the calligraphy was, as well as on the actual ukiyo-e above Genji's attendants and on the stone walls. Where the attendants were located was a few minor creases among the stain. There were minor chips in the paint, such as the servant girl's hand and behind the girl's body.
***The quality of the ukiyo-e was dull, lines were broken, colors were faded, and the colors ran outside of their intended lines. This print must have been in the back of the printing process for none of the lines are sharp inside the artwork. Colors were slightly running outside of their lines, such as in the furthest attendant's clothes, Genji's clothes, and the flowers from the poem. Colors were in the process of fading.
***The print depicts Genji giving the servant of the beautiful and reclusive Lady of the Evening Faces (Yuugao) during the night. This was because it was the only time the Shining Prince Genji would be able to safely go out and visit his lovers. Due to the bountiful amount of the blue flowers, one would assume that it is springtime. These flowers which Genji is presenting to the servant only bloom during the night (according to Mizenko-sensei). Obviously, Genji is presenting this girl what seems to be a fan (the poem could have been written on it) adorned with flowers. His attendants are waiting for Genji to finish his visit to Yuugao. The looks on the attendant's face implies that he is getting impatient with the prince. A person who does not know the background information of this tale might assume that the woman is offering the man (Genji) the flowers and fan. The look on her face is stoic so that gives the impression that she might not care for the man at all.
***I think that ukiyo-e did a good job giving off the illusion of attempting to be 3D in a sense. It looks a little like stacked on top of one another and follows the Japanese angled lines to further that illusion. The Japanese did this when they could not produce that 3D effect. The focus seems to be on Genji and the woman. If you look at the attendants and follow their gaze, it appears to land on the two people. Although, it appears to me that the clouds are split open to allow its viewer to see Genji and this girl, due to the clouds on both top and bottom. The one attendant is gazing the umbrella (which draws the eye up to Genji) or passed the umbrella to the woman. Of course, Genji's gaze is going to the woman and the woman is looking back at him, which seems to make her appear bashful. The elements of the Japanese culture would be the style and prints of the kimonos, the hair, and the ox cart. The ox cart would be used to cover the prince's identity as he rode about during the night. The woman also has the typical beautiful Japanese face that women were always depicted with having. The people and landscape interact with one another from the flowers. Genji was giving these types of flowers to the woman and the flowers seem to be all around the house that she lives in. I feel as though the print does come off as realistic in this scene. This print seems to be among the lines of being an ouban print, meaning the size was about 10 inches wide and 15 inches high. This print, though it was part of a series, was not part of a triptych. Each scene was created separately.
***I really had no emotion for this print; it didn't draw out any emotions from me. Others might experience emotions of the love story and touched by what Genji did; some might feel curious as why he is doing what he did. This print makes me think a little bit of Romeo and Juliet, of how the two lovers had to meet in secrecy. Some people might be able to relate to that.

Is That a Sword in Your Pocket?

So, this is a picture of a samurai and his loyal assistant sometime during the years 1853 and 1867. The samurai is the man sitting at a higher level. He is obviously showcasing his superiority to the other man, his assistant. Notice the two different skin-tones. The samurai has a much paler skin tone than that of the assistant. In Japan (and in most of Asia) making pale skin was the ideal skin tone. The paler the skin tone, the more likely a person was considered beautiful and that of a higher status. So for the samurai to have this skin tone in the photograph represents his high status. The assistant, as you could see, has a very dark skin tone. Many people of lower status had dark skin due to working out in the fields and sun for long hours. So this makes me think that his job prior to being the assistant of a samurai was a field-worker. Also, the wrinkles on the forehand of the assistant makes it seem as though he is older than the samurai. In the assistant's hand, it looks as though he is carrying a parasol, perhaps the one that kept his master so pale-skinned? The samurai has a sword to both sides of him, as a true samurai would. He has a very masculine facial structure. This gives off the impression that he is a strict and strong man that will means business. He sits with a straight back, furthering asserting his position over the assistant, who is hunched over. The gaze of the samurai is going off to the viewer's right-hand side. This gives off the feelings that the samurai is better than the audience and does not need to make eye contact with those of a lower status than him. However, the assistant's gaze is directly at the audience. His eyes look as though he hates his job, he's old, and/or he's weak. The samurai is wearing a lighter color cloth, whereas the assistant is wearing a dark colored outfit. The assistant would not wear light colors for the colors would show the dirt from his work on his outfit. This was probably done to further illustrate the status difference between the two men.

My Travels to Japan

219

On one of my first days here, I was taken to an etiquette class for young ladies. Oh, how delighted was I when I first stepped into the room of all proper young girls learning the do's and don'ts of society. Though I am not familiar with the ways of the Japanese, they sit with straight backs so I definitely approve of how they hold themselves up. They're hair is neatly tied back in braids, except that one hooligan with a ponytail. I hope she got a deduction in points for going against the rules! However, I did noticed that all the ladies are sitting with their hands nice and neatly in their laps. Very good, very proper of them. Though I don't know how I feel about them sitting on the floor...


