Monday, December 22, 2008

JAPAN: why? (Part I)

So, why Japan?

Ah - though that question is simple the answer certainly is not. Where do I start: the technology? the food? the robots? I could go on ad nauseum about my reasons for choosing Japan. That, however would be boring.

It makes sense, then, that I would split my reasons into fun, digestible giblets of introspective explication:

Why Japan?
part one: surrealism

I'm going to start out with what is (to me) the most obvious reason: surrealism.

I heard somewhere that Japanese surrealism flourished from the ashes of the second world war. Faced with rubble, despair, and national impotence, Japanese artists and writers found solace in the surreal.

I've also heard others attribute Japan's acceptance of the wacky and supernatural to their cultural history. Spirits were once (and some places still are) accepted as integral to the natural world.

Whatever the reason, Japanese culture is saturated with the absurd and the surreal. These things are accepted not just in the media, but as part of everyday life. As an artist and a silly person I need to investigate the source of this craziness.

Japan goal #1:
Absorb some of Japan's crazy energy.

note: I am currently working on a list of silly beards. It will be up tomorrow.

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