タヌキ

Tanuki night-time portrait, with Tokyo Olympic cloth featuring attractive African American athletes

August 24, 2013Culture, S.C.R.O.T.U.M.1964 Tokyo Olympics, African-American, athletes, attractive, お面, ふろしき, アメリカ, オリジナル, カメラ, タヌキ, ピクニック, Chris Berthelsen, 選手, 青山団地, 袋, 高校生, 黒人, １９６４年の東京オリンピック, mask, night, original, picnic, portrait, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., special feature, super-extroverted, tanuki, teen, wife, 写って, 夏の夜, 外国人, 奥さん, 布palmsundae One comment

chrisb_tanuki_us_athletes_tokyo_olympics

タヌキさんが大好きな青山団地で、夏の夜にピクニックをしました。アメリカの黒人選手が写っている１９６４年の東京オリンピックの布は、タヌキの袋でしたが、今はカメラのふろしきとして使っています。タヌキさんの奥さんが作ったオリジナルお面は今外国人の高校生が持っています。

My super-extroverted tanuki co-conspirator, Chris Berthelsen, has relocated to New Zealand. It was touching that at our last public outing his special feature consisted of a 1964 Tokyo Olympic cloth featuring African-American athletes. Although not clear from this poor photo, the setting is Aoyama Danchi, one of tanuki’s favorite urban wild spaces.

Thanks, Chris, for all the creativity and boundary hopping. I was also super happy to hear that the original tanuki mask, made by Chris’ wife, is now in the possession of a Dutch teen in Tokyo.

Tanuki arrives at a summer house party with a scrotum full of ice cream

August 1, 2013Residences, S.C.R.O.T.U.M.arrive, アイスクリーム, タヌキ, ハウスのパーティー, 配っています, 袋, full, house party, ice cream, Nakano, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., summer, tanuki, 夏palmsundae Leave a comment

夏のハウスのパーティーにやってきて、タヌキ袋からアイスクリームを配っています。

In a cold world of transactions, tanuki offers humility, generosity, and a spiritual quest

July 22, 2013S.C.R.O.T.U.M.タヌキ, cold world, 謙虚, generosity, humility, offer, quest, Shibaura House, spiritual, tanuki, 利益, 寛大さpalmsundae Leave a comment

謙虚なタヌキさんには、利益より寛大さのほうが大事です。とてもスピリチュアルなんです。

Tanuki visits busy advertising agency, bringing surprise to digital workers

July 19, 2013S.C.R.O.T.U.M., small businessadvertising agency, タヌキ, busy, digital workers, 訪れて, 驚き, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., Shibaura House, surprise, tanuki, 広告会社, 忙しい, 提供palmsundae Leave a comment

忙しい広告会社をタヌキさんは訪れて、驚きを提供しています。

Making Friends successful encounter on Shibaura sidewalk, before being stopped by plainclothes policeman

July 17, 2013public space, S.C.R.O.T.U.M.うまい棒, おかしい, お私服警官, しあわせ, タヌキ, delivery, 通報, 近づいて, face, hand, happy, plainclothes policeman, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., salty snack, strange foreigners, tanuki, umaibo, 外人, 子供palmsundae One comment

タヌキさんの「うまい棒」をもらった人は、しあわせになるそう。このイベントの途中で、お私服警官に、この辺りで、おかしい外人が子供に近づいているという通報があったと言われました。

Tanuki received many types of responses walking the streets of Shibaura. I like this guy’s face as he holds onto the umaibo salty snack given by tanuki. Tanuki also gave some masks to kids leaving school. A less friendly encounter was the plainclothes policemen who told us that there are had been many disturbing reports of foreigners coming and taking photos of school children. He looked like a normal 30 year old on a bike, until he flashed his badge. Fortunately, tanuki was not detained this time!

Tanuki finds double-takes, rejection, and friendly souls outside Shibaura House

July 12, 2013Culture, public space, S.C.R.O.T.U.M.accept, anytime, avoid, とちがう, タヌキ, blanket, chat, delivery men, double take, eye-contact, 芝浦ハウス, glass tower, happy, laborers, napping, nearby, office workers, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., shade, Shibaura, Shibaura House, sidewalk, tanuki, 反応, 受けましたpalmsundae Leave a comment

.@ShibauraHouse の辺りでは、タヌキがいつもとちがう反応を受けました。

A few people did a double take when they spotted tanuki taking a nap in the small wild space in front of Shibaura House. Tanuki shows how his 4 meter scrotal shade can quickly be turned into a blanket for anytime napping.

Below he approaches a glass office tower, but there’s no response. Nearby office workers avoided eye contact, but delivery men and laborers were happy to accept an umaibo salty snack and chat with tanuki.

More photos coming from the film developer soon. Many thanks to A Small Lab‘s Chris and everyone at Shibaura House.

