Doe Deere Blogazine

‘The ball’

A new exhibit opened in NYC: a collection of Japanese Packaging. I went with my friend Glendy and her boyfriend, to be joined by miss Gilda afterwards. One of the reasons I went was because I love Japan. Reason #2 was to wear the Green Suit, but that deserves a separate post. For now, here are some pictures from the exhibit.

That’s a lot of junk! I like it.

White light LED lamp

This lamp is designed to enhance the atmosphere – so if you need reliable lighting, stick with a torchiere. Tall, gleaming lights on thin stalks sway like grass when you walk by, reacting to air movement. The lamp is about 4 feet tall. Turns out, making white LED is not as easy as it sounds. Green, red, and blue LED have been around for ages, but it took this company 2 years and a hefty amount of money in research to figure out how to make pure white LED. I would’ve just stuck with blue or green, but then again, I’m not Japanese.

The embossing here would suggest that this is gold, but something tells me it’s not. Perhaps the lack of a bullet-proof glass tells me that. Or lack or an armed guard. But then again, I’m not Japanese and don’t know about these things.

Grand Pianist.

This miniature piano plays by itself. They had it at the exhibit and I took pictures; but the pictures failed to capture the magic of keys getting depressed without the hand pressing them, and the sounds of a concerto coming out simultaneously. I bet if I were Japanese, I would have figured something out, but I’m not so you’re stuck with the video.

Hello! I’m an apple! And I have a FACE! Betcha didn’t see that one coming.

Here we all are, in a basket! Aren’t we cute? Almost makes you forget that we’re apples, made of terrycloth, with a FACE sewn on. Go ahead, take a bite.

Actually, no – don’t take a bite. Have this umm, drink instead. I hear it’s great and makes you grow elephant ears and fly and stuff! No, really, it’s ok, you can sip first.

The thing about Japanese is, just when you thought you’d figured them out, you’re in for another surprise.

Oh yay, they have dessert! Yum!

Wait. That parfait looks kind of… fuzzy.

Sweet evil Jesus! They are towels! Packaged as pastries! With plastic fruit on top!

Does it make me a freak to still want to eat them?

“In Japan, presentation is everything,” says Glendy knowledgeably. I’m starting to see that. Japanese seem to have an inventive product to occupy every second of your day. Bored? Pop some fake bubble wrap. Quick, clip this rubber edamame onto your keychain. Or grow a plant in a capsule. Or something. Everything is thought-through. Except for the space to display it in, apparently.

Felissimo Design House: view from the balcony

It beats me why the organizers chose to display plastic gadgets and terrycloth apples (with a face, with a face!) in a white, Venetian ballroom. Felissimo Design House offers 3 floors of light-filled, gorgeous space fit for a wedding reception or a masqued ball. I felt like a princess strolling through those rooms and climbing up & down those marble stairs. A princess in 4″ heels and a green janitor suit. For once, I felt Japanese.

Me, Gilda, Glendy and her boyfriend

Japan C: The Best of Japanese Packaging Exhibit
11 a.m. – 6 p.m
http://www.japan-c.com
Felissimo Design House
10 West 56th St, NYC
Ending November 1, 2008
FREE admission. Get a gift for filling out a short survey. I got this cute bookmark, yay! :)