Mokumegane - Wood Grain Technique

Today's Japanese art is called mokumegane. Mokumegane is a metalworking technique of folding together different metals repeatedly to achieve a wood grain-like texture. It was originally something that happened during the process of forging swords, but it has been utilized and altered by some to create intricate patterns. Modern artists still practice mokumegane techniques, often to create high-quality, fashionable accessories, such as these gorgeously elegant pieces by David Greene.

However! You don't have to have a forge and fancy metals to use this technique. There are several tutorials online that utilize polymer clay to create a similar look. You can do so many things with it, like adding gold leaf between layers for a more elegant look! A tutorial for that is here. I've been meaning to try it for a while!

Word Fun~

The word "mokumegane" is constructed from three kanji characters (木目金).

木 - (もく, Moku) - Wood

目 - (め, Meh) - Eye/Look
金 - (かね/がね, Kaneh/Ganeh) - Metal
(H added to the end of words for proper pronunciation)
Kaneh is the pronunciation which means metal, when used alone. When at the end, it is pronounced ganeh. I won't go deeper than that, I don't want to run you off!

So, a metal which looks like wood.. I just love how (some) Japanese words are constructed!

Amigurumi - Crochet Stuffed Dolls

Amigurumi (編み包み) is the Japanese art of creating small crocheted or knitted stuffed dolls. 

The word "amigurumi" is formed by two words, "amu (編む)," which means "to knit," and "nuigurumi (ぬいぐるみ)," which means "stuffed animal."

The art of amigurumi has quickly spread to the US, and many people have created cute little versions of their favourite characters from movies, games, shows, etc! One seller on Etsy, Amigurumi4u, caught my eyes with her adorable series of female Disney characters.

All of her dolls are custom and handmade with original patterns. I absolutely love the little Merida with her tiny bow, arrows, and quiver! She's also made some adorable Pokemon, ninja turtles, and more! She said each one takes her up to a week to make! That's some incredible patience! You should check out her shop. :]

UH Japanese Club! - Mtg. 2/19

Hey guys! Lovin' the Japanese culture fun? Come join the UH Japanese Culture and Language Association!

The UH JCLA will be having its next meeting on Tuesday the 19th at 4:30pm, in the Calhoun Lofts Sky Lounge! Our club focuses on, well, the language and culture of Japan (but not so much anime - there's an anime club for that)!

We have tons of fun things planned for this semester:
-T-shirt/logo design contests - Winners get $50 Visa gift cards and a free club shirt! Show off your digital media skills, guys! Info on the contests will be distributed at this coming meeting.
-Craft/food workshops
-End of the semester Japanese food party

We provide food, language lessons, history facts, fun videos, and more at our regular meetings. While regular meetings are free to everyone, only paying members may participate in the fun activities listed above. It will be $15 for the semester, or $25 for the year. So, come have fun with us, and bring a friend or two!

As always, snacks, drinks, and awkward but knowledgeable Japan-nerds are complimentary.

A rainbow of tasty flavoured mochi made by the President and myself for our New Year themed meeting!

Houston Bento Contest - Deadline 2/19!

Hello again, guys! Today I'll be talking about bento lunches, and including information at the end for Houston's annual bento contest.

Lunch time is one of the many things that the Japanese have managed to turn into a creative, intricate art. The word bento (or "Obento," as my Japanese teacher once corrected me, being the proper way for females to say it), is a word derived from a Chinese term meaning "convenient." Obento lunches are small boxes packed with yummy healthy things. They are typically a base of rice, with meat and vegetation on top. When I was in Japan, my host mom made me cute little obento boxes with tiny portions of food, like a single swirl of spaghetti, and a tiny mini sausage with a smiley face. These are a great excuse to use up small amounts of leftover dinner, rather than throwing them away because there "isn't enough for a meal."

Here is an obento I attempted prior to getting cute little cutters/molds, with poor knife skills and whatever I found in my fridge. :P I like to have bags of mixed frozen vegetables for this!

I love taking these to school. They're healthy and convenient, and believe it or not, you can fit a ton of food into these tiny containers.. but I'd rather hide in a corner with them so people don't think I'm a total nerd with my little chopsticks!

This is an attempt after getting little cutters for flowers.. Still kinda sloppy, haha. I made it for my mom to take to work. :P I wish I had a picture of the little sausage octopuses we made - you can find instructions for that here!

Most of my obento attempts are just stuffing things in a box and going off to school, rather than trying to sit down and make a masterpiece. There are some insanely creative/intricate things out there, for instance this site. I urge you to go check it out! My attempts seriously pale in comparison!

If you've been inspired to try your hand at some cute little obento lunches, a great local place to get everything you need to do this is Fit, the Japanese (two-)dollar store of Houston. Granted, it's not actually run by Japanese people, but they sell legitimate Japanese dollar store things, play Japanese music, and scream at you in Japanese when you enter/leave, so you can get the experience of being in a Japanese store.

Anyway, on to the contest part. This year, the Japan-America Society of Houston and the Japanese Consulate of Houston will host the second annual bento contest! Deadlines for submissions are Tuesday, 2/19, so get creative and eat yummy things at the same time! Anyone can enter, and all finalists get a prize. More information on the contest can be found here.

Motohiko Odani

Today's Japanese artist is Motohiko Odani. (小谷元彦）

Odani was born in Kyoto, and received both a BA and MA at Tokyo National University of Fine Art and Music (which I just realized was the school I have dreamt of attending! Ha. They changed the name.) He primarily creates sculptural art, but also occasionally branches out to photo, video, or whatever suits his inspiration. 

Much of his art is based around the body, and often utilizes repetitive elements of the body to create elaborate forms. Since my favourite "colour" is white (you will probably be seeing more white/pale things!), I absolutely love his installation of white things, which I believe to be called "Phantom Limb," but I could be mistaken.

These figures are constructed from a combination of Fibre-Reinforced Plastic (FRP), paint, and other media. With this material, he has created a massive collection of tiny strands that give a drippy, rippling appearance. 

It astonishes me how much detail and painstaking effort went into this, as I understand FRP is a difficult and stubborn media to work with. Odani's highly detailed work epitomizes why so many of my favourite artists are Japanese. 

Although all of the intricate white things are what got me hooked, he has many other interesting works of art that you should check out. I won't overload you with images here! 

All images are from the page for Motohiko Odani on the Yamamoto Gendai website.