Back to where it all started

December 27, 2008
Taipei, Taiwan

Its not often that when one engages in work that involves travel and also somewhat Documentry in nature that we get to return to where we have been. Most certainly, we would never be able to find that same shot again. That is the nature of things.

Yet, as I am here in taipei, I have returned to some of the markets I have photographed in previous years. I am mostly doing it as an excrise. After all, how many shots of markets of taipei do I really need to prove my thesis? Its time for new territory, new land, new countries.

With all that being said, I still thought that it would be a worth while excrise. If nothing else, just to go through the motion, just to see how a familiar place gets rendered.

As I have not seen the film from these last two days of shooting there is no results to be reported on yet. But what I can tell you is about my experience this morning at the fish market- I was disturbed.

I have photographed this particular market befor and I was always quiet fine. Something about the smell, blood, and sheer volume of the dead living things that were present today there got to me. Usually the crowd and mayhem of the market gives me an adriline rush, not so today. Yet once I walked out of the fish section into the meat and poultry section I was fine, as if it was any other day.

I don't get it. What is it about the fish market that got to me today? Any suggestion?
Charlie Grosso
www.charliegrosso.com
310-592-0895

Apeture Portfolio Prize, Almost

December 18, 2008
Taipei, Taiwan

I got an email a few days ago to notify me the winner of the Aperture Portfolio Prize and the list of 5 runners up. Sadly, my name was not amongst the 6. Aperture had reviewed over 1000 portfolios for the prize this year and I had made it to the final round of reviews, but at last, my name did not make it to the top six. Sad, so sad.

I hope all of my other grant / fellowship submission will be greeted with kinder fate.

The first course they should teach you in art school should be how to deal with disappointment and how to armor yourself with an iron will. Without it, your fate as an artist of any discipline is doomed.

I also caught a glimpse of my fellow artist friend Kesha Bruce's recent blog entry and it was a list of her accomplishments for 2008, the list was extensive and I am proud of her for having accomplished to much.

But between not having made it to the final round (there is no prize for almost, it is not a subcategory on your CV) but not onto the top 6 names for Aperture and looking over Kesha's accomplishments, I can't help but feel a little bit like a loser today.

So it goes, here comes the end of the year blues....

"Obey Consume Repeat!"

Dec 14, 2008
Taipei, Taiwan

We left Japan this morning and headed for Taipei. Home with my mom for the rest of the year. A much needed break and the unparalleled comfort only mom can provide.

Here are some of my overall impression of Japan:

1. Japan is one large mall/covered arcade. Every train station has a department store attached to it, all urban centers in Japan (Osaka, Tokyo, Kyoto) are all centered around places to shop (i.e multiple department stores within blocks of each other).

2. You could get lost in all major train stations and or live there for days.

3. My favorite things in Japan is the Shinkansen, and the best bargain you can have in Japan is the JR Pass.

4. Sushi is incredibly fresh in Japan, even the 20% off ones that you buy at the super market after 5pm.

5. Japan has a really interesting relationship with sex, marriage prostitution, evident in the multiple red-light districts that is a part of every city or how high school girls will sleep with men for easy money to pay for things such as their cell phone bills or a new outfit.

6. The Japanese are incredibly polite but the politeness is a facade.

7. The Japanese culture is for the good of the many and not for the will of the individual, obedience is highly valued, they don't even jay-walk.

OBEY CONSUME REPEAT feels like a good summary of my glimpse into the Japanese culture.

Japan certainly has many virtues, nearly a 99% literacy rate, and nearly 100% employment rate as well. It is extremely clean and modern, certainly a city of the future in many aspects. It is unparalleled in many of technological advances, such as a cell phone that can record and play TV shows, or with direct link to your credit card for you to make purchases simply by waving your phone at a censor. Yet the combination between advanced technology, obedience / lack of individual will, "strange" relationship with sex, pornography, marriage, rampant consumerism .... the combination only makes me think of movies such as Blade Runner or Novels such as The Handmaid's Tale. None of which depicts a future that I am excited for or eager to participate in.

I think I will skirt the modernized cities of the world for a little while. I think I prefer something with a little bit of rawness, something with a bit of an edge to it for the next destination.

