Search - works

 
 
EDITORIALS
Jul 11, 2014

Outside directors alone won't help

More Japanese companies are appointing external directors to oversee their management after a number of scandals raised doubts about corporate governance in this country, but the question is whether 'outside' directors are qualified and separate from insider interests.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 10, 2014

When it came to horror, ukiyo-e artists kept their wits about them

This exhibition showcases more than 250 Japanese woodblock prints of the Edo Period (1603-1868), depicting ghosts, goblins and other supernatural beings. The lurid subject matter, a graphic illustration of the shadowy spirit underworld, is as delightful as it is ghoulish.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 10, 2014

Combinations that break the surface like a lotus flower

At exhibitions, ancient ceramics tend not to be the draw card that contemporary photography can be. With this in mind, The Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka, has combined the two together.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 10, 2014

'Hokusai and Riviere: Thirty-six Views Compared and the Hokusai Manga'

To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of French ukiyo-e artist Henri Riviere (1888-1902), the Sagawa Art Museum is showcasing the printmaker's famous "Thirty-six Views of the Eiffel Tower" alongside its inspiration, Katsushika Hokusai's "Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji."
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 10, 2014

'George Nelson: Architect, Writer, Designer, Teacher'

Best known for being the design director of the Herman Miller furniture company, George Nelson (1908-1986) was one of the most influential figures in modern American design, whose collaborations with Isamu Noguchi, Alexander Girard and Charles and Ray Eames, to name a few, resulted in some of the most...
Japan Times
WORLD
Jul 9, 2014

Vatican restructures scandal-hit bank, puts French financier in charge

The Vatican said on Wednesday it will separate its bank's investment business from its Church payments work to try to clean up after years of scandal including allegations of money laundering and tax evasion.
EDITORIALS
Jul 9, 2014

Abe pushing Beijing, Seoul together

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe should realize that his historical revisionism and his new initiative in defense policy are further straining Japan's ties with its two closest neighbors.
Reader Mail
Jul 9, 2014

Mindset that favors fascism

Regarding Barry Andrew Ward's June 26 letter, "Scare tactics from the EU tribe": Leaving aside Ward's naive view that workers' rights would be safe under politicians who regard Margaret Thatcher and David Cameron as lily-livered lefties, I would like to focus on his misunderstanding of German fascism....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 9, 2014

'Blast!' comes marching back with a '' from its Tokyo drummer

"It was my hugely fortunate destiny to come across 'Blast!' and, as I am 39 this year, I would like to perform it with a heartfelt '39' message [because, in Japanese, three is san and nine is kyu, which is phonetically 'thank you']," Tokyo-born percussionist, composer and performing director Naoki Ishikawa...
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 9, 2014

China's hottest app inspired by devotion to Japanese manga

Erick Guo left Asia's largest Internet company last year to build a team of artists and engineers who could create smartphone applications inspired by Japanese manga.
Japan Times
JAPAN / OUR MAN IN TOKYO
Jul 8, 2014

Aussie envoy a student of Japan

Bruce Miller, Australia's ambassador to Japan since August 2011, has been interested in Japan since he was a boy of 11.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Jul 8, 2014

Conductor Hubert Soudant to put down his Tokyo Symphony Orchestra baton

Dutch conductor Hubert Soudant will make his final appearances with the Tokyo Symphony Orchestra this month, before his contract with the organization officially expires in August.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jul 5, 2014

Sake Confidential: A Beyond-the-Basics Guide to Understanding, Tasting, Selection & Enjoyment

This book is not just for sake lovers; it's a must read for anyone interested in Japanese culture. Exploring sake from a variety of perspectives in short but informative essays, John Gauntner here distills his 25 years of knowledge and experience living and working with this quintessential Japanese beverage....
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jul 5, 2014

Is EU ready to actually change?

