We can't get enough recycled skate art at SHFT. Currently on show at plsmis gallery in Tokyo, Haroshi creates a series of playful artworks making use of old skateboards and broken decks. “Skate decks eventually see its life shortened by snapping, cracking and/or wearing out. Purchasing new decks is a never ending cycle and this was evident by the tower of old decks that were reaching......read more
Tokyo is famous for its high tech modernity, but the meandering lanes of Yanesen -- comprised of the the temple districts of Yanaka, Nezu and Sendagi -- have more of a retro village feel, attracting people from all over the city, who come to Yanesen to take things down a notch, or, in Shishi Yamazaki's case, to dance through the streets. After filming herself doing some sweet moves......read more
Occasionally, in our constant search for cool and interesting stuff to show our faithful readers, we come across creative projects that literally blow our minds. This would be one such occasion. As part of last weekend's Tokyo Hotaru festival, 100,000 LED lights were sent flowing down the Sumida River, commemorating the now scarce fireflies ("hotaru" in Japanese) that used to bring the river to......read more
Ho-hum, you say, another time-lapse vid. Well, mark our words, you will eat those words, because the overused photo technique has never been better employed than in "Tokyo Living 2012," a video portrait of Tokyo by Masaya Sugimura. Masaya's subtle time-lapse shots perfectly portray the megacity's frenetic pace. And for those of us who have yet to travel there, this is as close as......read more
Born and raised in rural Ohio, NYC-based photographer Navid Baraty worked as an engineer before bailing to pursue his artistic passion full time. His interest in portraying the human condition and in shifting perceptions of the earth is on full display in his wide-ranging portfolio, from which we pulled a few samples that document life in the city. From overhead shots of intersections......read more
Opened in 1995, Yurikamome was one of the first fully-automated railways built in Japan. Running from Shimbashi to Toyusu, the line travels past some of Tokyo's famous landmarks, including the giant Daikanransha Ferris Wheel. In this video, Japanese photographer darwinfish105 uses the hyperlapse animation technique to simulate the experience of zipping around the Yurikamome line at light......read more
Here is a really cool short from Tao Tajima featuring footage from the streets around his Tokyo home. In Night Stroll, discovered on Colossal, we see geometric shapes made of light interspersed throughout the darkened streets of suburban Tokyo. The animated shapes were created (we think) by tracking the footage with 3D computer graphics software before adding CG shapes and reflection.......read more
When the rain hits, Christophe Jacrot pulls out his camera and starts snapping. The Paris-based photographer started taking pictures of the rain almost by accident. He had a commission for a travel book about Paris, and the brief called for sunshine. But the weather at the time was rotten, so he had the idea of starting a photo series on Paris in the rain. It turned out so well that he continued......read more
Takashi Kitajima is a Tokyo-based software engineer and a talented photographer to boot. You can see his impressive image editing skills on full display in this ongoing series of photos, in which Takashi uses bokeh to render the details of Tokyo cityscapes as blurred dots of light. The images were shot from high altitude overpasses and building observation decks, looking down upon the city's......read more
From filmmaker outfit, SÅNDL, directors Simon Bouisson et Ludovic Zuili create a hypnotic trippy world where our man is walking through the streets of Tokyo, while everything around him is moving in reverse. Check it out. Original soundtrack director : Francesco Tristano...read more