Teatime at Facet Studio - Shotani ショウタニ

Our Osaka office is suitably located close by a famous cake shop, Shotani. So yes, we did enjoy many quality, blog-worthy afternoon tea treats.

Shotani was established in 1995, currently has 7 shops, all in the Kansai region - the food region!

The founder Mr Shotani states:
"There are lives residing in the common dessert.
I may be a clumsy individual, but I am serious about bringing life to the desserts.
Then I want to continue on making desserts that bring smiles to people's faces"

A simple wish can be powerful... I am constantly inspired.

The desserts are delicately flavored and beautifully presented, with a sense of fusion between tradition and modern.

Delicate enigma

Presenting Motion Screen - a screen we designed for IDEA Award 2012 Gala Party.

(Higasa lamp was also designed for the same event)

Despite its delicacy and beauty, there is a catch in this which makes people behave strangely around it.... have a guess?

 

 

End of the mystery is....

Following on from the last post this is what happened after the umbrella "comes to life"...

people suddenly gravitate towards the warms emitted by the light... 

complicated shadows adds to the sense of space 

Now there is a story behind this.

In Japan, traditional umbrellas are made of coated Japanese paper (washi), its structure out of a single log of bamboo, sliced into fine "bones".  It is an intricate art form, past down through generations over hundreds of years.  Unfortunately like many other traditional crafts slowly replaced by their modern reinventions, the traditional umbrella making is of no exception - there is now only 1 traditional umbrella maker remaining in Kyoto, Japan.  In order to survive, the umbrella maker Hiyoshiya ventured into other fields, and started developing their own range of light fittings based on the skills of umbrella making.

It was by chance that this collaboration between Facet Studio and Hiyoshiya happened.
We were contemplating on how to create cosy atmosphere in a large irregular lobby, and when we saw the bones of the umbrella we decided to put the focus on the beauty of this traditional craft in its most recognisable form.

Each Higasa lamp is 1.6m in diameter, the longest a straight log of bamboo can be sourced.  We tested extensively on how we should expose the bones without deviating from the umbrella reference.... the way the washi is gapped and alternating on either side of the bones is to:
1. ensure the compactness when the lamp is in retracted condition - this affects transportability
2. provide screening to light source in preventing glare
3. provide a backdrop for shadows of the bones to be casted upon

The hardest reality being running electrical cables into the bones....and locating the light source in a certain location to ensure the shadows are cast the way we want (but of course I am not going to tell you how....).  None of this is to be visible..... and again nothing is accidental.

Higasa lamp is a light fitting designed by Facet Studio.

detail of the final fittings
photo (c) Eugene Wu

us setting up the Higasa lamps on site....

at the actual event for which Higasa lamp was designed for
photo (c) Eugene Wu

To see more photos of Higasa lamp HERE

Teatime at Facet Studio - Toraya とらや

Downside of having international projects... is the traveling between seasons... good that most of the time it is Yoshi doing the flying around, and we benefit from the result - yummy desserts for tea in the office!

Having mentioned Kyoto's Toraya in the last blog entry, I felt it is suitable to start this new series of blog entries on "Teatime at Facet Studio" with the confectionery artists serving the Japan Royal Family since the 16th Century.

Toraya 虎屋 strictly follows the tradition of wagashi (Japanese dessert), in the "Art of the Five Senses" - Appearance, Taste, Texture, Scent, Sound. Every piece of wagashi is a piece of artwork.

What is important to us is, enjoy all aspects of life.... when we enjoy our teatime, we enjoy all aspects of the dessert too.

traditional Toraya packaging

Season Special "Kaze no Kaori"
季節の羊羹　”風の薫”
it was inspired by the summer wind which brings the smell of grass in the sun and the glittering crops in the wind 

Season Special "Hina Goromo"
季節の羊羹　”雛衣”

It was inspired by the beautiful dresses of the ladies in the royal family, each layer is a different flavour

This is a young me looking at a young Yoshi muscling with the jumbo youkan
The Toraya staple: Yoru no Ume 夜の梅

Ryoji Ikeda's Test Pattern [No 5]

It is on at Carriageworks, Eveleigh until July 1st!
There is still time!

How to explain the experience of being together with Ryoji Ikeda's work?
I would say it reminded me of the experience of early morning meditation at Kyoto's temple when I went for Zen training a few years ago.
This was probably the closest experience to Zen outside the context of the temple.

