Did you know that today, April 9th, is Daibutsu Day?
On this day in 752 (the 4th year of the Tenpyo Shoho era), the Great Buddha of Todaiji Temple in Nara was completed, and a grand eye-opening ceremony was held.
Construction of the Great Buddha began in 745 at the request of Emperor Shomu, and it is said to be one of the Buddhas of Mahayana Buddhism known as Rushanabutsu. Its official name is “Rushanabutsu Seated Statue”, but it is generally known as “Nara’s Great Buddha”.
The current seated statue is about 15m tall, with a face length of about 5m and an eye length of about 1m. It was damaged by fire during the Middle Ages and early modern times, so most of it was repaired.
And now, it is designated as a National Treasure in the sculpture section under the name of “Bronze Rushanabutsu Seated Statue”.
If you’ve ever been to Todaiji, I’m sure you’ve experienced the famous Todaiji pillar pass.
The holes in the pillars are famous for being the same size as the nostrils of the Great Buddha. However, I secretly want to visit and experience it within the year (laughs).
By the way, there are various theories about Hashira Kuguri, such as “good health,” “wishes come true,” and “blessings with good fortune,” but the original reason is said to be to ward off evil.
The place where there is a pillar with a hole is northeast of the Great Buddha Hall. The northeast is called the demon gate because it is the direction where demons enter and exit in Onmyodo. Therefore, by making a hole in the pillar in the direction of the demon gate, it seems that it has a role to escape evil spirits.
Finally, the trick to getting through this hole is… It seems that if you stretch your hand out while swimming, you can get through it! !
If I have a chance to visit Todaiji Temple, whether I succeed or not, I will report it on my blog.
It was a spring storm, wasn’t it? The storm the other day was amazing. I heard that such a storm is called “Haruhayate” (storm gale), which is the title of this article, so I guess you know what “Haruhayate” is, but I guess it refers to the bad weather yesterday. I was surprised to see an umbrella flying toward me on the road. It was a close call.
Spring gale is a southerly wind that blows with a low-pressure system passing over the Sea of Japan from west to east in spring, and is one of the seasonal words in haiku. Although this word has a somewhat exciting impression, the low-pressure system itself that brings the spring gale is not to be underestimated. Sometimes, it can develop to the extent that it is called a “bomb cyclone.
(Incidentally, an extratropical cyclone is a low-pressure system that forms in temperate regions when cold air and warm air mix, but in weather forecasting, “low pressure” refers to an extratropical cyclone.)
Although it is not an official weather term used by the Japan Meteorological Agency, you may have heard of it because it is often used in mass media such as television.
The term “extratropical cyclone” may seem idyllic, but when it develops to the point of being called a bomb cyclone, it is not at all. The weather map shows that the isobars of an extratropical cyclone are so crowded that it looks like a typhoon. The narrower the isobar, the stronger the wind blows, and it can be as strong as a typhoon. In fact, bomb cyclones have caused numerous disasters in the past, including high waves, capsizing of ships, and localized heavy snowfall.
With the arrival of spring in Nagoya, the petals of the cherry blossoms have all said goodbye and the landscape here in Nagoya has shifted to fresh greenery. The pace of the season seems to move along, some earlier and some later than others, but that is also a good thing with the colors of spring.
Did you read yesterday’s staff Y’s “Christian Dior Exhibition” blog?
In fact, I was also very interested, and while reading the updated blog, I felt like I participated in the war. If you haven’t read it yet, please take a look at the previous blog “Christian Dior, taste the masterpiece of the dream couturier”. The photos of the works filled with a lot of women’s admiration were really spectacular!
Well, there is a topic that I would like to discuss today.
Ryuichi Sakamoto is a world-famous musician who won an Academy Award for his music for the movie “The Last Emperor” and was also active as a member of the music group “Yellow Magic Orchestra”.
I am truly surprised and saddened by the sudden news of his passing, and I am deeply saddened.
I learned about Ryuichi Sakamoto when I was in elementary school, and I started listening to music under the influence of his parents. I remember.
This CD is a song released by the limited-time music unit N.M.L formed by Mr. Ryuichi Sakamoto. All the proceeds from the sale were donated to a landmine removal charity.
Ryuichi Sakamoto has used the word “non-war” to convey a message of peace, and has also devoted himself to music activities to support victims of the Great East Japan Earthquake.
After studying piano and composition since childhood, he entered Tokyo University of the Arts. After completing graduate school, he released an album as YMO and created a new genre called “Techno Pop” with innovative musicality using the latest electronic instruments of the time. I was.
After disbanding YMO, you also played an active role as an actor in “Merry Christmas on the Battlefield”, and the theme song of this movie has become a representative song that you can listen to for many years.