Tsukiji, Muder and No More Tourists

Dec 12, 2008
Tokyo, Japan

I went back to Tsukiji one more time this morning for another round of photography before we depart Japan on the 14th. I keep on wanting to write a blog here to sum up an overall impression of the world's largest fish market. Yet, still, much as I was a bit lost for words two weeks ago during my first visit, I am still unable to find the words to fully describe what Tsukiji is like. I hope that there will be an image or two that I have caught on film that does in some ways describe the feeling of Tsukiji.

Here are some preliminary thoughts, first of all, I might be one of the last foreign tourists allowed to photograph the market for the rest of 2008, or ever maybe. Tsukiji will be closed to foreign tourists from Dec 15, 2008 - Jan 17, 2009. The workers complains that tourists disrupting their work flow, tourists are not aware of their surrounding and the electric flatbed carts that workers drive at top speed to transport the fish. Which are all fair complains, when you think about it, it is a place of work after all and not some sort of static museum made for observation. On top of it, there is a plan to move Tsukiji to a new facility that they are building. Whether the move will actually happen or not is still debate able, but there is an irony in that I photographed Fulton Fish Market (New York City) before it moved to its new shiny home up in the Bronx.

There is a contrast in the worker at the market, the older generation verse the young. The older generation moves at a slower speed, time is different for them. They walk around their stall with their hands folded behind their back, gently inspecting their goods, quietly awaits. While the younger generation drives the flatbed carts at top speed through the market delivering the fish to its next point of processing. The young pushes the froze tuna through the band saw, cutting it into smaller pieces while the older seasoned fisherman takes the meter long Oroshi hocho and meticulous decapitate the tuna into 4 large sections.

I was amazed to watch over half of a warehouse full of tuna be auction off and moved to their next location in less than 25 minutes. Or the careful silence the bidder takes in inspecting each tuna's belly with a flash light or how they cut off a bit of flesh from the tail section and rub it between their fingers to determine the fat content of that tuna. All of my thoughts are still a little scattered and some what random, but it will be intelligible soon, I hope.

We later meet up with a friend, a film editor who is currently working in Tokyo, on a film called "Map of the Sounds of Tokyo" which is about an employee of a fish market who also doubles as a contract killer....

I feel all things are starting to converge together....

Karato Ichiba vs Tsukiji

Dec 6, 2008
Shimonoseki, Japan

A 3+ hour train ride down to the very western edge of the Honshu providence of Japan to chase down another supposedly fablouse fish market. Now mind you that I have traveled quiet out of the way for markets before and despite the fear that the market would disappoint, so far I have yet to be disappointed. Well, perhaps because it was a sunday, perhaps no fish markets now would ever be that impressive compared to Tsukiji, but the Karato Ichiba was a bit of a let down.

There just wasn't much going on. There were mostly vendors selling fresh sushi, you are given a plate and tonges to pick your own, prices range any where from 100 Yen - 500 Yen depending on the fish. After sampling a few, despite the cheaper price and the fact that it was made all but minutes ago, I must say that nothing has yet come close to what I sampled after 2.5 hours in line just outside of Tsukiji.

There were a couple of vendors selling fish as it is, but only a couple. It just wasn't what I was hoping for. Maybe a at 4 am on a weekday would be different, for the time being, back to Tsukiji it is.

Convenient Store Dinner

Dec 5, 2008
Kyoto, Japan

As anyone who have traveled through the developed nations in Asia would know that the Asian convenient stores are full of ready to eat food. The variety is unparalleled, the "appeared" freshness is nothing like the lone hot dog that runs a mile on the turner at the AM/PM back in the US.

Seeing as how there are a convenient store on every corner, we thought that we would see if we could make tonight's dinner solely based out of what is available at a local Lawson's Station.

1. Boss Coffee - for 110 Yen - and you can choose from hot or cold, we thought we should see how the canned coffee hold up -
Verdict: exactly what you would expect it to be. Coffee flavored somewhat sweet drink that could potentially fool you into thinking that you are having coffee, will do in a pinch or on a sever budget.

2. Rice Triangle - 120 Yen - They all have different fillings and there is not enough Chinese letters on the label for me to figure out what is inside, so it a trial and error method here - this blue label actually contains tuna - as in tuna mixed with a bit of mayo tuna - much like a tuna fish sandwich but with out bread and with rice instead.
Verdict - very edible and would eat again.

