Since 2012 I’ve written about all manner of topics at Open Culture, and you can find a selection of some of my favorite posts over the years in the Open Culture section of my essays page. I often write there about things Japanese, and you’ll find those posts gathered below:
Akira Kurosawa
- Akira Kurosawa Names His 21 Favorite Art Films in the Criterion Collection
- Akira Kurosawa’s Advice to Aspiring Filmmakers: Write, Write, Write and Read
- The Geometric Beauty of Akira Kurosawa and Wes Anderson’s Films
- Hayao Miyazaki Meets Akira Kurosawa: Watch the Titans of Japanese Film in Conversation (1993)
- How Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai Perfected the Cinematic Action Scene: A New Video Essay
- How Did Akira Kurosawa Make Such Powerful & Enduring Films? A Wealth of Video Essays Break Down His Cinematic Genius
- The Paintings of Akira Kurosawa
- Watch the New Trailer for Wes Anderson’s Stop Motion Film, Isle of Dogs, Inspired by Akira Kurosawa
- When Akira Kurosawa Watched Solaris with Andrei Tarkovsky: I Was “Very Happy to Find Myself Living on Earth”
- You Can Play the New Samurai Video Game Ghost of Tsushima in “Kurosawa Mode:” An Homage to the Japanese Master
Animation
- The Art of Hand-Drawn Japanese Anime: A Deep Study of How Katsuhiro Otomo’s Akira Uses Light
- The Existential Philosophy of Cowboy Bebop, the Cult Japanese Anime Series, Explored in a Thoughtful Video Essay
- How Master Japanese Animator Satoshi Kon Pushed the Boundaries of Making Anime: A Video Essay
- The Origins of Anime: Watch Free Online 64 Animations That Launched the Japanese Anime Tradition
- The Philosophy, Storytelling & Visual Creativity of Ghost in the Shell, the Acclaimed Anime Film, Explained in Video Essays
- The Psychedelic 1970s Animations of Keiichi Tanaami: A Music Video for John Lennon’s “Oh Yoko!,” Surreal Tributes to Elvis & Marilyn Monroe, and More
- Watch the New Anime Prequel to Blade Runner 2049, by Famed Japanese Animator Shinichiro Watanabe
- When Japan’s Top Animators Made a Thrilling Cyberpunk Commercial for Irish Beer: Watch Last Orders (1997)
Art and craft
- The 1991 Tokyo Museum Exhibition That Was Only Accessible by Telephone, Fax & Modem: Features Works by Laurie Anderson, John Cage, William S. Burroughs, J.G. Ballard & Merce Cunningham
- The Art of the Japanese Teapot: Watch a Master Craftsman at Work, from the Beginning Until the Startling End
- Artist Hand-Cuts an Intricate Octopus From a Single Piece of Paper: Discover the Japanese Art of Kirie
- Beautiful Hand-Colored Japanese Flowers Created by the Pioneering Photographer Ogawa Kazumasa (1896)
- A Beautiful New Book of Japanese Woodblock Prints: A Visual History of 200 Japanese Masterpieces Created Between 1680 and 1938
- A Demonstration of Perfect Samurai Swordsmanship
- How Japanese Things Are Made in 309 Videos: Bamboo Tea Whisks, Hina Dolls, Steel Balls & More
- A Hypnotic Look at How Japanese Samurai Swords Are Made
- The Isamu Noguchi Museum Puts Online an Archive of 60,000 Photographs, Manuscripts & Digitized Drawings by the Japanese Sculptor
- Japanese Computer Artist Makes “Digital Mondrians” in 1964: When Giant Mainframe Computers Were First Used to Create Art
- Japanese Craftsman Spends His Life Trying to Recreate a Thousand-Year-Old Sword
- Kintsugi: The Centuries-Old Japanese Craft of Repairing Pottery with Gold & Finding Beauty in Broken Things
- Mesmerizing GIFs Illustrate the Art of Traditional Japanese Wood Joinery — All Done Without Screws, Nails, or Glue
- Wagashi: Peruse a Digitized, Centuries-Old Catalogue of Traditional Japanese Candies
- Watch Japanese Woodworking Masters Create Elegant & Elaborate Geometric Patterns with Wood
Books
- 1,000+ Historic Japanese Illustrated Books Digitized & Put Online by the Smithsonian: From the Edo & Meji Eras (1600-1912)
- The Japanese Fairy Tale Series: The Illustrated Books That Introduced Western Readers to Japanese Tales (1885-1922)
- A Japanese Illustrated History of America (1861): Features George Washington Punching Tigers, John Adams Slaying Snakes & Other Fantastic Scenes
- Marie Kondo v. Tsundoku: Competing Japanese Philosophies on Whether to Keep or Discard Unread Books
- The Met Puts 650+ Japanese Illustrated Books Online: Marvel at Hokusai’s One Hundred Views of Mount Fuji and More
- Organization Guru Marie Kondo’s Tips for Dealing with Your Massive Piles of Unread Books (or What They Call in Japan “Tsundoku”)
