Thanks so much to SK Arts and Canada Council for the Arts for supporting my travel to Japan. The main purpose of my trip was to attend a masterclass and exhibition special event being put on by the International Tsumami Zaiku Association (ITA). I also got to visit a number of museums and cultural sites as research for my future artworks and exhibition proposals.
Learn more about the International Tsumami-zaiku Association here: https://www.tsumami-kanzashi.tokyo/p/tsumami-kanzashi-school-online-ita
Now that I’m back from Japan I’ve been going through my photos and video footage. When I lived in Japan I did take photos, but not too many – because I was trying to live in the moment of the experience rather than separating myself with a lens. This trip I wanted to make an effort to record the experience.
I wish I’d recorded more and taken more photos, but I’m still pretty happy with what I did capture. 🙂 And of course, many places in Japan do not allow you to film inside. The places that I have photos and videos from are either public (exteriors) or I received permission to film inside.
I’ll be posting these day-by-day vlogs in brief first, then going back and making videos about specific places or experiences – think Let’s Shop Rag Tag in Harajuku, Tokyo or Let’s Visit Meiji Jingu Shrine.
Day one was pretty tame; I landed in Tokyo in the late afternoon, checked into my hotel, then went into Harajuku to drop off some of my gently used (and some new) clothing to sell. I’ll make another video about how the results of that excursion later!
I also popped into some vintage and second hand stores, as slow fashion is something I am interested in. Tsumami zaiku also has a strong tie to the lifecycle and reuse of clothing; legend has it that the first tsumami zaiku piece ever made (a kusudama) was crafted from the kimonos that the creator’s wife was no longer using.
More from the Japan Bound 2023 series
Day One in Brief: https://youtube.com/shorts/y0lTQxPODWU
Day Two in Brief: https://youtube.com/shorts/MtP1VYR23qU
Day Three in Brief: https://youtube.com/shorts/VEzABW0DkeU
Day Four in Brief: https://youtube.com/shorts/_t3nc01Sfe0
Day Five in Brief: https://youtube.com/shorts/HGdHwS0LowI
Day Six in Brief: https://youtube.com/shorts/IDzpIHkk85Q
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