Japanese days - Checking filming locations


16/12/2007
 
Met with Michiko yesterday and we walked around with Natasha and myself for a couple of hours and then visited the Rikugien Gardens in Tokyo. It is lit up at night in such away that the trees and other features appear as sculpted shapes. The whole effect takes on enchanted and other world appearance as the light brings out the colours and features of the gardens so that they are seen in a completely new aspect from that which would  be presented during day time. It is typical of the gardens from the Edo period and is  pond and mountain style garden based on a waka poem from the  15th year of the Genrouko period (1702). Afterwards we came back home to Suitengumae and had a meal together. 
 
Today, early this morning we took the JR train out to Minami Urawa, which is almost at the end of some line  in east Tokyo. It took about an hour. It always amazes me how quiet the streets are here in Tokyo. There was an Ikebana display there plus Japanese traditional dancing which is called I believe Bon odori. We missed the Ikebana but at the concert hall we stayed for a few hours and watched the dances. Based loosely on Noh music and other Japanese dramatic forms, these dances are performed by woman and tell stories through mime and and movement. The first thing that struck me was that watching the dancing helps one to understand Japanese traditional music better as the movements of the dance are almost in perfect harmony with the rhythm of the musical pieces.
 
The other thing I noticed was the sleeves of the Kimono when the arms are raised form a complete picture or decorative scene as if the wearer was a walking living painting or work of art. It seems as if the Kimono is not just a piece of beautiful clothing but a pictorial codex and the wearer a bearer of such a codex. The body itself becomes a device for storytelling through symbolism and decoration and signs.


 20/12/2007

The day before yesterday we returned to Shinjuku  again and I spent most of the day filming in and around the area. Got some more material which hopefully will be useful. Night stuff especially good.  I tried to find DVDs of the Japanese director Teinosuke Kinugasa who made the film "A page of Madness which is considered one of the early masterpieces of Japanese avant-garde cinema. It hasn't been released on DVD, in fact none of his films have been released on DVD. Fist one will be in April 2008. Yesterday we went to a new office tower complex by the river. It also would be a good place to film. Natasha was there for and Ikebana demonstration. We're both very tired so we are taking a day off today and just resting. We wont do much and just get ready for tomorrow - visit to Kamakura, temple complex just outside Tokyo.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Japan Philosophical Landscapes "The Pure Land Paradise"

Image
The gardens and architecture of the Heian period lasted from the late 8th century to the late 12th century. They reflect the process of Japanese reinterpretation and finally assimilation of Chinese culture. A significant feature of Japanese gardens is their ability to arouse poetic emotions in the viewer and this was especially true of the Heian period. Rocks, flowers trees are not just inanimate objects but possess their own being and sensitivity. To be sensitive to their sensitivity is a prerequisite of Heian art.
Read more

Japanese days - Following in the footsteps of Basho ?

11/11/2007  Sun Received answers to our e-mails form Akira Suzuki and Paul Cunningham. Akira san lives about 15 minutes walk away from where we are living in Suitengumae. I was just looking at the map and we are right in the area where  Basho  lived during the 17th century across the river from us almost directly opposite. Last time we were here Akira san took us all around the area and I remember looking across the river at a row of cherry trees which were about to start blossoming and thinking how good it would be to live around this area. By accident that is exactly where we have ended up, following in Basho's footsteps so to speak. Basho was a poet who made journeys all over Japan writing about what he saw and felt on the way in the form of Haiku (three lined verse).Basho was interested in the spirit of place. He visited various places to commune  with the memory of those with whom he shared the same attitude to life. Though they were dead the surroundings were...
Read more

Japanese days - Tokyo Exhibitions and meeting with Akira suzuki

12/11/2007 Monday Settling in a bit more although its still difficult to aclimitise. Its not like we are here on holiday. There is a lot to organise: finding places to buy food, places to eat and organising our schedule. Went to the second part of the Sogetsu exhibition at Takashimaya Department store. Natasha took more photographs. Earlier we were at the Sogetsu headquarters on Asakusa where Natasha had some business to complete for herself and for her students. We went into the cafe there and had lunch. Brilliantly designed building. Very contemporary even though it was built at the end of the fifties. The 12 or 15 stories high the design  is as modern now as it was then. I like the exhibition hall in the lobby with its exhibition space and "waterfall".The building serves as the international headquarters for the Sogetsu organisation. The adminstration of the branches from all over the world is dealt with here. This evening met up with Akira san and he took us to a restaur...
Read more