Come on a tanuki adventure with us at Shibaura House next Tuesday

July 5, 2013Culture, public space, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., Walking and transitA Small Lab, adventure, animals, お弁当, スマートフォン, タヌキ, ロンドン, bento, Chris Berthelsen, city, conference, 無料, 都市, 野生, 芝浦ハウス, free, interaction, let's go, lives, London, need, real-time, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., Shibaura House, so good, tanuki, unexpected, unusual, 冒険, 動物, 友達を作る, 呼び戻したい, 学会, 承認されました, 東京メトロ, 江戸時代, 上手, 会いませんかpalmsundae One comment

Please join @a_small_lab and me for a tanuki adventure next Tuesday, July 9, noon to 1 pm, at Shibaura House. Details below. Many thanks to Shibaura House for their support.

SHIBAURA HOUSEに来て、江戸時代から有名なタヌキさんに会いませんか？ 2人の外国人が、タヌキさんをまた東京に呼び戻したいと考えています。東京メトロに乗ってタヌキが友達を作る企画（http://wp.me/piwM0-23e）は、ロンドンのテクノロジー関係の学会で承認されました。スマートフォンがなくても、タヌキさんは友達を作ることが上手です。
今回SHIBAURA HOUSEで開催するイベントでは、こんなことを一緒に考えます：都市に、動物は必要でしょうか。野生で予測できないものは、都市の生活に大事でしょうか。
一緒にちょっと冒険してみましょう。参加費は無料。イベントはランチタイムに開催します、自分のお弁当を持ってきてください。

Please come to Shibaura House to meet the famous tanuki from Edo. Two foreigners want to welcome shape-shifting tanuki back to Tokyo. Their photo story about Making Friends with Tanuki in the Tokyo Metro was selected by a London technology conference for its unusual real-time interaction. How come, even without a smartphone, tanuki is so good at making friends? Why do we need animals in cities? What is the importance of wild and unexpected things in our lives? Please bring an open mind and your own bento. Let’s go on an adventure.

Tanuki drinks AKB48 canned coffee. Who is promoting whom?

July 5, 2013Culture, S.C.R.O.T.U.M.AKB48, AKB４８, タヌキ, メンバー, canned coffee, 缶コーヒー, drink, 飲んで, 見つかる, make friends, promoting, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., semi, shapeshifter, tanuki, whom, wild, 友達, 本当. 恋, 消費社会, 一人palmsundae Leave a comment

タヌキさんはAKB４８の缶コーヒーを飲んでいます。そのメンバーの一人と、タヌキは友達になりたいでしょうか。消費社会で、本当の恋が見つかるでしょうか。

Tanuki’s journey requires lots of caffeine and energy drinks. Do you think AKB48 is a fan of tanuki? Would any of these young ladies make friends with a semi-wild shapeshifter? Tanuki raises more questions than answers.

Tanuki visits famous Musashino Art University

July 3, 2013Culture, S.C.R.O.T.U.M.all, タヌキ, college students, 無視して, 訪れました, famous, fancy, ignore, library, Musashino Art University, new, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., students, tanuki, visit, 図書館, 大学生, 有名, 武蔵野美術大学palmsundae Leave a comment

タヌキさんは有名な武蔵野美術大学を訪れましたが、新しくてすてきな図書館で勉強する大学生は彼を無視しています。

And all the students in the fancy new library ignore him.

Reports of tanuki traveling down river from the woodlands towards the commercial center

July 1, 2013Culture, S.C.R.O.T.U.M.できるでしょうか, ソーシャルメディア, タヌキ, ピンク色, フィーチャフォン, マチャリ, canal, 玉川上水, 移動して, down river, Edo, feature phone, make friends, mama-chari, pink, report, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., sanctuary, Tamagawa josui, tanuki, tools, travel, woodlands, 友達, 古い, 江戸時代palmsundae Leave a comment

タヌキさんは、森から東京に移動していると言われています。ソーシャルメディアに、この江戸時代に作られた玉川上水の写真が出てきました。ママチャリと古いピンク色のフィーチャフォンしかありませんが、友達ができるでしょうか。

Some say that tanuki is traveling down river from his woodland sanctuary in the direction of central Tokyo. On a social media site, tanuki can be seen next to the Tamagawa josui, a canal built for the great Edo city hundreds of years ago. Can he make friends, if his only tools are a mama-chari and an antique, pink “feature phone”?

Tanuki says, Be a Good Neighbor

February 2, 2013Culture, S.C.R.O.T.U.M.どんなかたちでもいい, イラスト, タヌキ, dancing, 虹, fight, frolicking, good, inter-species, international, love, Luis Mendo, neighbors, poster, racial, rainbow, reconciliation, resist, S.C.R.O.T.U.M., tanuki, time, truth, urge, why, 喧嘩, 天才, 愛情, 仲よくしようpalmsundae One comment

タヌキさんは仲よくしようと言っています。喧嘩より、どんなかたちでもいいから、愛情のほうがいいと思います。イラストは天才Luis Mendoさんのです。

Why fight over barren islands? Why dream of racial purity and long-gone patriarchy? Why resist the urge to get to know each other?

Another brilliant tanuki poster from Luis Mendo. In a time of rising conflict between Japan and its closest neighbors, tanuki offers his enormous balls as a physical bridge and shared space for international, inter-species, and multi-sexual dancing and frolicking.

It’s time for truth, reconciliation, and love!