Friday, February 26, 2010

What is Your Sport?

In the Willow's Shadow - News from Flower City
柳の陰で花街新聞
(10/02/26) What is your sport?

What is your sport?
Let's play together.

200 years ago, in the Edo period, I imagine Kyoto was a world of black and grey. People wore patterns coded to caste and occupation. A man or woman could easily be judged and treated according to his or her rank of birth.

Yet here, in the flower city, people were treated in a basic human sense, as bodies.

The human body is capable of many things. In the Olympics, humans from any country compete as equals. Gold goes to she or he who has the greatest practice and the greatest skill.

Sport, the practice of play, takes many forms, but where the rules are strict, the masters compete as human equals.

What is your sport? What is your stadium?

Is it an earthen field? A concrete street? A grass thatched hut?

Let's meet on the field, and play. Give it your best shot.

Sport は?
一緒に遊びましょう。

200年前に江戸時代に京都は黒と灰色の世界だと思います。人々が服で等を読めました。地位の事で特別の考え方に色々の事されたかもしれません。

だけども、花街で、人間は俗的に体としてあつかわれたかもしれません。

人間の体は色々な事が出来ますね。Olympicsでどこの国の人間も平等に競い合う事ができる。一番上手な人が金メダルをとる事ができます。

Sport、遊びのお稽古は色々な形であるが方法がきびしくて達人は平等に競い合えます。

Sportは?Stadiumは?

土場?コンクリートの道?庵?

あの場であってあそびましょう。一期一会でがんばりましょう。

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Hana yori dango? Rice cakes over flowers?

In the Willow's Shadow - News from Flower City
柳の陰で花街新聞
(10/02/12) Hana yori dango? Rice cakes over flowers?

Rice cakes over flowers? Nutrition or beauty?
花よりだんご?栄養か美しい文?

This week, during each class I ask which people would rather do: eat rice cakes or watch flowers. It is a difficult question. Nutrition or design? I think it comes down to flavor.

Without beauty, in its many forms, food is not delicious and it is rarely satisfying.
But, without nutrition or context, design is shallow, and seems almost meaningless.

Some people claim that useless art is more valuable and more pure than useful art or "craft." Perhaps, some people believe that flowers are only beautiful if they are not useful.

But I wonder if their "purity" and their "uselessness" is actually used? If someone uses a flower for its value as a "useless" status object, they are still using a flower.

As long as art and craft are kept separate, isn't so much food eaten without appreciation and don't so many flowers wither alone?

Although not all plants can be eaten, the messages they might carry may be just as flavorful! Perhaps, this added spice of design, is, today, one thing that this flower city has to offer.


Rice cakes over flowers? Nutrition or beauty?
花よりだんご?栄養か美しい文?

今週、毎授業一つの特別の質問を聞いている:どちの方がやりたいですか?おだんごを食べるかお花を見る?難し質問だと思います。材料的な栄養かきれいな華やかなデザイン?わからないだけど多分、味は大切だと思います。

美しく事がなくて食べ物はあまり美味しくないだと思います。満足もあまり出来ていません。
だけど、栄養がなくて文脈がなくてデザインの事はあさくないですか?

無駄のアートはもと貴重と思ている人がいるだけど。その考え方で無駄アートはもと純粋の感じですねー使いやすいクラフトより。多分、無駄花だけは美しい花と思っている人もいるかもしれません。

だけど純粋と言う花もは使えられた花かな?人はそゆ無駄花をえらいになるように使ったら人は花を使っていますね。

アートとクラフトが別れば食事をたべると味わっていないじゃないですか?。アートとクラフトが別ればお花は寂しくて枯れていませんか?

全部お植物を食べ物じゃないけど多分持ている語りは味があるかもしれませんね!多分、現代にそゆデザインの薬味はこの花街の作品ですね。

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Movie Theater



In the Willow's Shadow - News from Flower City
柳の陰で花街新聞
(10/02/05) Movie Theater

The classroom is a movie theater- the garden is the movie. Its drama slowly unfolds. Soon, the plum tree, and then the cherry tree will become the star of the show. However, the garden is not the only movie. I move, you move, and we make a movie together as both audience and actor.

As you walk down Hanayacho, consider each house and shop as the stage for a movie. Even the street is a stage!

In the old days, the celebrities here were the Great Lords. They were painted and photographed. Their images were seen all over Shimabara, Kyoto, and Japan. I imagine they were quite similar to todays celebrities, like Lady Gaga or Hamasaki Ayumi.


教室は映画館ー庭は映画。ドラマがそろそろすずいています。次に梅そのあと桜は仕手になります。そだけど庭の意外も映画がいっぱいあります。こちに動いてあちに動いてみなさんはいしょうにmovieー動いている物ーに成っています。みなさんは仕手だけどもみなさんも観客でしょうね。

花屋町に歩きながら色々な店や家見てみてください。それぞれな場所は映画の舞台かもしれません。みちも舞台ですね!

昔にこのへやに太夫は有名人でしたね。書きられて写真とられて太夫さんの絵がいっぱいありました。島原や京都や日本の色々な所で太夫のかおを見えたかな。多分、現代にLady Gaga やHamasaki Ayumiのかおはそんなに有名ですね。