Sugoi ukiyo
Sugoi Ukiyo: The Amazing Floating World! Past the bustling, urban landscape emerges lush, tropical greenery speckled with magical gardens. The juxtaposition of urban graphics and serene gardens mirrors the way Tadanori Yokoo fused Japanese pop psychedelia with traditional Japanese woodblock prints, known as ukiyo-e. While Ukiyo "Floating World" once described the pleasure seeking, red-light district of what is now Tokyo, the modern usage of Ukiyo refers to a state of being: living in the moment. Sugoi Ukiyo welcomes those who enjoy the colorful, the cosmopolitan, and the tranquility of nature.
CONTEXT: MCAD TYPOGRAPHY CLASS
MEDIUM: DIGITAL
TOOLS: ILLUSTRATOR, PHOTOSHOP
RESEARCH METHODS: GOOGLE, COLLEAGUES
The goal of this project was to create a fictional travel postcard using a design figure from history as inspiration. I chose Tadanori Yakoo as my inspiration. Careful detail was placed on maintaining postal regulations for the back mailing side of the card. Color, texture, layering, and typography was explored in detail. Peer and instructor feedback led the design toward a final outcome that appears elegant and mysterious.
TRAVEL POSTCARD
Tadanori Yokoo's playful style created a new visual language for Tokyo's counterculture. His bold use of collage, psychedelia and appropriation became crazed visual poems, pieces of pure creative expression. Yokoo fused Japanese pop psychedelia with traditional Japanese woodblock prints, known as ukiyo-e.
MOODBOARD
すごい Sugoi is a Japanese word that's typically used as an exclamation for anything you find impressive (great, wow, amazing, etc.). If one of your friends gets a new job, you can just say, “Sugoi!” Originally borne from 'uki' meaning sad and 'yo' meaning life. Ukiyo came to symbolize the Buddhist idea that life was transient. The term ukiyo (浮世, "floating world") came to describe this hedonistic lifestyle of Japan's middle class.
Literally meaning “Pictures of the Floating World," Ukiyo-e refers to a style of Japanese woodblock print and painting from the Edo period depicting famous theater actors, beautiful courtesans, city life, travel scenes in romantic landscapes; flora and fauna; and erotica.
What’s in a name?
I put my own twist on Yakoo’s work while using my printmaking background to mimic layers of screen printing. I believe the final result is subtle mystery and intrigue with a hopeful burst of color beyond the floating clouds. I get major Fantasy Island vibes and wonder what might happen if I ever took a trip to Sugoi Ukiyo!
