Night Walk in Aoyama and Photo Taking2024.11.02 Sachiko Segawa Let’s go out to Tokyo at night and find lighting heroes and villains!Under the cooperation of Taritari Inc., we held a children’s workshop in 2024 with this theme. Despite the rainy weather, 10 children participated. First, they listened to a talk about light from our chief, Mr. Mende, and then Ms. Mizuno from Taritari gave a talk about the old townscape around Omotesando Station. After a brief orientation, we headed out into the rain to find lighting heroes and villains. Originally, we planned to divide into four groups at the Omotesando intersection and explore four different areas, but due to the heavy rain and the number of participating children, we decided at the last minute to walk the same route together as one group. First, we walked from the office buildings along Aoyama-dori to Nonoaoyama, a mixed-use residential and commercial complex built on the site of the former Aoyama Kitamachi apartments. Then, we strolled along the adjacent walkway with its greenery and stream. Despite the rainy weather and limited visibility, the children enthusiastically pointed their cameras at the lights that caught their interest, capturing photos of the calming lights on the walkway and the blue illuminations of the restaurants beyond. As this workshop was primarily for upper elementary school students, some of them made comments that were as insightful as those of adults. After leaving the walkway, we walked through a…

2024.05.16 – 05.19 Mari Kubota+ Noriko Higashi Busan, South Korea’s second-largest city, is one of the world’s major port cities. In recent years, it has also gained fame as a hub for tourism and film. We surveyed the lighting in Busan, which is also a member of LUCI (Lighting Urban Community International). South Korea is a close neighbor, just 1.5 hours from Tokyo by plane, making it a popular destination for quick and affordable trips. Busan, the second-largest city in South Korea, is not only a tourist destination but also a major port and an entertainment center, hosting film festivals. As a member of LUCI, Busan has been focusing on urban lighting as part of its urban planning. In 2015, the city developed an extensive overview of its nightscapes, resulting in the Busan Urban Light Policy for 2030. This policy has been updated several times, reflecting the city’s ongoing efforts in implementation and improvement. The guidelines divide Busan into several zones, each with lighting tailored to its specific characteristics.We traveled to Busan to assess whether the city’s lighting contributes to safety, beauty, attractiveness, and the local economy at night. ■Jagalchi Market Jagalchi Market is South Korea’s largest seafood market, selling both fresh and dried fish. After purchasing seafood on the first floor, visitors can have it cooked and served on the second floor. The market attracts many tourists. White lights are used to illuminate the seafood, making it look as…

From Your Bed to Your Desk Brien Ng Mende: Today we’re sharing our daily routine. Brien, how long does it take from your bed to your desk? Brien: It takes almost 90 minutes. Mende: That’s quite long. What is the first thing you see in a day? Brien: The sunlight coming through the gap of the curtains. Mende: How long does it take to your office? Brien: Pretty long. The bus stops about 20 times. As there is one lane per direction in this road, it’s easily caught up in a traffic jam. After 30 minutes, it enters a road to Hong Kong Island. Then I switch to MTR at Sheung Wan. Mende: The bus alone takes one hour already. Brien: Along the route, I see villages with different development status. The highest building is four-stories, even our law permits up t０ three-stories. They break a law to build one more floor over a rooftop to gain additional 700-square-feet. Mende: Is everything the same every day? Brien: View from the 6:50 am bus and the 7:45 am bus are distinct. In the earlier hour, I would see the sun rising from behind mountains. The atmosphere is a mixture of gold and greyish blue. Mende: You like morning time? Brien: Yes. Mende: That’s rare. Brien: Maybe because I am not a party person. Mende: Same here. Brien: What I still see around my neighborhood are old-fashioned bus stops with iron tubes…

Interviewer: Yumeka Miyamae Miyamae：In the past year telework has really taken off, which has really changed how we live and work.  Today I`d like to talk about living and working in this new era with Covid 19. Mende：Yes, I`d like to hear your thoughts, also. Miyamae：Generally, people select an area to live that is within an easy hour commute to the office.   Where people live is basically decided by where one works, since the norm is to go to the office to do your work.  In other words, work time = office time.  Work and private life are clearly divided by place, time, and role.  That is up until one year ago.  One thing I have felt during teleworking this past year is the line between work and private is obscured.   I am having trouble switching between the two. Mende：For people like you with a family and small children at home, I think it is much harder to switch on and off.  A long time ago when my wife used to teach at the university,  she had to commute two hours one way, for a total of four hours of commute time a day.  Such a waste of time.   I suggested she rent an apartment near the campus and crash there on days she was too tired to go home, but she refused and said she needed to come home so she could “switch off.”  I didn’t understand then, but…

Interviewer: Namiko Watanabe Watanabe：In terms of human interaction, I would like to talk about the generation gap between you and me, today. You and I have a lot in common and sometimes I even feel that our sense of value is similar. Mende：I think some people intuitively feel the gap in age while others don’t seem to recognize it or can move beyond any age difference. I don’t feel a huge gap between you and I even though there must be more than a 40 year difference. Watanabe：I like to meet various types of people no matter what their age. I prefer to interact with a wide range of people. What about you? Mende：In general, I don’t think it is a good idea to arbitrarily interact with people. I think it might be a little offensive to let your guard down as one gets older, but there are different levels of interaction depending on the person. In my generation we would protect ourselves while bashing our opponents. You see it in politics; lovers in private, but it is important they hold their own in public. We randomly meet various people for various reasons, and I can really sense something in those instantaneous moments of contact. Watanabe：I gain alot of knowledge when talking with various people. It always surprises me to know that all sorts of people exist. For someone like you, who has gained many life experiences, what do you…