Category: Art/Design

Epcot’s Japan ups its trendy wares.

Leave a comment

If you’ve never been to Walt Disney World’s Epcot, you are missing out, but you also may not be aware that it houses a Japan portion to its World Showcase. In this section you will find lovely architecture, food, a small museum that changes its exhibition, and a very large store. It’s one of my favorite places to head when in the park and pick up an item or two imported from Japan.

This time around I bought some trendy illustrated prints from Kaori Wakamatsu. But I had a hard time deciding on them as they were stocking so many other striking illustrations by Wakamatsu and many others featured as prints, postcards, notebooks, stationary, pens, and on bags and wallets. This was a fairly new section that has expanded much from the last time I was there. It really emphasized the “cute Japan” but still had a cool edge of design beyond staples like Hello Kitty while also striking a nice balance with the more traditional fare that takes up most of the store.

The Pose

10 Comments

“The Pose” is simple. You have an artist who wants to draw a girl to be a bit enticing but he is not sure what part of the anatomy a majority of his readers enjoy. Are they attracted to a nice set of breasts or do they prefer a well formed posterior? If you draw the girl from the front you can have a detailed look at the beauty of the hills but the bottom is hidden from sight. On the other hand if you look from the back the rump is on fill display but the top is harder to see in its full glory. So the artist uses his trump card contained within “The Pose” by drawing a girl as is she were the most dedicated discus thrower on the planet. You can’t just be looking over your shoulder. That is not fully doing “the Pose.” When engaged in “The Pose” the character is turning around to look behind them enough that both breasts are fully visible which as far as I can tell would a decent amount of flexibility in real life.  It seems rather uncomfortable to me especially if you were to try an maintain the position for any reasonable amount of time.

Yes, I just talked about a silly fan service pose for a whole post. But it is such an odd phenomenon that I have to wonder if it has  a name. I am not an artist nor have I taken art classes so if this pose has a name I would be curious to know what it is. If it does not have a name we as a community should give it one. As nerds obsessed with nomenclature in general it seems our sacred duty.

2010: A Year of Great Openings

4 Comments

When looking back at this year, I was struck by how many great openings came to mind so I thought,”hey, let’s call that out in a post!” And the way I see, to have a good opening you need a good song, good animation, and both of them need to fit together distinctly. When watching an opening, I’m looking for a feeling, it should set a tone and a pace for what I’m about to watch. I think openings can have a lot of power so I have to give props when they are done well.

A good opening draws you and sets a tone for the anime. It can be the vanguard and frontman for a series giving you your first impression of what the show is about and what mood you should be feeling when you watch. Plus the animation on the opening usually at least one level higher quality than anything in the show itself so most openings are a joy to watch. There are some exceptions to this rule but we are not here to talk about them today. Today we will discuss some of the best openings of 2010 and why they stand out.

Continue reading →