After six decades of relentless — if incremental — integration, might the European Union be about to go into reverse?
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 4, 2014

Americans: born in an empire of contention

An historian reminds Americans this Fourth of July weekend that dynamic social and economic change, poisonous politics, bad policies and flawed leaders in an 'empire of contention' were all there two centuries ago.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society / DEALING WITH DEMENTIA
Jul 4, 2014

Assistance for vulnerable elderly on the rise

Last in a three-part series
Japan Times
Places
Jul 3, 2014

A selection of Japan's strangest 'museums'

Seen enough views of Mount Fuji and suits of samurai armor? Here are 13 museums that will take you well off the beaten trail.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jul 2, 2014

Evacuation plans stir fresh doubts over Japan nuclear restarts

Keen to restart nuclear power plants three years after the Fukushima disaster, authorities may face an additional hurdle in securing approval — coming up with a cogent evacuation plan in the event of new accidents.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jul 2, 2014

High-energy Ono conducts a rare 'Hoffmann' critique

He is known best for the rapturously hysterical "Infernal Gallop" (aka "The Can-can") from his 1858 operetta "Orpheus in the Underworld," but the German-born, naturalized-French composer Jacques Offenbach (1819-80) is credited with just one full-length, serious opera — "The Tales of Hoffmann" — which...
Reader Mail
Jul 2, 2014

More foul play against Okinawa

Tokyo has agreed with Washington over our heads to set up an always-off-limits water area in Oura Bay adjacent to the projected new base at Henoko. The off-limits water area will extend over almost half of Oura Bay.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jul 2, 2014

Dancing between cultures in Yokohama

Contemporary dance has always pushed the boundaries of corporal expression by exploring themes that traditional dance genres and their movements have difficulty conveying. As one of the Month of France series of events organized by the Yokohama branch of the Institut Francais du Japon, CrossDance continues...
BUSINESS
Jul 2, 2014

Abe growth-related goals may avoid budgetary curbs

The government, while planning strict budget limitations for the next fiscal year, will give special treatment to upcoming request items that are deemed important for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's growth policy, NHK reported Wednesday.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / A TASTE OF HOME
Jul 1, 2014

Gunma's 'Brazil Town' offers a carnival of cuisine

This month A Taste of Home is taking a field trip to Oizumi, Gunma Prefecture. Oizumi, an otherwise ordinary town, is home to roughly 4,000 Brazilians — about one-tenth of the local population. Most of them work in nearby factories (Subaru is a big one). But some of them are working to make life a...
COMMENTARY / Japan / SENTAKU MAGAZINE
Jul 1, 2014

China's 'shadow banking' challenge

A new financial service operated by China's biggest e-commerce firm Alibaba could crack open the country's economic system as it draws customers from the major state-owned commercial banks by paying higher interest rates to depositors.
BUSINESS
Jul 1, 2014

U.S. sushi prices show New York is on a roll

Sushi restaurants in New York and Greenwich, Connecticut rank among the most expensive locales in the U.S. to buy the Japanese cuisine for the third year in a row.
Japan Times
JAPAN / JAPAN TIMES FORUM ON FEMALE SCIENCE MAJORS
Jun 30, 2014

Majoring in science may expand opportunities for women

Moderator: Let's discuss the challenge of hiring more female science majors and solutions to that issue. Let me first ask you what kind of skills are you seeking in women? I wonder if the marketing skills of female science majors, instead of just their capabilities in research and development, could...
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Jun 29, 2014

Reclusive cleric takes charge in Iraq crisis

Najaf is far from Baghdad's palaces and the battlefields of northern Iraq. Its mud-brick houses, dirt alleys and concrete office blocks project little in the way of strength or sway. But it is here, where Iraq's most influential clerics work from modest buildings in the shadow of a golden-domed shrine,...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / BACKSTREET STORIES
Jun 28, 2014

Not ducking tradition in Higashi-Ueno

With its lotus-laden Shinobazu pond, park grounds, and national museums, the Ueno area in Tokyo draws millions of visitors a year. Nearby Higashi-Ueno (Eastern Ueno), however, seems to be another world altogether. When I exit Shin-Okachimachi station, under skies portending summer heat, this low-lying...

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat