Story – Flyte – the manga poet – Katsushika Hokusai – Madrid
Katsushika Hokusai’s Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji
Katsushika Hokusai (1760 – 1849) was a Japanese ukiyo-e painter of the Edo period. He was influenced by Sesshu and other styles of Chinese painting. Hokusai is the author of the series of woodblock prints titled Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji, which includes the Japanese national symbol, The Great Wave off Kanagawa, created during the 1820s. Here you can see some of them. We have learned it thanks to Culture’s Ways.
Jiro Taniguchi, the poet of the manga
sad news
Last week the world of manga – and the world of comics in general – received sad news, the death of Jiro Taniguchi. The Japanese comic artist was one of the greatest promoters of manga internationally. He managed to endow his vignettes with the poetry of simple things difficult to find in other authors of this genre.
From post-war to modern Japan
His most recognized works are “Distant Neighborhood”, “The Lonely Gourmet”, “The Walker”, “The Sweet Years”, and “My Father’s Almanac”. In these titles, Taniguchi mixes what is most characteristic of Japanese manga with typical elements of European comic narrative. His most international graphic novel, “Distant Neighborhood”, has even reached the big screen and theatre stages. In this article, you can see details of some of them.
distant neighbourhood
For its part, “My Father’s Almanac” focuses on Japan in the postwar years, while “The Lonely Gourmet” faithfully guides us through the most current Japanese country through a tour of its meals.
the lonely gourmet
It is worth paying tribute to Taniguchi and looking at the manga genre from his eyes. If you want to get closer to the cartoonist, start with “A zoo in winter”, his most autobiographical work. In it, he narrates how he left his job in a textile factory to satisfy his passion for drawing. The graphic novel is a reflection of the Tokyo of the 1960s. There the cartoonist spent his youth and began his professional career.
A zoo in winter
internationally known
Taniguchi’s long career as a cartoonist led him to receive numerous awards, both in his native country and abroad. These include the best script at the Angoulême International Comics Festival and the award for best work at the Barcelona Comic Fair, both for “Distant Neighborhood”.
In the story, Flyte’s magnetic clock in which the hours float
Indeed you have already seen STORY because it is sweeping the internet. During the past week, the main design blogs in the world have dedicated their reviews to him. We are not going to be less because we love it.
STORY clock is seen from the front
His design couldn’t be more minimalist. Although it seems that it has nothing, STORY tells a story; since the metallic ball that rotates on the wooden base is a metaphor for the Earth revolving around the sun. It can be placed vertically or horizontally.
STORY – Moving horizontal position
It is possible to program it with three different modes. First, like a traditional watch. Second, as a timer to countdown to an upcoming event. Third, the most interesting is to point to an event in the future, a specific moment that is yet to come. It can be a vacation, the birth of a baby or the arrival of a loved one. This way, you can see the magnetic ball move on the circular base until the desired moment arrives.
STORY – Profile Detail
The watch also has a bright digital display that allows it to add details and be seen in the dark. It, of course, has a mobile application that can be synchronized so that you can use its rear light to show sunrises, sunsets and phases of the moon in real-time—nothing more and nothing less.
STORY – Illuminated display
STORY – Magnetic ball
STORY is a project that has just been launched on Kickstarter. So far, more than eight hundred people have already said they want one. But it is not the first of Flyte’s magnetic designs. You can see more on their website, where you can find pots magically suspended in the air or magnetic lamps. Don’t miss the video, where the authors explain the idea that led to the creation of STORY and explain in detail how it works.
Incredible visual installation to celebrate the IV Centenary of the Plaza Mayor in Madrid
Two days ago something happened in the Plaza Mayor in Madrid. A gigantic countdown went from the number 400 to 0 in a few seconds. Suddenly, everything went dark. Not even the streetlights were on. Then the music started playing. Three large spotlights illuminated the main façade for a moment.
Little by little, the square came to life, lights and shadows rapidly followed, and people applauded in amazement. The windows of the buildings became waterfalls that filled an invisible container, and the birds flew over the newly created marsh. Music was succeeded by fire, and everything went up in flames.
It was a 360º video mapping – the first in Spain – projected simultaneously on the four walls of the Plaza Mayor, which recreated the most typical scenes in history in which the Madrid square has been the protagonist.
In a fantastic 20-minute visual and sound show devised by the visual artist Oscar Teston, the celebrations for the IV Centenary of the Plaza Mayor began in style. The music perfectly accompanied the image and was in charge of the composer Rubén Kielmannsegge.
Oscar Teston is a magician of the image. He tells stories about walls without having to paint them, brief levels that last as long as a song but remain stuck in the retina much longer. Immersive stories, where light is transformed into form, thanks to the well-used reliefs on the walls where they are projected.
In the absence of the official video, here you can see a small sample of what happened.
Óscar Teston has been responsible for other memorable mappings, such as the one on the Puerta Bisagra in Toledo to celebrate the Lux Greco 2013. It was also quite a show where attendees could see a castle crumbling.
