Design Festa Vol.25

I went to the wonderful "Design Festa" on Sunday. This was Vol.25 of the massive arts jamboree which taks place bi-monthly here in Tokyo. I will be taking part in Vol.26. In their own words:
"Design Festa is a freestyle International Art Event open to all artists, both professional and non-professional from all over the world to exhibit their creative talent. Design Festa is the biggest art event in Asia, with approximately 51,000 visitors and 6,000 exhibitors."
Here's some pictures I took...
















English site: http://www.designfesta.com/02_en/00_df_e/index.html

Samurai Vader

I'll never be able to afford this baby- strictly hardcore Star Wars otaku only. This is a (huge) toy shop's window display. It's an officially licenced samurai armour styled after Darth Vader, and illustrating very nicely Kurasawa's influence on Lucas. I want one!

Flickr Addict ~ Part II

Still making the most of my "pro" status over on flickr, and swelling it with pictures of animals and cherry blossoms, as is the de rigeur in Japan (the flowers, not the animals) at this time of year. Now passing the 2000 view mark, not that anyone is counting... Let me leave you with a meercat, you can leave your own comedy caption...

Flickr Addict

I've been spending FAR too much time on flickr sinse I got my digital camera. Not having to shell out cash each time I take 36 exposures really frees you up to go wild and take more chances. Just as well I invested in a 2GB memory stick (via Hong Kong/eBay). It seems to me that for all their anti-digital posturing (they being the Lomographic Society) capturing the everyday Lomo-style is a lot more practical and realistic (finantially-speaking) than film. I won't be getting rid of my LC-A quite yet, but let's say I have seen the light. The camera in question is a Sony DSC-T10. Of course now that I've dived into the digital world the T20 is just about to come out. Oh well...
The Mario picture is my most-viewed pic on Flickr by a long shot (more than double #2 viewed). This is a UV painting at a local karaoke joint..

Harajuku Girls

I went to Harajuku in Tokyo, which is a haven for cosplay, gothic and lolita fashion freeks (I mean that in a good/nice way, naturally). The narrow backstreets are packed with shops, their clientele and people watchers (again, I mean that in a nice way!). Anyway, it was a good chance to road-test my new camera. LOTS more at my flickr account. Go, make comments already!

Sean's flickr account

It's My Birthday!

Thanks to the MySpace message from:

Jefe aka Johnny Chiba

who bothered to download one of my pictures and remixed it into a cool animated gif. I'm liking it... so good he posted it twice.

I got a new digital camera for my birthday. And by new I mean my first, as I have at long last let go of film. OK I'll I'll still be shooting with my Lomo, let's not get drastic; but needless to say expect more shots of Tokyo around here soon.

Illustration Friday: "Red"

Batocera Lineolata

The top two images are wholy inadequate shots taken on my cameraphone, the next two were 'borrowed' from www.insects.jp. This is a godzilla-proportioned insect I found at a train station when I lived out of the country, out here in Japan. I thought it was an over-sized toy replica until it started walking up the window and eating all the spiders. A google search finds that they can come even bigger, as seen in photos 3 and 4. Unfortunately there is nothing to show the scale of the wee bietie in mt shots, but it really was surprisingly huge. The eyes in the 3rd photo are amazing. Respect to whoever picket that monster up! Not for the squeemish.

www.insects.jp

Disney Going Back to the Drawing Board

From CINEMATICAL via DIGG:

Disney animation is now putting a stop to the CGI addiction and returning to a more traditional drawing plan.

This change, just announced today by John Lasseter and Ed Catmull, will take place in Walt Disney Co.'s Burbank studios, leaving Pixar to exclusively work onCGI projects.

full story here.