- Splendid Hand-Scroll Illustrations of The Tale of the Genjii, The First Novel Ever Written (Circa 1120)
- A Wonderfully Illustrated 1925 Japanese Edition of Aesop’s Fablesby Legendary Children’s Book Illustrator Takeo Takei
Cities, architecture and urbanism
- Japanese Artist Creates Bookshelf Dioramas That Magically Transport You Into Tokyo’s Back Alleys
- Japanese Designer Creates Incredibly Detailed & Realistic Maps of a City That Doesn’t Exist
- Omoshiroi Blocks: Japanese Memo Pads Reveal Intricate Buildings As The Pages Get Used
Clothes
- Behold 19th-Century Japanese Firemen’s Coats, Richly Decorated with Mythical Heroes & Symbols
- Dress Like an Intellectual Icon with Japanese Coats Inspired by the Wardrobes of Camus, Sartre, Duchamp, Le Corbusier & Others
Design
- Advertisements from Japan’s Golden Age of Art Deco
- A Curated Collection of Vintage Japanese Magazine Covers (1913-46)
- Download Classic Japanese Wave and Ripple Designs: A Go-to Guide for Japanese Artists from 1903
- Glorious Early 20th-Century Japanese Ads for Beer, Smokes & Sake (1902-1954)
- Hundreds of Wonderful Japanese Firework Designs from the Early-1900s: Digitized and Free to Download
- The Tokyoiter: Artists Pay Tribute to the Japanese Capital with New Yorker-Style Magazine Covers
- Vintage 1930s Japanese Posters Artistically Market the Wonders of Travel
Film and television
- David Lynch Directs a Mini-Season of Twin Peaks in the Form of Japanese Coffee Commercials
- An Introduction to Yasujiro Ozu, “the Most Japanese of All Film Directors”
- Japanese Movie Posters of 10 David Lynch Films
- The Philosophy, Storytelling & Visual Creativity of Ghost in the Shell, the Acclaimed Anime Film, Explained in Video Essays
- The Tokyo of Solaris (1972), Andrei Tarkovsky’s Haunting Vision of the Future
- Watch the Twin Peaks Visual Soundtrack Released Only in Japan: A New Way to Experience David Lynch’s Classic Show
- What Makes Yasujirō Ozu a Great Filmmaker? New Video Essay Explains His Long-Admired Cinematic Style
Food and drink
- Cookpad, the Largest Recipe Site in Japan, Launches New Site in English
- How the Astonishing Sushi Scene in Wes Anderson’s Isle of Dogs Was Animated: A Time-Lapse of the Month-Long Shoot
- How to Make Sushi: Free Video Lessons from a Master Sushi Chef
- In Japanese Schools, Lunch Is As Much About Learning As It’s About Eating
- Japanese Artist Has Drawn Every Meal He’s Eaten for 32 Years: Behold the Delicious Illustrations of Itsuo Kobayashi
- The Proper Way to Eat Ramen: A Meditation from the Classic Japanese Comedy Tampopo (1985)
- The Restaurant of Mistaken Orders: A Tokyo Restaurant Where All the Servers Are People Living with Dementia
- Watch Teeny Tiny Japanese Meals Get Made in a Miniature Kitchen: The Joy of Cooking Mini Tempura, Sashimi, Curry, Okonomiyaki & More
- What Goes Into Ramen Noodles, and What Happens When Ramen Noodles Go Into You
Haruki Murakami
- A 26-Hour Playlist Featuring Music from Haruki Murakami’s Latest Novel, Killing Commendatore
- A 96-Song Playlist of Music in Haruki Murakami’s Novels: Miles Davis, Glenn Gould, the Beach Boys & More
- A 3,350-Song Playlist of Music from Haruki Murakami’s Personal Record CollectionDiscover Haruki Murakami’s Advertorial Short Stories: Rare Short-Short Fiction from the 1980s
- Haruki Murakami Announces an Archive That Will House His Manuscripts, Letters & Collection of 10,000+ Vinyl Records
- Haruki Murakami Became a DJ on a Japanese Radio Station for One Night: Hear the Music He Played for Delighted Listeners
- Haruki Murakami Day: Stream Seven Hours of Mixes Collecting All the Jazz, Classical & Classic American Pop Music from His Novels
- Haruki Murakami Translates The Great Gatsby, the Novel That Influenced Him Most
- Haruki Murakami’s Advice Column (“Mr. Murakami’s Place”) Is Now Online: Read English Translations
- Haruki Murakami’s Passion for Jazz: Discover the Novelist’s Jazz Playlist, Jazz Essay & Jazz Bar
- In Search of Haruki Murakami: A Documentary Introduction to Japan’s Great Postmodernist Novelist
- A Photographic Tour of Haruki Murakami’s Tokyo, Where Dream, Memory, and Reality Meet
- A 56-Song Playlist of Music in Haruki Murakami’s Novels: Ray Charles, Glenn Gould, the Beach Boys & More
- Haruki Murakami’s Advice Column (“Mr. Murakami’s Place”) Is Now Online: Read English Translations