Overpowering sound and light concluded the world into "self" and "everything else".
Simple, yet powerful.

  

 

 

Arty Sydney - Anish Kapoor Exhibition

Anish Kapoor exhibition is closing April 1st!
Have you been?
You must!

The exhibition is part of the Sydney International Art Series, an initiative that brings the world's most outstanding exhibitions to Sydney supported by the NSW Government through Destination NSW.

I am so glad that I was able to catch the exhibition in time.
There are such extremity in his work that creates incomparable tension and power, and with perfect execution the experience of being with his work is amazing.
Simply amazing.

Here are some works I took photos of... but you know, there really are worlds which can not be recorded with photographs.

SKY MIRROR
In the drizzling rain it takes on a different look to that of its normal image... taking in a piece of the sky on to our earthly realm.

MY RED HOMELAND
The sight of it sent cold chill down my spine.  It is a 12m diameter circle of 25tons paraffin wax in bright red colour, its texture similar to that of flesh.  The savageness in the rotating blade's slow motion cuts repeatedly into the sculpture, as if to cut open a wound so it would never heal...

Distorted self and surrounding motion with this huge dish made of hundreds of brilliant mirror pieces

S-CURVE
Our perception of the world is largely determined by what we can see - apparently 90% of information comes to us through our eyes.  So our perception of the world becomes unnervingly wide when we see things we are not supposedly able to see in the reflection...knowing more is not always comforting.

S-CURVE
Where the mirror concave and convex curves meet.
The reflections merge into a point, everything seemed to come out from that point or disappear into that point, as if it is an imaginary blackhole.
Our everyday becomes his work of art.

WHEN I AM PREGNANT
The white wall forms a soft sensuous lump, as if it is part of a living creature.
This kind of softness is so extreme yet completely at one with the rest of Kapoor's work... must be magic.

SKY MIRROR (REAR)
I found myself looking at myself, from a Godly perspective.
it is unnerving, but comforting... by knowing your own anonymity there is a sense of comfort I guess.... 

18th Biennale of Sydney - All Our Relations

Being an architect is an intense life commitment... even when we aimed to relax and submerge ourselves in art, it is difficult to get away from inspiration seeking and spatial analysis.

But hey, Sydney Biennale was definitely worthwhile!

After a short ferry ride in the picturesque Sydney Harbour, we arrived at Cockatoo Island.

Cockatoo Island, an UNESCO World Heritage Site, is an island located at the junction of the Parramatta and Lane Cove rivers, in Sydney Harbour, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Between 1839 and 1869, Cockatoo Island operated as a convict penal establishment, primarily as a place of secondary punishment for convicts who had re-offended in the colonies. It was also the site of one of Australia's biggest shipyards, operating between 1857 and 1991. The first of its two dry docks was built by convicts.
Listed on the National Heritage List, the place is significant for its demonstration of the characteristics of a long-running dockyard and shipbuilding complex, including evidence of key functions, structures and operational layout. Cockatoo Island contains the nation's most extensive and varied record of shipbuilding and has the potential to enhance our understanding of maritime and heavy industrial processes in Australia from the mid-19th century.  (Wikipedia)

Here is a little blurb about Biennale of Sydney, taken from the official website:

The Biennale of Sydney is a non-profit organisation that presents Australia's largest and most exciting contemporary visual arts event. Held every two years, the Biennale presents a three-month exhibition, plus a program of artist talks, performances, forums, film screenings, family events, guided tours and other special events, all FREE to the public.
The inaugural Biennale of Sydney was staged in 1973 to provide an international showcase for contemporary art. Its aim was to develop and present a program that challenged traditional thinking and encouraged new levels of enthusiasm for innovative creative expression. The 18th Biennale of Sydney marks the organisation’s 39th anniversary.
The Biennale of Sydney was the fourth recurring contemporary art exhibition to be established on the international calendar – after Venice (1895), São Paulo (1951) and Documenta (1955). The Biennale of Sydney quickly achieved international recognition and critical acclaim and, from a small start, quadrupled in size in less than a decade. Today it ranks as one of the leading international festivals of contemporary art in the world and continues to be recognised for showcasing the freshest and most provocative contemporary art from Australia and around the world.

Having visited a few Biennales, I must say that this year has been the most inspiring and poetic...