In addition to winning the Academy Award for Best Score for the music for the movie “The Last Emperor”, he has also won numerous awards such as the Grammy Award, which has increased his international reputation.
Was this movie also directed by Ryuichi Sakamoto because of the large number of works he has worked on? ! I was so surprised… I could understand that you have created music full of unconventional diversity.
Lastly, Ryuichi Sakamoto, nicknamed “Professor”, fascinated people all over the world through his music and movies, and his music will live on forever. I sincerely pray for the repose of the soul.
It has been raining here in Nagoya since this morning.
On my way to work a few minutes ago, I saw three parents and their children crossing the street with umbrellas in the crosswalk. Upon closer inspection, they appeared to be a cute first grader and his family, carrying brand-new school bags that were still too big for their small bodies. Yes, it seems that today is the entrance ceremony for public elementary schools here in Nagoya City, and I would like to congratulate all the students who have enrolled today.
The girl’s school bag was light blue, as if she had chosen her favorite color. She must have been looking forward to this day, because her steps were walking or dancing.
As we approached the school gate, the girl and many other new students with colorful school bags were heading for the school gate with great enthusiasm, making the area around the school gate colorful at once. I envy the school bags available in so many colors these days.
It was a great feeling this morning to be able to witness the momentous moment in the life of new students as they passed through the school gate for the first time with their school bags on their backs. I hope that from now on they will have many experiences at school with their school bags.
In such a mood, today I would like to share with you a few words about “Christian Dior, Couturier of Dreams,” which I visited the other day. In a word, everything was “breathtaking.
Following the success of this exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, it is now touring around the world, including London and New York, and will be held in Japan from December 21, 2022 (Wed) to May 28, 2023 (Sun) at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo. It is a popular exhibition, and I was finally able to participate.
Everyone knows the high brand “DIOR”. It all started in 1946 with the establishment of the maison “Christian Dior” at 30 rue Montaigne in Paris. This retrospective of over 75 years of Dior’s history is a special exhibition that honors the brand’s sincere and precious ties with Japan, and is also a tribute to Japanese culture by architect Shohei Shigematsu. Curated by Florence Müller, the retrospective will explore the art influences of founder Christian Dior, his love of gardens, the magic of a sumptuous ball, and the richness of the Japanese culture that has influenced the Dior collection from the very beginning. The retrospective was packed with over 75 years of passion accompanied by wonderful discoveries, from the art that influenced Christian Dior, his founder, to his love of gardens, the magic of a sumptuous ball, and his fascination with the rich Japanese creativity that influenced his collections from the beginning.
The “bar” suit, the eternal symbol of the “New Look,” as well as accessories and haute couture models from the past to the present. Each of the creations conceived by Christian Dior and his successors, Creative Directors Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Boin, Gianfranco Ferré, John Galliano, Raf Simons, and Maria Grazia Chiuri, are now on display. The Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo will also be exhibiting a collection of the works of the past creative directors.
In addition, there are also some fascinating works on display, including rare pieces from the collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo and photographs taken by Japanese photographer Yuriko Takagi for this exhibition and poster, as well as a number of works that inherited Christian Dior’s visionary spirit and reinterpreted it in “Dior Lady Art” and “Lady Dior as scene by The museum will also showcase Dior’s history and innovative icons that are the result of his constant ingenuity, such as the world of fragrances, including Lady Dior, Miss Dior, and J’adore, bags reinterpreted in the “Lady Dior as scene by” and “Lady Dior as art” series.
In any case, the entire museum was filled with Dior’s worldview.
Christian Dior (1905-1957) was not a couturier (tailor) at first, but an artist, and the gallery he ran in his 20s exhibited works by Picasso, Braque, Matisse, and others. It is not surprising that his artistic sensibility continued to be demonstrated after the founding of the Maison.
In 1947, the Maison presented its first haute couture collection, “New Look,” which used an abundance of fabrics and extreme curvaceousness, creating a huge boom that shocked the fashion world immediately after the end of the war, when military looks were the mainstream.
This international exhibition toured the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Long Museum (West Bank) in Shanghai, and the Brooklyn Museum in New York, among others. This is a linen coat with embroidery and painting by SUZURKA-SAN John Galliano for Christian Dior 2007 Spring-Summer Haute Couture Collection. (Collection of the Dior Heritage Collection, Paris) This is probably the image of Japan that Dior perceived, and it shows that he was an artist, not a couturier. Many artists have been fascinated by Hokusai’s waves, and perhaps the fabric was the canvas on which he could express this fascination.
Nevertheless, all of Dior’s works show his great love for Japanese culture. In 1953, he signed contracts with Kanebo and Daimaru, offering them the right to tailor clothes from Dior’s patterns, and in the same year he held a fashion show at the Imperial Hotel.
