We’ve showcased a number of calming videos featuring traditional craftsmen at work, but this clip has the added bonus of suspense.
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A 343 Industries render artist shows us what Link might have looked like if The Legend of Zelda had been in a western developer’s hands.
Check out one Japanese Twitter user’s adorable vision of what her home would be like if Eevee actually existed in real life!
These Star Wars folding screens, unveiled at Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto, are based on a traditional Japanese design…and they’re pretty awesome too!
What do you do when you want to draw a picture on your computer, but Paint just won’t cut it and you don’t have the money to invest in any software? You use Excel, of course!
Once again, a popular anime has been turned into a work of traditional Japanese art — with vividly stunning results!
Lovers of art, history and animals are celebrating the release of an exclusive set of ukiyoe woodblock prints from 1857 that are now free to download and share online.
At one time, nearly all of the 270 households in the village of Shawo would have been engaged in woodcraft, but today just six elderly men know the old techniques. Luckily, a younger generation is taking steps to ensure that the craft does not die out.
One of the artists for popular light novel and manga series Gosick posted these amazing popup-style drawings on Twitter recently, where they were immediately shared hundreds of times by impressed otaku. Using just pencil, paper, and an open book they’ve been able to bring the characters into the 3D world with clever techniques.
If you’ve got a cat or dog you love, odds are you’ve got a few pictures of your animal companion on display around the home you share. But what if you could give those visual reminders of your precious pet a loving pat on the nose?
We’ve seen Pikachu’s skeleton and Disney princesses as flirty pin-up girls but now it’s time to see all our favourite childhood characters take a walk on the wild side with this nightmarish trip down memory lane.
Hard day at the office? Money or family troubles got you down? Don’t you just want to slip away to a quiet corner of your home and toss on a golden bejeweled crown to make you feel like the king or queen you ought to be?
But high-quality crowns are expensive and hard to come by…or at least they were until a couple of cosplaying Twitter users shared how they made their own realistic looking crown in just a few steps.
Just as languages around the world are each unique yet beautiful, art has also developed its own flavor depending on where you are from. When comparing Western and Asian animation, there is a distinct style difference when it comes to the shape of faces, size of facial features, and the overall aesthetic. Both styles are very appealing, but when push comes to shove, all of us probably have a preference between the two.
Art is also a conversation though, and it can be transposed between two different worlds, such as Western art with an Asian flair or vice versa. One artist’s rendition of Final Fantasy characters drawn with a Western touch is making us super-excited because they look like they are ready for their Disney close-ups.
Japan is a country that really values tradition, but that doesn’t mean that traditional culture is completely sacrosanct either. Giving something old and iconic a tongue-in-cheek modern twist is a popular approach in art and commerce, with results at once familiar and jarring enough to be eye catching.
Like these daruma, spotted at Tokyo Design Week, with outrageous paint jobs and wearing some rather tasty-looking headgear.
In September, we introduced you to the new line of Ghost in the Shell ukiyo-e prints being prepared by OtakuWorks Inc. The first print was a relatively simple but beautiful take on the original movie poster, and while this second entry is equally limited and beautiful, its inspiration comes from a slightly different source: it’s based on the 24-hour Cherry Blossom Stakeout scene from the newest film!
Sono & Sons is a building maintenance company that also specializes in pest control. Their SEARCH (We Safeguard our Environment with Alpha Roach Control Helper) system promises to leave any roach intruding on the sanctity of your home dead as Dillinger.
Despite their cold efficiency as slaughtering cockroaches, Sono & Sons also owe them a debt of gratitude. After all, roaches played a large role in building the company. So out of respect, they commissioned a memorial statue for all the cockroaches who have succumbed to their poisons and filled the company’s bank account as a result. They spared no expense either because everyone online is agreeing that it’s one cool statue.
You may have already heard about rice field art: Those complex works that use dyed or naturally colored rice grains to create gorgeous patterns, or that turn the whole rice field into a canvas for a massive “painting” that can only be fully appreciated from the skies. Also, because Japan, Ultraman is sometimes involved.
But the phenomenon, once a niche practice for small Japanese cities that otherwise had nothing in the way of tourist destinations, has caught on to the point that the Guinness Book has actually recorded, for posterity, the current world’s largest work of rice field art.
Michelangelo’s marble interpretation of David is without a doubt one of the most iconic statues in history. I’m sure every one of you out there is familiar with that stony gaze and perfectly-chiseled, rock-hard body as David stands poised and ready to face the giant Goliath.
But after centuries of standing and waiting to fight, David is now ready to strike a few new poses, with your help, as he makes an appearance as your very own personable, posable action figure!
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