Last week I came back from an 8-day jaunt into Japan. The Tokyo equivalent of diamond slangin’ Zoolander was gracious enough to put up my with “smelly” vitamins and other herbal concoctions for a week or so at the most exclusive of accommodations… Hotel Jey Perie. Having been to Japan a few times before, each time seems to lend itself to something new. Japanese culture or not, I think every single culture out there maintains its complexities that really aren’t discoverable over these short visits. You really can’t immerse yourself into the true cultural underbelly even through force-feeding yourself, there are after all only so many hours in a day and only so many people you can speak with.
I met up with a handful of really insightful people but the majority shared one common bond of being Tokyo transplants or frequent travelers to Tokyo. This may seem like a weird deduction, but I think that’s the best way to learn about another culture is through its non-native dwellers and citizens, especially given a culture like Japan. I was speaking with Isa of Nom de Guerre over lunch and I think he perhaps summed it up best. As a native New Yorker, multiple visits to Tokyo has instilled a certain understanding of how Japanese culture works to him that made pretty good sense. He somewhere along these lines, Japanese society has neatly laid out a series of guidelines for you to follow. This regimented system is not something to really go against, however there are some outlets for expression. Where they do have these outlets, the Japanese seem over-indulgent such as porn, sex and drinking or they are extremely well-versed and talented such as design and the realm of creativity… they do after all have a word for the overly obsessive “otaku”.
But back to foreigners maintaining analytical prowess over the locals which is something that extends not just to this particular instance but globally as well. As I see it, “expats” have the ability to objectively breakdown the various and analyze the framework of a society without fear of over-stepping and questioning the society as a whole. I see it sometimes in Hong Kong, expats are afforded some perks in various ways. As I mentioned, life is seemingly quite regimented in Japanese culture, yet for the foreigner, he has the opportunity to question the societal code before him/her and juxtapose it against his own set of cultural values. No doubt somebody from North America living in Japan can create a hybrid culture pulling the best elements of both. In terms of absolute learning, one thing you cannot escape is that speaking with a local Japanese is sometimes not the easiest due simply to communication issues. I’m not sure if any native inhabitant of their respective country would whole heartedly question how their system is run? It seems like a rather interesting topic on the whole to see how Japan’s cultural foundation is the starting point to so many other things and in my opinion, something that can explain some of Japanese cultures interesting quirks and spawn-offs such as the over-indulgence aspect but also the other more creative and skilled talents that are allowed to rise to the surface like art and sport. I think Japanese culture and Chinese culture are two things of almost polar opposites but both have attained great success on the global stage. Japan’s approach to everything they do has earned the respect of a global community, while China to some degree has earned this sort of respect but at the expense of other more questionable initiatives.
While I was in Japan, I also got the chance to meet up with the one, the only, infamous Philly Vannilli aka Phil Gaedicke. Known for throwing the masher tradeshow that is Bread & Butter Barcelona, he put together a piece over at his Highsnobiety blog outlining the use of Nazi symbolism through NEIGHBORHOOD’s various channels including a t-shirt seen (although not designed by NBHD) at the NEIGHBORHOOD 15th anniversary party. Had I written this blog post earlier in the week like I had intended to it may have been slightly more relevant but I think that Frank Liew and Jey Perie both sort of had some of the same points as myself. I don’t condone the usage of iconography that has been associated with one of the most deplorable acts in human history, but I do like to look at things objectively and see what the basis of one’s actions are.
NEIGHBORHOOD’s design langauge has always incorporated a certain American motorcycle rebel aesthetic to it. With it has come a slew of questionable icons and imagery such as the Swastika derived from American bike culture which to my knowledge began post World War II when soldiers returning home would display these as proud badges of victory. I guess somewhere down the line (or it was always present) developed into a quasi-racist movement as well. I’ll be frank I’m not too sure but it’s not really the point of my argument. But back to everything, speaking with some people who have awareness of the Japanese education system, it seems as though the general education regarding the happenings of World War II in the curriculum are rather lackluster and really don’t give an accurate portrayal of what actually happened. This naivety and protectionist approach manifests itself onto other aspects of life as well. As I understand, AIDs and drug use are two things largely considered non-factors locally and considered a foreign epidemic. But as it stands, we’ve always known that traditionally, Japanese fashion brands have been loose in their appropriations of foreign and most notably American culture. They do some things very well when it’s a uni-directional relationship such as de-constructing and producing apparel based on vintage examples. But I think this sometimes disconnection with their use of foreign themes coupled with their inability to truly understand the connotations of a sub-culture (language barriers have always been a big issue in my mind) make for some sometimes subtle or at other times more grave mis-communications. It was well established through the comments over on Phil’s post that he wasn’t out to portray NBHD as Nazi’s but that the imagery used was unacceptable. I’m just sort of going along with the statement and agree, but is the misappropriation innate brought on by Japanese culture’s own workings rather than the ignorance of one brand. I’ve always been a strong advocate for the power of society and the impact it has over its citizens and as I see it, I think these misunderstandings will undoubtedly continue on.
But at the end of the day, this whole debate was largely one sided in which nobody from NBHD chimed in, and likely wouldn’t really give a shit anyways which seems to be the right play haha.
Yeh… these weren’t actual “sleeves”.
Not sure how old these kids were, but they were pretty good on the ball.
When I first saw Jules back at MAGIC in 2008, I was too scared to say hi. He had too much swagger and I was intimidated. I had a few opportunities in Tokyo to sit down and chat with him. Undoubtedly one of the nicest and most genuine industry heads I’ve met. For somebody who wasn’t born into this crazy Internet shit, his open minded approach and his desire to keep on learning is admirable to say the least.
Kinfolk Lounge in Naka-Meguro
Who the fuck gets dressed like this for a kick-around? I hope to see Arsenal shit-kick Barca in the Champions League final… oh 4-0 sounds about right.
Jason’s lost… but I’m with him so that makes me lost as well haha
This place is way over-hyped I think
Compared to Hong Kong, well anywhere compared to Hong Kong is a bicycle friendly city.
I guess Tenga is looking to start branding itself… for those unaware it’s a “masturbation tool”. Think disposable pocket pussy. Go get your DEEP THROAT CUP now.
Uhhh… explain to me the HARD one… oh and it’s a limited edition haha.
The notorious Tomonori Mitsuo holdin’ it down. Told me once you go Tenga you never go back haha.
Ok yeh, I sort of OD’d on the typical touristy Tskuji Market pics.