102

Ah~ preparing the girls to become helpful and productive women in the world. I highly approve of this. They are being taught the womanly ways to be a good housewife. Their white aprons are in tip-top shape as well as having their long hair pulled back. Good and comfortable footwear is always important so I applaud them for their smart senses. Everything is organized by object so the necessary skills in the household are being well taught by the Japanese people.


134

These young girls are learning the helpful skill of being taught the feminine ways of sewing. They are all wearing such colorful clothing showing off their young and lively spirit, as well as their dedication to this fine art of sewing together materials. However, any smart American woman would remember to wear tighter sleeves in order to make no mistakes of getting one's clothing caught in a machine. And look at those braids. If they were all properly trained, a bun would be much better and less of a distraction. At least some girls were properly trained to do so. They all so serious, except the second on the far right. At least she has some appreciation for this fine art.


035

What is this madness?! Women who are playing such a physical sport?! Have they no respect or decency? I am well aware that women in the United States also play such a pointless sport, but I had more hope of the women of Japan. Oh how I am disappointed. They are wearing a white shirt that could easily get wrinkled - or even worse, dirty - as well as skirts that are just below the knee. What if the girls get too into the game and decide to jump for the ball? I mean, there is a man right there on the left-hand side watching. Probably a sick pervert trying to get a view of what the young ladies are wearing underneath their skirts. That, or he is the ball boy. Either way, he is probably disrespecting the ladies. There are many people watching in the crowd in a far off distance - most likely a mix of males and females.


064

Oh, Japan. I had such high hopes at the beginning of my trip on your etiquette. Letting girls to play such a man-ish sport is completely unheard of. They are playing in their school uniforms and in such a dirty environment as well. And that person in yellow pants, is that a man? Of course a man would allow young women to play such a thing. Their manners are not as superior to those of a woman, so they would bring women down to their level. Typical male.


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For this assignment I took on the persona of an etiquette teacher from the United States. She is doing research on how the Japanese society was different compared to American society. She primarily focused on the school girls in her American school thus, she continued her ways over into Japan... this was the progress of her travels in Japan. She had set ideals based off the beginning of her trip, but as time when on, she started noticing how the Japanese girls were not fit to her model and thought of them as though they were not as mannered as the students in her school.

Tea + Hot Spring = Perfect Combination

Source!

So, in this photo, we have a bunch of women shifting through the tea leaves. The women look worn out and tired as though they have been working longer than a nine to five job (it probably was longer than nine to five). Looking at the skin and faces of the women sorting the leaves, one could easily tell that they are all of different age groups. We have what looks to be an obaasan (old woman/grandmother) in the middle area of the women, but a majority of the women look to be about the ages thirty-five to fifty-something. However, notice that there is a young child (difficult to tell what gender the child is) with the women, and a young adult looking woman at the right closest to the audience. Although the women in this group are primarily older, there are some younger people involved in this duty. The majority of the women's gaze are either down at the leaves (regretting their life choices possibly). Only two of the women are looking up, neither at the audience. The one (closest to the audience) looks as though she is taking a break from the hard work; whereas the other woman is looking straight into the distance. Her mouth is opened so that could be an indicator that she was in the process of speaking to another worker or simply talking to herself. The men, however, seem to be supervising/checking out the women, except the one closest to the women (hands on his hips). That man is staring directly at the audience. Given the man's body position, one could assume that he is the boss or of a higher position compared to the others in the picture. This picture represents how hard the employees in rural Japan worked. All the women look drained of energy but they are still continuing with their work with only one member of the group taking a break. The men are all standing up and not sorting through the leaves; this gives the impression that they are of higher status in this production line. And the child represents the curiosity (based on facial expression) that the younger generation had of the workforce.

Now, let's go take a trip to the hot springs since we are done with sorting leaves!


Sources?

So relaxing, no? This hot spring is located in the Hakone area. It was an ideal location for the foreigners to stay at during their stay in Japan for it was a lavish hotel developed around hot springs, perfect for those long trips to Fuji-san (Mt. Fuji). Notice how the Japanese used the surrounding nature as an influence on the structural design. It was built within the forest to produce the scenic view if the guests were to look out their windows and to give that feeling of privacy. It was away (who knows how far out back then) from the city to add to the feeling of privacy. If you look, only the rooftop of one of the building sections could be seen from this angle. Because this hot spring is surrounded by all the trees with no visual indicator of city nearby, it represents the once isolation of Japan from the outside world. Unlike the many hotels popping up to cater to the globetrotters, this hotel/hot spring stayed true to the Japanese style of architecture to attract the globetrotters, who may have wanted the "traditional" Japanese style instead of the "modern" Japanese hotels.