Postcards With An Edge

Received two nice postcards recently and thought I'd share. The first I got today from my sister on holiday in Morroco. I'm digging the round stamp and the saturated colours. The second I got from my cousin in Australia. OK I received it ages ago and havn't replied yet, but that's not the point! It's a silkscreened design on A5 kraft colour card with rounded edges. It's branded "Hammerpress" on the bck, and a quick google later reveals some lovely stationary and poster prints on their online folio:

www.hammerpress.net

www.ComputerArts.co.uk

Thanks to Jim at Computer Arts daily for the shout:

Ha! This new MySpace malarkey is turning into a great way of finding people to mention here. For example, Tokyo-based Sean Macfarlane, who has some fantastically surreal photomontage work under his belt. Keep the friend requests coming in. http://www.illustr8a.com/

Here's a link backatcha:

Computer Arts

It's funny reading about someone potentially interesting (artistically speaking) only to find they are talking about yourself. On my daily peruse around the online design portals I'm forever greeted by the grinning face of my buddy James Dean at Pixelsurgeon. The reason for his inexorable mugshot is that he has an interview there regarding his debut album under his 'Lost Idol' moniker. Good on you, old chap!

Lost Idol Pixelsurgeon Interview

Cookshop Music Online

The Other Sean Macfarlane

This guy may have the same name and also be based in Asia, but he is definitely not me! Anyone with such a cool name deserves a shout though, so here's his website for anyone wanting to add a little magic to their wedding, bar mitzvah, etc. [DISCLAIMER: Of course it's purely professional curiosity that leads me to be googling myself!]

Sean Macfarlane Magic

Varoom Magazine

I received issue 2 of the splendid varoom magazine through the post yesterday, and have had my feet up reading it from cover to cover. It's been raining non-stop today, and here in Japan when it starts raining it just doesn't stop for days. Gotta love the typeface and the quality paper stock. One for the coffee table. If only I had one...
Also check Varoom's now-obligatory myspace page:

Varoom's MySpace Myspace Page link

New Picture: Round&Round

Here's a new picture that I've just produced. I've added her to my online portfolio, and made a few more change there too. Hope you like!

New Toy

My Apple Mighty Mouse's scroll ball died about a week ago, and has been driving me crazy, so I went to akihabera (Geek Central) and tried out every mouse on the market (they actually have just that). Naturaly I ended up walking out with this top-of-the-line marvel. Looks a bit strange and techy in the picture, but is very comfortable and a joy to use. One less cord to get snared by too. Also had a play with all the Wacom tablets (again, the whole range on display to play with), and salivated over the Cintiq range, in varios sizes. Got to get me one of them babies...

Recent Lomo Action in Tokyo

ULTRAMAN / Japan Times 14th Sept '06

"Superheros (left to right) Ultraman, ultraman mebius and ultraman Seven, along with the monster Zarab Seizin, pray Wednesday at Hie Shrine in Tokyo that their next movie will be a big hit."

ANIMAL FARM for illustration friday

Here is my Illustration Friday entry for the topic 'Farm'.
Sorry- not a new picture this time around, but may be new to you nonetheless... This is one of my favourite novels, incidentally, even if it's a novella.

New Yuki Album: WAVE

This is the fourth full-lenth solo album release from YUKI! 'Wave' includes the singles "Nagai Yume," "Dramatic," "Yorokobi no Tane," "Melancholinista," and "Fugainaiya". This album follows the strange practice (as heard on the recent 'Ultra Blue' by Utada Hikaru) of including the last five or so singles plus a few b-sides. Which leaves space for five new songs on a 'new' album. But like the Utada album, those five new songs would be worth the ticket price alone, and it's nice to have all those super single-tracks together. I rushed out to purchase this first-thing today on its release day as the 'first pressing' has a different cover and a bonus DVD with three promo videos. After a few days these limited CDs are nowhere to be found.
To anyone not aquainted with Yuki- everyone outside of Japan- she can be described as a Japanese Bjork in terms of her petite frame, quirky style, and love-it-or-hate-it voice. And Yuki's voice could peel paint of the wall at times, I'm sure, but I wouldn't have it any other way. After two listens: definitely Top-5-J-Pop-album-of-all-time material. The downside is she's just had a baby and is taking time-out from her singing career...

Grrrrrrrrrreat Retro Cereal Box Design

A nice retro cover on a box of Kellog's Frosties in Japan, to celebrate 100 years of the company. The boring modern design is on the other side.