Don't Forget Japan

The online blogs and footage around what is going on in Tokyo deserve some serious attention.

When I went to Tokyo last January I had the luck of meeting Cameron McKean and his nice girlfriend Hannah through my good from Naoko Higashi. His blog Workingtowards.com shows how dramatic the earthquake has effected everyone out there. (I took the photo above from it)

Patrick Tsai's Talking Barnacles has a week long first person diary documenting the quake which I couldnt stop reading.

There are also a number of creative projects happening internationally to raise money for Japan. Magazine +81 is working on a creative project which I'm getting involved with - more info in future. In London 3939shop is doing an event and art auction for Japan which I'll put up details about soon. To make a donation to the Red Cross click here

Of all the footage I've watched this was one of the craziest

Tokyo 2: Utrecht and Christian Holstad

My wonderful talented creative friend Naoko Higashi introduced me to a bookshop in Aoyama in Tokyo. Utrecht was hidden away above a garage on the 2nd floor about five shops past the Prada building. Inside was a brilliantly curated selection of independent publications, a small gallery and a sun terrace where I enjoyed a proper cup of tea. I bought an edition by Christian Holstad repped in Tokyo by Hiromi Yoshii . It was a box called 'Fellow Travellers' filled with facsimile photos that Holstad had collected across American flea markets of people in Halloween costume. The publication was created by Edition Nord. It is one of the weird fascinating things you travel around the world to find. I won't scan more than one as I don't want to ruin the surprise for those who search it out. It is worth the effort.

Tokyo 1: House

Foil is an amazing photography book publisher based in Tokyo. They make amazingly produced books which very excitingly you can now buy internationally online. Whilst in town I bought 'House' by duo Yu Ogata and Ichiro Ogata Ono, which is a series of works taken from Greece to China looking at strange amazing architectual structures - uber Baroque churches in Mexico, dovecotes on Tinos, houses flooded with sand in Namibia, Western style villas built by Chinese workers who built the US railroads in rural China. Fascinating stuff (with an English text at the back). There's a good review at bilingual Japanese art blog Kalons