The Subtle Japanese Art That Will Brighten Up Your Day.

Travelling through the Japanese subways, or even just walking through the streets, you will find your day to be subtly brightened up by all the Japanese art that you will stumble upon. Most of it is so subtle that a lot of people take very little notice of them, but it's there and in many cases it would negatively change the overall feel of the street/subway scene dramatically if it wasn't...

 Above are two paintings that were on the side of a building in Tokyo, which was just being converted into a shopping mall. It took away from the negative, shabby build up that most unfinished buildings show. The detail in them was beautiful, with traditional themes of Japanese carnivals and a colour scheme that linked all the paintings together, preventing them from appearing just randomly stuck up for decoration. I particularly liked the dragon on the left, and the depth of the detail in the image on the right.

The above painting was situated just further down the road from the two Tokyo paintings above. It was done on an otherwise grotty looking board surrounding a building site, which I liked to think was some graffiti art although I'm not sure. It was clearly hand painted, as the paint runs and swift brush strokes can be seen. I don't particularly like the clashing colour scheme, although it certainly adds a dramatic effect to the soft, casual, rough style of the painting.

 Above is a large painting situated inside a subway station in Tokyo. It appears to depict a scene of an emperor or someone of a high status, surrounded by his workers who's key focus appears to be him- the central focus point of the whole painting. It was other areas of the painting that I was drawn to, however- I particularly liked the detailed patterns within the painting, such as the background of the woman on the left, and of the clothing of he women on the right.

In another Japanese subway station was the artwork above. Situated where hundreds of people will walk past as they enter the station from their subway journey, it brings a welcoming uplift as you walk by. I didn't have time to have a closer look, but it seems to be constructed from painted metal, giving it a very modern finish.

The above stained glass artwork was in a Japanese train station, depicting various images of nature. I presume they represent local crops and scenery. The style of the piece looks very Japanese, with the detail and the flowing overall composition, although the theme of it could be located just about anywhere.