Celebrating important events with fun, colossal terror!
For those who have never seen a Japanese festival in action before, it’s quite the experience. Along with music and dancing filling the streets, there’re usually people carrying giant “portable shrines” featuring everything from samurai and dragons to Gundam mecha to… well, phalluses.
But when it comes to family-friendly portable shrines, it doesn’t get much better than Tokyo University of the Arts’ recent creations. To celebrate the blooming of Ueno Park’s cherry blossoms, they brought out these unbelievable monsters:
▼ “Tokyo University of the Art’s portable shrines were displayed at Ueno Park.
That giant salamander is so cool.”
上野公園の広場に東京芸大の藝祭神輿が野外展示されていた。
— くろだまさし (@kurodamasa) March 26, 2016
巨大オオサンショウウオ神輿いいなぁいいなぁ pic.twitter.com/6mwxgnmRk6
▼ Good luck getting rid of this salamander from your doorstep!
▼ “Hello tasty snack!”
▼ A tiny human sitting on top of it, to show scale.
▼ Hey thanks for carrying that shrine on your back, giant white boar!
▼ Er, I mean… yes, I can carry it instead. If you insist….
▼ Seems like the boar has a soft spot for those who bring smaller,
golden boars to appease him.
▼ Sometimes you just gotta grab the bull by the horns…
▼ …but not when the bull is erupting forth out of a mountain.
▼ So this is what happened to all those dead Tamagotchis….
▼ We’ve seen this guy before, and now he’s back, crushing temples as usual.
▼ Yup, still crushing temples from this side too.
▼ “That human would be in so much trouble
if I didn’t enjoy crushing temples so much!”
Seeing giant festival shrines like that would get me pumped for anything. Blooming cherry blossoms, Brussels sprout harvest, paperclip sale at the local office supply store…you name it. If these monsters were there, I would be too.
If you want to see more work by students at Tokyo University of the Arts, then check out the Six Realms of Buddhism as Whales exhibit that they put up earlier this year. The whales may not be as big as these portable shrine monsters, but they’re no less gorgeous to look at.
Source: Twitter/@kurodamasa via CuRAZY
Images: Twitter/@kurodamasa
University students create giant artwork of an octopus attacking a temple, now seeking a buyer
Hanazono Jinja Shrine: Lanterns, stalls and rakes at annual Tori no Ichi cock festival in Tokyo
Injuries on stairs in Tokyo highlight an overlooked design flaw
Wisteria season starts early with blooming of Japan’s Great Wisteria in its beautiful garden
Final version of Sanrio: Beginning of Kawaii exhibition opens in Tokyo[Photos]
7-Eleven Japan now sells… hot takoyaki!
Japan’s popular bead bonsai kit is as beautiful as it is gruelling to make
Japanese bento shop sells croquettes for 13 cents, but are they any good?
What’s inside Japan’s super-rare, super-popular Nara bread?
Japanese trains in Sapporo might be better than those in Tokyo, thanks to one special feature
Foreign tourists in Japan will get free Shinkansen tickets to promote regional tourism
‘A Cruel Angel’s Thesis’ took just two hours to write says Evangelion lyricist Neko Oikawa
Japan’s best conveyor belt sushi restaurant of seven years ago has now, finally, come to Tokyo
Mt. Fuji decorated with a 500,000-flower pink carpet is Japan’s ultimate spring view
Lawson convenience store at popular tourist site is one of the most unusual in Japan
Japanese government wants overseas anime market to roughly triple in 10 years, but are they crazy?
30 Pikachus want to share a Tokyo hotel room with you that has separate Grass, Water, Fire spaces
Starbucks Japan releases FIVE new Frappuccinos in a day, and we try them all in 90 minutes
Japan reportedly adding Japanese language skill requirement to most common foreigner work visa
Pokémon and Ikea Japan cross over into each other’s worlds with collaboration events
Japan now has a special desk for people who work at home with a pet cat[Photos]
Famous Tokyo cherry blossom spot installs view-blocking screens to fight overcrowding[Video]
Uniqlo announces new T-shirts for One Piece, Naruto and more for manga publisher’s 100th birthday
Starbucks Japan releases new My Fruit³ Frappuccino at only 34 stores around the country
Krispy Kreme releases Super Mario doughnuts in Japan for a limited time
Japanese onsen egg maker from 100-yen store Daiso needs to be on your shopping list
Survey asks foreign tourists what bothered them in Japan, more than half gave same answer
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
We deeply regret going into this tunnel on our walk in the mountains of Japan
Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]
Major Japanese hotel chain says reservations via overseas booking sites may not be valid
Put sesame oil in your coffee? Japanese maker says it’s the best way to start your day【Taste test】
No more using real katana for tourism activities, Japan’s National Police Agency says