Other collections inspired by Japanese culture will also be on display in the exhibition hall, in honor of the longstanding “bond between Dior and Japan. There are so many pieces on display that if you take your time, you won’t have enough time to see them all….
After Dior’s death in 1957, the Maison Dior was passed on to his successor, the Creative Director. The works created by six successors, including Yves Saint-Laurent, Marc Boin, and John Galliano, are on display at the exhibition, going back in time from the present to the past. There are so many works. There really are a lot of works.
And, as I’m sure everyone who comes to this exhibition wants to see it with their own eyes, I’d like to introduce to you the work of architect Shohei Shigematsu.
The spatial design by architect Shohei Shigematsu makes the viewing experience even more special. The moment you step into the exhibition space, you will be struck by the beauty, dynamism, and production world of this production.
Particularly overwhelming is the “Dior’s Night Party,” a 20-meter-high space lined with evening gowns. The projection mapping, which shifts and changes in various ways like the night sky, further enhances the beauty of the dresses.
It is difficult to describe the dynamic nature of this exhibition without seeing it in person, but many visitors were drawn into the world of the large space, the projection mapping, and the Night Party and lingered for a while to watch.
n the other exhibition space, which was designed to resemble a Japanese garden, countless cutouts of wisteria flowers hang from the ceiling. Dresses standing softly on mirrors are represented as if they were floating on the surface of the water, and visitors feel as if they have wandered into another world.
The exhibition room with “toile” (prototypes for haute couture tailoring), which is interesting for those who study clothing design, and “Lady Dior” covering the walls and ceiling, were also impressive.
The richness of the exhibits, the number of works, and the overwhelming world view left visitors stunned as soon as they exited the exhibition hall. The “dreams,” “longings,” and “hopes” that Dior has brought to people over the past 75 years and continues to bring today are condensed throughout the museum, and everything about it was breathtaking.
The exhibition will be open until the end of May, so you have no choice but to go.
I went to a business trip assessment in the morning today. Thank you very much for appraising swords and paintings from the end of the Edo period. If you have a relationship, please take care of it again.・
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Now that spring is in full bloom, the cherry blossoms that peaked last week have gradually begun to turn pale green leaves, and the cherry blossoms will be gone in a blink of an eye. I’m a little excited.
Speaking of “Ranman”, the NHK serial TV novel “Ranman” started this week.
This morning drama is an original story modeled on the life of the botanist Tomitaro Makino, set in the Meiji era, when the world is full of spring, where people passionately pursue their dreams for their favorite things.
Who is Tomitaro Makino? You may already know this, but I’m not very familiar with it, so please bear with me.
Botanist Dr. Tomitaro Makino was born in Sagawa-cho, Takaoka-gun, Kochi Prefecture. Growing up in the rich nature of Kochi, I was interested in plants from a young age and acquired knowledge about plants through self-study. When he came to Tokyo for the second time, he was allowed to enter the Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, University of Tokyo, where he devoted himself to research on plant taxonomy, and became the first Japanese to give a scientific name to a new species. (New species Yamatogusa)
It is said that he collected about 400,000 specimens during his life in 1994, and his collection of books totaled about 45,000 volumes. known as one of the
In response to requests from all over the country, he traveled around the country, widely conveying the importance of knowing plants to the general public, and also worked to spread plant knowledge.
The coming season is the season when the flowers will bloom beautifully and the trees will be lively, so if I find a beautiful flower on this blog while watching the morning drama, I would like to introduce it.
(By the way, Mr. Kamiki, who plays the main character, has been talking to flowers and trees on the roadside even in his private life since filming the morning drama.)
BLUE GIANTとても感動するので、是非見てくださいね、そして＃古美術風光舎で感想していただけると嬉しいです。
古美術風光舎では楽器の買取も行っております。
ではでは
Hello everyone. I am Staff N.
I just noticed that my pants are backwards.
All the decorative buttons on the front have come off, and even though I can’t see the front and back, I thought I would be able to tell by looking at my pocket, but I didn’t realize that I spent half a day there.
I’m glad I didn’t understand it at first glance.
There was a person who had a tag on the outside on the train the other day, and when I talked to an acquaintance about it, it seems that it is that kind of design.
N didn’t understand the stylish design with the tag on the outside and the seams on the outside, so I was almost embarrassed.
The other day, I went to the drum experience.
N can only play the recorder in elementary school, but the teacher was kind and I had a lot of fun.
There were familiar words such as 8 beat and fill-in, and one hour was not enough.
I experienced firsthand how great the drummer is doing.
An acquaintance of mine took a video of it, and I was sad to see the drums that had no sound because of N’s lack of self.
My acquaintance was in the brass band club, and I was envious of him because he had been there from the beginning.
I heard that an old acquaintance of mine was learning to play the drums to relieve stress, so I was curious.
Then I finally went to see the movie “BLUE GIANT”.
