ケッコウなケッカイ (KEKKOUnaKEKKAI)
”Barriers are everywhere. They are so nice.”
When you are in Japan, have you ever seen PET bottles filled with water and placed against the walls on the streets, in front of gardens or beside electric poles?
在日本時, 是否曾經看過裝滿著水的寶特瓶放在路旁、院子前面或電線桿邊？
Japanese designer, Mr. Ando, recently had shown an intriguing exhibition in Tokyo to present the inspiration he got from this superstitious phenomenon with the idea of the word ‘(spiritual) barrier [kekkai/結界]’ and a special dissolvable white paper.
日本設計師安藤先生近日在東京剛舉辦過一個引人發想的展覽, 以「結界 (kekkai)」為攝影主題並運用一款特殊的水溶性紙做為整個展覽的主軸, 展現他從一個日常生活中常見的迷信現象獲得的創作靈感與在創作上帶著玩心的一面。
For the ones who like fantasy stories, anime or manga probably would be familiar with this word ‘(spiritual) barrier [kekkai/結界]’ that refers to the barriers that restrain certain spirits from entering the sacred place. Mr. Ando found it as an interesting wordplay to denote the phenomenon, and had it as the exhibition and publication title — Maybe the effectiveness of the barrier in reality is not important?! It is more about spiritual comfort by believing in common practice?!
對於喜歡幻想故事、動漫的人來說, 或許很熟悉「結界」這個字, 一個作為表達防禦某些靈體踏入神聖區域的界點。安藤先生以有趣的文字遊戲視點將「結界」作為展與攝影集的標題 — 也許現實中這樣做的效果如何並不重要？！關鍵在於相信習俗帶來的精神安定感？！
So, What is about placing fulfilled PET bottles on the streets?
那麼, 將裝滿水的寶特瓶置放在路上到底代表什麼？
In Japan, “placing fulfilled PET bottles on the streets” is somehow regarded as a way to keep cats away from the area. Despite how beloved cats have been across the nation in Japan, the mess they make could be a dearly headache. There is a saying that the reflection of sunlight from the PET bottles may scare the cats off from entering or staying around the place. If so, how about the nighttime? Regardless how evidential it has been proofed to be invalid, this practise has been deeply rooted among the folk and it is still commonly seen in the rural areas.
在日本”將裝滿水的寶特瓶置放在路上”能防止貓靠近那個區域。無論貓是如何受日本人的喜愛, 他們製造的混亂也很令人傷腦筋。有個說法是說陽光反射在寶特瓶上的光令貓害怕、而不敢靠近或待在那個區域附近。就算如此, 那晚上呢？不管事實證明上如何地確證這是無效作法, 這樣的習俗就像習以為常般的習慣深植民心, 尤其在鄉下地區更常見此景。
For this creative work, Mr. Ando then had been visiting various places to collect photos shoots and wittily designed a limited edition of handcrafted publications by the special dissolvable white paper. - Water diss[solve] problems. -
為了這個創作概念, 安藤先生到了很多地方搜集攝影畫面, 且巧妙地用特殊的水溶性紙張, 手工製作了限量的攝影集。— 水溶[解]問題 —
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Jiro Ando (安藤次朗) is a multi-talented designer, who works across graphic, packaging, branding, book binding to photography. His creations reflect well of his warm and bright personality, and depicts a sense of dynamism.
安藤次朗是一位多才多藝的設計師, 創作領域跨越平面設計、包裝設計、品牌設計、裝幀設計至攝影。他的作品多充分表現他溫暖爽朗的個人特質, 也描繪了他在創作上的靈活度。
To know more about Mr. Ando and his work, please visit:
更多關於安藤先生和他的作品, 請見：
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Kekkai The Barrier - Photography Publication
Kekkai The Barrier - 攝影集
This handcrafted publication is impressive that does not only tell the story of everyday life of Japanese, but also presents the Japanese style of graphic design, artistic creativity and the refined printing techniques. Every booklet of the handcrafted publication is composed by hand with some water, yet the binding part has all the pages neatly and evenly sticked together. “How to create irregular effects on the papers without distorting the presentation of the photo prints had been challenging.”, said Mr. Ando.
這本手作的刊物令人驚豔的不僅是對於日本人日常生活的呈方式、更展現了日本人在平面設計、藝術創作與精緻印刷技術上的風格。每一本皆手工沾水整合裝訂的部分, 即使是手作, 每一本的裝訂部分與頁面都是平整利索地整合在一起。安藤先生說「如何在創造不規則的隨意感的同時, 不破壞到預呈現的印刷影像的過程真是一個挑戰呢」。
Flipping through the pages, you could tell how much cares he had been putting in on the creation of these booklets; it’s about a photography book that tells story vividly through the prints, and the forms and texture of the paper.
翻閱一張張頁面的時候, 能看得出來他是多麼用心地製作這一本本藉由印刷的油墨和紙張型態與觸感生動地敘述著故事的攝影集。
P.S. I personally have tried this dissolvable paper. It really dissolved fast even with small amount of water! Perhaps this paper would be ideal for writing secret messages. ;)
我私下試了這水溶性的紙; 儘管只用了些許的水, 它溶解的速度很快! 也許這正適合拿來寫祕密訊息! ;)
