Be sure to eat your (TOKYO) veg

Ever since architecture school, the questioning of the urban fabric is something me and my cohorts do on a daily if not minute basis. What if human kind took a different route to populate square acres of land? Underground? Underwater? And what if we had somehow failed to maintain our quality of life, and let it decay into some sort of magical forest of metal & concrete...oh, let me introduce you to Tokyo Genso...

[Official Tokyo Genso Blog] By showing a present/future/past of the urban Japan, Tokyo Genso suggests a point in time where something has taken over--other than humans. Shibuya, Shinjuku, Akihabara, are not spared this horrible future, but are portrayed with vegetation, vines, and decay--and done so beautifully. Nuclear Bomb? Fuel shortage? Zombies? Believe it or not there are places in the world as strange as this, and the web urbanist is a great place to start exploring the eeriness of a world devoid of the human soul. Something about the mix of j-pop, art, manga, architecture & disaster makes this so f-ing cool. Reminds me very much of Tekkon Kinkreet, Akira, and all those damn Macross series' that were spliced and mashed, into what we know as Robotech stateside during the 80's.

Oh, and who doesn't like a little green taking back what it lost. It's so hip these days.


(this blog post is recyclable & biodegradable)

[via boingboing and pinktentakle ]


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Royal/T in the Porta-Party

What do you get when you mix a warehouse art space in Culver City with a cafe staffed by French-maid outfitted Asian girls- Royal/T. Royal/T has created quite a stir amongst Japanophiles and Asian art enthusiasts alike as it stands to be Los Angeles's first version of a cosplay cafe. Now don't get too excited yet fellas...these ladies aren't gonna play hide and seek with you, feed you, or cater to your every whim. What Royal/T DOES offer is an open and welcoming space to enjoy a cup of tea amongst some of today's most talented contemporary artists.

Current exhibit: "Just Love Me is the opening exhibition at Royal/T. Selected from the Susan Hancock Collection, Just Love Me explores the complexity of cuteness, and the yearning it reveals in artistic expression today. Cuteness is a gesture expressing an innocent desire to obtain unconditional love from someone who gives one's heart. Cuteness is not always sweet and jovial. It can also be monomaniac, enigmatic and obsessive accomplishing the craving under its optimistic surface-to be loved. Just Love Me is the title of a neon sign in the collection by Tracey Emin. This exhibition juxtaposes works not only by Japanese contemporary artists but also by various international artists who explore obsessive human desire." (Royal/T) Featured artists include: Takashi Murakami, Yoshitomo Nara, Keisuke Yamamoto, and Izumi Kato.

One of my most favorite and alluring pieces at Royal/T was Nick Rodrigues's Porta Party- basically the collision of a porta-potty, iPod, discoball, and camera. The sculpture is part of Rodrigues's 'Human Interaction Series'- an exploration of how human relationships cater to and sometimes conflict with technology and innovation. You can literally walk into the porta party, choose a song off the bright pink iPod nano inside, have the flashing lights dance with the spinning discoball, and the camera inside will capture all debauchery which is then projected onto the iPod screen for outsiders to gawk at. According to Nick Rodrigues's site, the Porta Party is available for rent for your next house party, debut, or bbq.


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