James Hardy

Print featuring a woodland scene with dappled sunlight

Linocut by contemporary UK printmaker and artist Alexandra Buckle who is inspired by her local countryside #womensart
#summer #sunday

This is well worth a read. 30 years on, it remains one of the most shocking moments in postwar Japanese history - both the attack itself, on the Tokyo underground, and the fact that ordinary, intelligent young people had seen so little future for themselves in Japan that they joined a cult.

Fukushima City from the top of Shinobuyama; a good short, steep walk.

To Hakone!

Deep snow in Urabandai the past few days

"Twelfth Night Till Candlemas"

The story of a 40 year book-quest and of its remarkable ending

And about goblins and Christmas; the perils of ChatGPT; and the real value of librarians and so on

Substack emptycity.substack.com/p/twelfth-ni...

Personal blog davidallengreen.com/2024/12/twel...

I don't see many long threads on here, but I'll try one - it's about Holbein's Ambassadors, his 1533 masterpiece in the National Gallery. It's often presented as a great mystery, but I think once we understand the circumstances in which it was made, its meaning becomes clearer.
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The large Torii at the entrance to Mimeguri shrine. Yellow gingko trees to the left. Blue sky.

If I could have just a moment of your time, I’d like to tell you a story about some trees, and a woman I met today at Mimeguri shrine. It will be dark at times and involve the incendiary bombing of a heavily populated civilian area, so content warnings may apply. 1/🧵

Top brass in town! The band of the Coldstream Guards were at the Embassy yesterday at the end of their Japan tour

The Berkley Center at Georgetown just published a short essay I wrote: "In Religion-Averse Japan, a Religion-Backed Party Remains Pivotal." I wrote this and then Komeito got hammered in the October election. However, I think what I write here holds true.

berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/posts/in-rel...

Much enjoyed recording this IISS Japan Memo podcast on all things ‘deterrence’ with our luxury casting of Bill Emmott, Murano Masashi and Nanae Baldauff - some great detail & insights from our fantastic guests.
🎧 www.iiss.org/podcasts/jap...

He has excellent facial hair too.

A joke map of Tokyo’s Yamanote line, with all the station names “liberally” translated into English.

Hi! I am moving some of my favorite memes about Japan that I’ve made over the years across the abyss to a pinned post over here, so that we all may have a happy, new life together. Depending on how well you know me, this 🧵 will either be my informal self-introduction, or a blast from the past.

One of Tokyo’s rare green corridors, linking parts of Meguro, Sangenjaya and Shimo-Kitazawa. Like to imagine what Tokyo would be like with many more of these little oases

I was told it houses a ballroom, which is currently not used. A shocking state of affairs - they could easily turn it into a proper nightclub, surely? Nagatacho is missing a good drum n bass venue.

The lobby of Japan’s Diet is an under appreciated gem

At the Nikkei-CSIS annual shindig yesterday; some excellent people saying interesting things. Highlight was Joe Nye uttering the words ‘soft power’, which I guess for polscis is like seeing Paul McCartney play Eleanor Rigby?

Mark your calendars!

Carol Gluck's 2024 MJHA Distinguished Annual Lecture, titled "Thirteen Ways of Looking at Modern Japanese History: Time Past, Present, Future," will be Thursday, 12/5 from 7:00-8:30 pm ET (Friday 12/6 9:00-10:30 am JST)!

REGISTER FOR ZOOM HERE: mjha.org/event-5944148