Tag: japan

neovinyl records = japan calling!

in the wake of one of the most devastating earthquakes in recent history, which has displaced millions in Japan, barcelona-based label Neovinyl has joined the calling shared by many others to bring good will and aid to the victims. label heads baldo and carlo have put together an improvised compilation of various artists from the label’s extended family, which include pete lazonby, rene breitbarth, tom ellis, ernie, ham n’ cheese, and colectivo futuro’s own breach boutique, with all profits going toward the Red Cross relief effort.

the compilation can be purchased via bandcamp @ http://neovinylrecordings.bandcamp.com/

read the press note and listen to samples below…

“Everyone knows that Japan is going through a very delicate moment. Thanks to communication facilities available today, we can see on real-time the sadness and despair in the country, which from here we can’t ignore staying still.

In Neovinyl we have joined the cause of aid Japan after a long time looking forward to taking part of charity activities, and we decided to collect funds through our sales.

We emphasize that we couldn’t reach a special deal with digital stores of their share sales for this release, but at least all the funds we collect will be donated to Red Cross for the Japan cause.

That is why we have also created this Bandcamp profile where you can buy the full album or each track separately.

For the album we decided that who better to embody our sense than the artists who accompanied us on our Neovinyl trip so far: Tom Ellis, Rene Breitbarth, V. Rotz, Ham N Cheese, Ernie, Pete Lazonby, Alessandro Crimi, Breach Boutique (Miguel Colmenares project with Michael Louis), BeleeJean (Maik Yells project with David Delgado) and the creators of the label Baldo & Carlo, each offering the best of themselves, all for a good purpose.

Thanks to all the artists, Álvaro Fernandez, Scan Mode and everyone who helped on this for making it real.”
Various Artists – Japan Calling by Neovinyl Recordings

No Comments by el colectivo futuro on March 23, 2011

filed in sounds

tagged deep house, japan, japan aid, japan donation, music, neovinyl

ukiyo-e = floating japanese art!

western cultures are usually obsessed with japanese things, particularly food, cars, and technological gadgets. however, japanese art forms are in most cases overlooked or flat out ignored, except perhaps for origami, which became popular a few years ago. we recently came across a technique that became widely used in the 17th and 18th centuries, called moku hanga, which translates to woodblock printing. this technique had various sub-genres, the most famous of which was the ukiyo-e, or pictures of the floating world.

mostly, artists which engaged in the technique are very difficult to track, particularly because most of them adopted pseudonyms according to the school they belonged to; and in some cases apprentices would acquire the pseudonym of their masters once these had passed away. this approach, gives the impression that artists were more interested in spreading their art organically, without the need for big sums of money or fame. however, there are a few woodblock painters who became more renowned and thus highly profitable, such is the case of hiroshige and kunisada.

hiroshige

kunisada

below you can find a selection of some our other favorite ukiyo-e prints. for more info regarding this wonderful genre of japanese art, its history, and some of its main artists, check out this wikipedia entry.

No Comments by el colectivo futuro on March 1, 2011

filed in arte, illustration, painting

tagged art, hiroshige, illustration, japan, japanese prints, kunisada, painting, prints, ukiyo-e

tetsuya ishida = trapped in the machine!

tetsuya ishida was a japanese painter, born in 1973 in shizuoka. unfortunately for the arts world, he died prematurely in 2005 after a suspected suicide. the recurrent themes in his paintings were based around ordinary japanese life with a surreal twist: the usual main character, a self-portait of ishida, is either trapped inside some sort of machine or he’s part of a production line. perhaps he was making a statement about how mechanized and orderly japanese people behave in their society. his paintings clearly evoke despair and anxiety both through facial expressions and the bizarre settings where he places his characters.

tetsuya graduated from the musashino art university in tokyo. during his lifetime he won several awards and held various solo exhibitions in his home country, but as it usually happens with great artists, his work didn’t gain much attention across the world until after his death, with some of his paintings being sold at auctions for large sums of money.

you can check out most of the artist’s work via his official website, even though it’s in japanese, you should be able to browse around thru the images.