Arts, Culture & Fashion

Se-Gil Feldsott and Beccie Smith (Nagano) Origin and History Japanese people have been celebrating Obon for more than 500 years. The origin of this Buddhist festival comes from the story of Maha Maudgalyayana (aka Mokuren), ...
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David Atti (Chiba) An old motorcycle rests outside the countryside barbershop in Futtsu City, Chiba. The sign spells out “SANPATSU-YA HILLBILLY CAT” in circus font with a cartoon cat holding a pair of scissors below ...
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A Crash Course in Japanese Knife Making Mark Christensen (Fukuoka) When one thinks of Japanese history, the weapons of the samurai are among the most iconic artifacts. Forged from iron-sand and superheated in kilns, the ...
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This article originally featured in the May 2020 issue of Connect. Interview with a YouTube Creative Bobby Coutu (Okayama) | Rachel Fagundes (Okayama) Q: Tell me about your YouTube channel, Q2 Japan! What kind of content do you ...
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This article originally featured in the May 2020 issue of Connect. A primer to combining tradition, creativity, and sustainability By Emilia Bergoglio Since I moved to Japan I’ve been fascinated by its rich cultural history. As a sewist, ...
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This article originally featured in the May 2020 issue of Connect. Rachel Fagundes (Okayama) Movies May 1 - Line of Duty (2019) - Secret × Heroine Phantomirage!: Eiga ni Natte Chodaishimasu (2020) - All the Things We Never ...
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This article originally featured in the April 2020 issue of Connect. Christina Bellevue (Ibaraki) If you’re a beauty lover like me, then it only makes sense that you’d want to take advantage of your stay in Japan to ...
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This article originally featured in the April 2020 issue of Connect. Kat Joplin (Tokyo) Moving to the inaka of Oita, Japan was the best and worst thing for my queer agenda. On the one hand, it gave me, ...
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This article originally featured in the April 2020 issue of Connect. Mukaiya Minoru is a name you’ve probably never heard, but you’ve absolutely listened to his works. Multiple times. Possibly even every day. Maybe you even know some ...
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This article originally featured in the April 2020 issue of Connect. Rachel Fagundes (Okayama) MOVIES April 3 - The Dead Don’t Die (2019) - Captive State (2019) - The Current War: Director’s Cut (2017) - Vox Lux (2018) ...
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