- Haruki Murakami Reads in English from The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle in a Rare Public Reading (1998)
- Stream Big Playlists of Music from Haruki Murakami’s Personal Vinyl Collection and His Strange Literary Worlds
- Why Should You Read Haruki Murakami? An Animated Video on His “Epic Literary Puzzle” Kafka on the Shore Makes the Case
Hayao Miyazaki
- Hayao Miyazaki’s Masterpieces Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke Imagined as 8-Bit Video Games
- Hayao Miyazaki Meets Akira Kurosawa: Watch the Titans of Japanese Film in Conversation (1993)
- How the Films of Hayao Miyazaki Work Their Animated Magic, Explained in 4 Video Essays
- The Philosophy of Hayao Miyazaki: A Video Essay on How the Traditional Japanese Religion Shinto Suffuses Miyazaki’s Films
- Software Used by Hayao Miyazaki’s Animation Studio Becomes Open Source & Free to Download
- Studio Ghibli Releases Tantalizing Concept Art for Its New Theme Park, Opening in Japan in 2022
- Watch Hayao Miyazaki Animate the Final Shot of His Final Feature Film, The Wind Rises
- Watch Moebius and Miyazaki, Two of the Most Imaginative Artists, in Conversation (2004)
- Watch Sherlock Hound: Hayao Miyazaki’s Animated, Steampunk Take on Sherlock Holmes
- What Made Studio Ghibli Animator Isao Takahata (RIP) a Master: Two Video Essays
History
- In 17th-Century Japan, Creaking Floors Functioned as Security Systems That Warned Palaces & Temples of Approaching Intruders and Assassins
- 1850s Japan Comes to Life in 3D, Color Photos: See the Stereoscopic Photography of T. Enami
- Hand-Colored 1860s Photographs Reveal the Last Days of Samurai Japan
- Meet Yasuke, Japan’s First Black Samurai Warrior
- Mountain Monks: A Vivid Short Documentary on the Monks Who Practice an Ancient, Once-Forbidden Religion in Japan
- Time Travel Back to Tokyo After World War II, and See the City in Remarkably High-Quality 1940s Video
- Watch Life on the Streets of Tokyo in Footage Recorded in 1913: Caught Between the Traditional and the Modern
- Watch Vintage Footage of Tokyo, Circa 1910, Get Brought to Life with Artificial Intelligence
Language
Music
- A 30-Minute Introduction to Japanese Jazz from the 1970s: Like Japanese Whisky, It’s Underrated, But Very High Quality
- How Youtube’s Algorithm Turned an Obscure 1980s Japanese Song Into an Enormously Popular Hit: Discover Mariya Takeuchi’s “Plastic Love”
- Japanese Buddhist Monk Covers Ramones’ “Teenage Lobotomy,” “Queen’s “We Will Rock You,” Beatles’ “Yellow Submarine” & More
- Japanese Priest Tries to Revive Buddhism by Bringing Techno Music into the Temple: Attend a Psychedelic 23-Minute Service
- Stream Loads of “City Pop,” the Electronic-Disco-Funk Music That Provided the Soundtrack for Japan During the Roaring 1980s
- The Walkman Turns 40: See Every Generation of Sony’s the Iconic Personal Stereo in One Minute
Oddities
- The 10 Commandments of Chindōgu, the Japanese Art of Creating Unusually Useless Inventions
- Discover the Japanese Museum Dedicated to Collecting Rocks That Look Like Human Faces
- Explore Flowcharts That Japanese Aquariums Use to Document the Romantic Lives of Penguins
- The First Museum Dedicated to Japanese Folklore Monsters Is Now Open
- The Giger Bar: Discover the 1980s Tokyo Bar Designed by H. R. Giger, the Same Artist Who Created the Nightmarish Monster in Ridley Scott’s Alien
- “Inemuri,” the Japanese Art of Taking Power Naps at Work, on the Subway, and Other Public Places
- Woody Allen Lives the “Delicious Life” in Early-80s Japanese Commercials
Ukiyo-e
- The Cast of Avengers: Endgame Rendered in Traditional Japanese Ukiyo-e Style
- Download 2,500 Beautiful Woodblock Prints and Drawings by Japanese Masters (1600-1915)
- Download Hundreds of 19th-Century Japanese Woodblock Prints by Masters of the Tradition
- Download Vincent van Gogh’s Collection of 500 Japanese Prints, Which Inspired Him to Create “the Art of the Future”
- Enter a Digital Archive of 213,000+ Beautiful Japanese Woodblock Prints
- The Evolution of The Great Wave off Kanazawa: See Four Versions That Hokusai Painted Over Nearly 40 Years
- Japanese Kabuki Actors Captured in 18th-Century Woodblock Prints by the Mysterious & Masterful Artist Sharaku
- See Classic Japanese Woodblocks Brought Surreally to Life as Animated GIFs
- What Happens When a Japanese Woodblock Artist Depicts Life in London in 1866, Despite Never Having Set Foot There
See also my Open Culture posts on Korea.