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Martin Laflamme
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jul 7, 2018
'City of Devils' review: Reliving the heady days of gangster land Shanghai
The space was bare. Except for a dirty mattress, there was no furniture. Bugs were crawling on the walls, the chamber pot reeked. Unshaved, unwashed and alone, Jack Riley had only a few benzedrine pills left to feed his addiction. Soon, he would be out and the trembling would start again. Perhaps for...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jun 24, 2018
Masatoshi Naito: 'The other face' of Japan
When Masatoshi Naito first began researching Tohoku folklore, he expected to find places 'haunted with a macabre atmosphere.' Instead, he stumbled into a vivacious traditional society 'filled with elderly women who throw boisterous bashes all night long.'
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / ESSENTIAL READING FOR JAPANOPHILES
May 5, 2018
'Japanese Tales from Times Past': One thousand years later, the 'Konjaku' is still educating its readers
The 'Konjaku Monogatari' is one of Japan's oldest collection of stories. Many are supernatural folktales that warn against foxes and demons. All are meant to educate.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Apr 21, 2018
Ian Buruma's 'A Tokyo Romance' captures the beating heart of avant-garde Japan
Landing in the Japanese capital in 1975 was a bit of a shock. 'The crowds, the noise, the visual excess' — everything seemed over-the-top.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Oct 29, 2017
Tadao Ando: When every single building is a passion project
A few simple lines on paper — that's all it was. But there was something extremely alluring about it that intrigued Tadao Ando.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Aug 19, 2017
Ryunosuke Akutagawa: Writing in the shadows of Japan's literary giants
How a short but fruitful relationship with Natsume Soseki led to the most productive years of Akutagawa's tragic life.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jun 18, 2017
Japan’s 'kanban' are still hanging in there
Little information remains about the personal life of the artisan Kojiro Shimizu. His personality and interests, his passions and motivations — all are shrouded in mystery. What we know is that he worked in Kyoto in the late 19th and early 20th century and that he appeared to be on good terms with...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Apr 16, 2017
Ken Domon and the artistry of real life
By 1957, photographer Ken Domon had reached the peak of his creative powers. A picture taken that year in Hiroshima, which he was visiting for the first time to chronicle the lingering effect of the bomb, shows him supremely confident: ram-rod straight on a stool, tripod in one hand, he casts a sideway...

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Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?