The synopsis is a story about Dai Miyamoto, a boy who met jazz when he was a junior high school student, and how he grows as a jazz player and as a person after meeting various people.
In 2017, it won the 62nd Shogakukan Manga Award in the general category.
N has not read the original, but an acquaintance is a big fan, and he said that he liked it too much to go see the movie.
In the end, after being shown the notice to death, he went to see it, but it seems reckless to make the 10th volume two hours.
From the perspective of N, who saw it without prior knowledge, it was very heart-warming and moving.
The dialogue was a bit stinky, and it felt strange that only the performance scene had a slimy CG feel…
Hiromi Uehara’s cool music, professional performances, and images that express the excitement of jazz were dynamic.
Hiromi Uehara’s performance at the Olympics was impressive.
Saxophone (Dai Miyamoto) is said to have held auditions with the cooperation of Universal Music, gathering influential musicians from Japan and abroad.
Tomoaki Baba, who has been active in the United States since his days at Berklee College of Music and has recently attracted attention for his performances with DREAMS COME TRUE, was selected from among players from all over the world who applied.
In addition, Shun Ishiwaka, who participates in millennium parade and is also active as a support member of Quruli, is in charge of playing the drums (Shunji Tamada).
It is highly recommended, as word of mouth says that just going to listen to this jazz trio’s performance on the big screen is the best.
My favorite scene is the scene where the piano girl hits the wall.
N was also told the same thing, so it was a painful scene to hear.
Also, since N played the drums for the first time a few days before the movie, I could understand a little bit of the feeling of the novice drummer in the movie, and it made me feel very sad.
I’d also like to try the saxophone, but it takes time to make a sound, and it seems quite difficult.
BLUE GIANT is very moving, so please take a look.
At Antique Fukousha, we also purchase musical instruments.
It’s about time the sunny weather of spring continues, and the weather in Nagoya was warm enough to make me sweaty yesterday.
Today is also a warm day for cherry blossom viewing, just like yesterday. The cherry blossoms in Nagoya seem to be at their peak this week, and some trees have already turned into leaves. If you are going to see the cherry blossoms, there is a difference in temperature, so please don’t forget to wear something to enjoy.
Speaking of which, I learned this morning that The New York Times in the United States announced “52 Places to Go in 2023” (52 places to go in 2023), the second after London, the capital of England. It seems that Morioka City, Iwate Prefecture, was introduced.
The introduction describes it as a gem of a spot that can be easily reached from Tokyo by foot without the crowds. The city area is very suitable for walking around the city, with buildings built in the Taisho period that combine the architectural beauty of the West and the East, modern hotels, historical inns (traditional lodging facilities), and meandering rivers. It seems that it was written that one of the attractions is that it is full of materials such as rivers.
I have never been to Morioka City, which has been introduced to the world, so I would like to learn about the places introduced this time with everyone and make use of them for my next trip.
First, “Morioka Castle Ruins Park” (Iwate Park).
In spring, it is a famous spot for cherry blossoms, in summer, it creates a shade of greenery in the center of the city, in autumn, it is a spot for beautiful autumn leaves, and in winter, it is a fantastic winter with a stone wall that is completely wrapped in a snowscape that looks like an ink painting and is lit up. Morioka Castle Ruins Park presents the night of the night.
What a lovely introduction! This is a must-see spot that you can enjoy at any time of the year. By the way, I’m not good at winter, but I’m quite curious about the snowy scenery like ink painting.
Next is “Nakatsugawa”.
This is a river that flows through the city. In the summer, you can enjoy fishing for sweetfish, and in the fall, you can see salmon swimming upstream to spawn. Seeing salmon in the rivers that run through the city is an experience that you cannot get if you are in Nagoya.
When it comes to food…
“NAGASAWA COFFEE”.
A roaster cafe that consistently handles everything from purchasing green coffee beans, roasting to extraction, and serving. It seems that they continue to make coffee that is loved by the locals by using a German-made roasting machine and roasting their own. I’m a big coffee lover, so this is one of the places I’d like to visit!
And finally, “BOOKNERD”.
“BOOKNERD” literally translates to “book otaku,” and the 5,000-square-meter store has about 5,000 new and old books, foreign and Japanese books selected by the book otaku shop owner. And since 2018, he has also been involved in publishing, and is said to be the publisher of the famous “Kudorain” writer’s debut work, “Don’t let me go hungry.”
Around this “BOOKNERD” shop, there are other baked confectionery shops where people line up, coffee shops famous for pudding and coffee, Japanese food shops and antique shops, so I am very interested. will be
The more I looked into it, the more I realized that it was a very attractive place.
I’m sure it’s been featured in the New York Times and has become a more popular travel destination than ever before, but I definitely want to visit it at least once this year.