The Who and Where

So, just to go along with my title, I'm going to talk about the picture of a person first and then the place. :)


Source? [Number 04]

So, let me just start out by saying that the main reason why I chose this picture is because it's the one that related to me the most. Being an addict to fashion and all things stylish, I have done the double mirror thing...

With that out in the open, let's analyze the girl, shall we? Girls, then and now, spend a good amount of time getting dolled up for something (like a hot date, just for fun, habit, or other reasons]. This girl obviously cares about her fashion choices (that is if she had one) for she is using mirrors to check out her hairdo. Japanese women cared deeply about their hair so much that they would either have it professionally styled and/or get it done every few days. In order to prevent their hair from being messed up as they slept, they would have their heads elevated from the base of the neck.

Notice how the girl stares at herself in the mirror. She's staring directly down at the mirror, concentrated on her hairdo. Notice the way she had posed her body, perfectly still in order to best get a glance at any loose hairs. Her one arm is relax and gentle (the one she is looking at) and the other is stiff. This allows her to have complete control over the line of view. To me, it seems as though there is a wrinkle on her forehead. Looking at the picture more closely, there are a few strands/chunk of hair that came loose. This could be causing the girl to be frustrated for she spent all that time on her hair, getting her hair done, or the hairdresser messed up the hairdo. Her mouth is also slightly turned down, adding to the frustrated look.

Now for the place!


Source (again!)[Number 15]

I absolutely love the beauty of this picture! My first impression of it was how simple the architectural was and how involved the Japanese with nature.

The houses are made of a very simple design. Instead of the roofs being made of tiles or shingles like in the Americas, the Japanese roofs were made of thatch, giving a more naturalistic feeling. It was even more available than shingles, which made it easier for those in the lower classes to get a hold of them. The Japanese had worked around nature in order to build their villages. Notice how the trail leading upwards has rocks in the way as well being uneven. The trail even follows the way of nature, rather than forcing nature to do what the humans want (to make their lives easier by having a shorter/more direct walking path by making the path go straight through the hills.) Basically, Japan is one with nature and respects the beauty of it.

Party Rock!

Source

This is a picture of the Dutch having a dinner party with the Japanese during the early 1800s. The reason why I choose this one was how the Dutch were portrayed. All the Dutch men are eating down and eating while the Japanese (only three) are standing up and attending to the men.

Let's start with the outside the room, beyond the focus point of the dinner. The boats outside are the same big black ship that the foreigners used. The Japanese at that time did not use giants ships, but rather small-sized boats. For example, if you look closely over the green railing corner, on the right-hand side, there appears to be a small, yet simple light tan (fishing?) boat. This is, judging by the minimalist design of the boat, belongs to the Japanese.

Now, let's move on to the actual room, shall we? Here we see seven Dutch men sitting at a table eating a meal that is including a meat of some sort, chicken, something to drink, possibly rice, and what seems to be liquor. Notice how they are helping themselves to their own food and drinks. In Japan, for those of you who do not know, it's impolite/rude to pour your own drink. (Yes, they might not know that and just being themselves/following their own cultural customs, but I found this interesting.) The two Japanese women are standing behind the men serving them possibly more food, while the tanned male across the room is bringing more to the guests. And last but not least is the neko-chan (or cat). Because there is a cat laying down in the room with everyone else present, this makes me believe that this was taking place in a home (since Cat Cafes weren't invented back then).

There's a Party in My Tummy!

Source: Google Images. http://www.fourhman.com/blog/images/pocky-romance.jpg

For this assignment, I decided to do Teaching for Japan but then I switched it to Ganguro, an advertisement Ben Stiller did in Japan, and then a Britney Spears Suki Candy commercial. I finally landed on everyone's favorite Japanese import... POCKY!

Right off the bat, one could see this beautiful woman in a romantic, floral-filled field as she gazes into the distance. Her clothing and the Pocky she is holding are both the same color. However, what pops out the most in the picture is the bright blue Pocky box in the right hand corner.

So let's go into more detail about this woman. As she stares into the distance, she gives off that innocent look of being in love. The words, "それはそれはハッピーなデコ," encourages that romanticized feeling of love. Is she necessarily thinking of a lover? Most likely. Is it human? No, it's the Pocky. She has an innocent love for this delicious biscuit treat. To add unto this image of innocent love, her outfit and fields of flowers are shades of light hues, majority of them being the color pink. Pink is the color symbol for innocence, happiness, and sweetness. All these adjectives are non-verbally describing the taste and feeling of the Pocky that she is promoting. The word "happy" even appears in the text, further assuring us of the happiness it will bring.

To put it frankly, this type of Pocky will bring you happiness if you eat it as well as give you the feeling of an innocent love you may had once in your life.