I find it interesting that a place can have so many people and be so clean. These photographs are anecdotal . I was there one week and made these images. They are not about what Tokyo should be, or famous [places or things.

Tokyo may be a lot of negative things, but at least when I am there I do not feel that other sact as if public space is a place where they have to be aggresively rude and inconsiderate.

 

 

I went to Tokyo for one week at the end of March 2008. I have been to Japan a number of times before. My father worked in Japan for 13 years, my wife is from Japan and my sister has lived in Japan for over 25 years.

The book “Space and Spirit in Modern Japan” by Barrie Greenbie discusses the difference between the Japanese and the US concepts of private and public space. He uses photographs that he personally took and what was interesting for me is that he took photographs similar to the images of Japan that I often take of the urban landscape. While I have taken many photographs of Japan and hoepfully I will make them available with comments later, these images are from my March 2008 trip, but this trip in my spare time I walked and took photos of things I saw as I walked.. How do people live, what are their everyday experiences, how can you see cultural differences, what do you see when you walk around. These images are anecdotal in that nothing is planned, there is no agenda or purpose and time is not planned to make a well rounded cmoprehensive experience. When you look at these images you are going to see things that one might see randomly walking the streets of Tokyo. in the spaces where I was.

One thing to remember while veiwing these photographs, there are no waste containers on the streets in Tokyo. Aum, the radical group that attempted to create mass death and destruction used to put the poison gas in trash containers, so Tokyo removed them. Still, the public streets and transportation vehicles are not justcleaner than any in the US, but they are clean.

Housing and Buildings

Japan has a very different policy concerning zoning. Compared to the US, its first come first served. Its not unusual to see residential homes next to factories, retail stores, temples and shrines, a family store or business on the first floor and living quarters above. In Tokyo when you look at houses next to each the building materials create textural contrasts.

Above you see some family homes in Tokyo next to apartments and in the background high rise construction; ever since the first time I was in Tokyo everywhere is high rise construction. Imagine living in this house.

The Japanese use every bit of space. This building is stores on the first floor and stores above but it sure looks weirder than the Flatiron Building.

This is an regular residential street in Tokyo. You can see family homes and the street is quite narrow. Its a two lane street and drivers will accomodate each other, but generally one driver does not meet another driver.

An average residential street, traffic goes both ways. Imagine living on this street, walking to public transportation everyday, probably seeing your neighbors doing the same thing.

 

A non residential street in the downtown area of Shinagawa. The street looks narrow but many streets in Tokyo are this width, and vehicles travel both ways.

The view from the second floor of the hotel. The streets are two lane, both ways. Sadly to say graffiti is not uncommon in Tokyo now.

A two lane street in a more residential area of Tokyo. Still notice how space is used. Buildings are constructed to fit into the space. Often in the US space is politically managed and the buildings are forced to fit into the managed space. Any citizen who has ever had a conflict with the city building and permit department will know what I mean. In the city where I live one could never get approval for a building like this. It would freak out the permit people.

A private residence from the front and below, from the side. Its not so big, no parking, if they own a car its stored somewhere else. But there is a garden n front.

 

Above and below houses and buildings on a main street

A house among a bunch of high rise buildings,

and a few blocks away, Shibuya Station. See and hear Shibuya in the video below.

Shibuya late at night.

This is right across from the station. The video screens are showing movies with sound at maximum value. There are also big trucks driving around with video screens on their sides promoting pop stars with volume at maximum levels.In the image below, the first two stories of the building on the right is a Starbucks, coffee served on the first floor, seating on the second.

A gas station on the ground floor, businesses above. The gas hoses come out of the ceiling.

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