3. Chicken Nuggets - 210 Yen - There were 4 different flavors available and we just randomly picked one. It is all white meat nugget and not any worst than what you would get from a fast food place.
Verdict - ok - but neither of us were that excited about it to eat it again.

4. Baozi - 110 Yen - This is a Chinese food item, essentially a bread outer shell with minced pork inside. It can be very delicious when its good.
Verdict - sadly to say this one from Lawson's was not very good and it gives baozi a bad name.

5. Rice Triangle - 120 Yen - this one has salmon on the inside.
Verdict - very edible and would eat again.

6. Mystery package with a picture of grilled salmon on the outside - 168 Yen - I had thought that inside contains a piece of grilled salmon, and of course I had to try it. Well, it turns out to be another rice triangle with a large chunk of salmon.
Verdict - it is just as editable as the cheaper variety - difference being that the salmon that is inside of this rice ball is a complete piece and not just bits and pieces.

7. Fried Chicken on a Stick - 100 Yen - All dark meat and tastes like friend chicken from a convenient store.
Verdict - ok - nothing exciting.

8. Donuts - 105 Yen - It turned out to be filled with whipped cream - so its more like a hostess cupcake than a donuts.
Verdict - alright - especially if you are not picky about the quality of your desert.

9. Desert cup - 110 Yen - I thought this was going to be like flan, I have had similar desert cups in Taipei, it was pretty much what I thought it would be - a mix between flan and pudding with a slight eggy crust on top.
Verdict - what I thought it would be, sweet, caramel, flan like substance made from egg. Yes, I would eat again.

So dinner for two from Lawson station came in under 1000 Yen. Everything really kinda tasted like it came from a convenient store, but then again it did. I think the only that I would consider eating would be the rice triangles. I don't know that a home made version of it would be much different than what could be bought, not to mention that the rice triangle is relatively health compared to everything else you could get.

I don't eat at the convenient store in the US at all. I am not sure why I thought convenient store food would be much improved in Japan, but I see plenty of people eat there and if nothing else, it was a fun experiment.

Food Costs in Japan

Dec 4, 2008
Kyoto, Japan

The impression of Japan is that it is an expensive country to live and travel in. I certainly am feeling like I am burning through money a bit here. Although I do think that a trip through Europe or US would be just as expensive, if not more so.

As I have traveled, I have always found ways to cut down on costs and be some what thrifty, but I am having a rather hard time here practicing some tried and true money saving methods. For one thing, none of the budget places, hostels or ryokans actually have a kitchen for the guests to use that includes a stove. Which means that not much cooking is really possible. When a bowl of ramen costs 650Yen and up (current exchange is 95.4Yen = 1USD and with banks fees factored in, its more like 93Yen = 1USD), which means that the simplest meal you can have will cost you nearly $8. If some amount of cooking was possible, it sure would help with the budget travel.

Here are some of the sample food costs here in Japan:
A single apple = 88 Yen - 180 Yen (88Yen was on the smaller side, the larger ones are the size of an infant's head)
Bread = 188 Yen ( there was a special at the market that day where the price for 3 slices, 4 slices, 5 slices or 6 slices are bread all costs the same)
6 eggs = 298 Yen
Cream Cheese, 6 small single serving = 460 Yen
Pork Cutlet Sandwich = 360 Yen
Lunch Bowl sold at Train Stations = 840 Yen
7 piece of sushi outside of Tsujiki Market = 3500 Yen
Coffee = 200 Yen - 529 Yen (all simple drip coffee, nothing fancy, the cost of coffee is certainly killing me a bit here)
Pastry = 180 Yen and up
Water = FREE! The tap water is of such great quality there that you at least don't have to buy water, and it tastes great!

So, thank god for free and clean water, but maybe I should think about cutting back on the need for fresh fruit and coffee.

Girls here come in pairs, at minimum

Dec 3, 2008
Kyoto, Japan

Our friend Brian explained the Japanese mentality as an desire for not stick out. Individuality is ok but only when expressed along side of another. So if your friends are practicing the same kind of individual expression as you, then all is well.

With that in mind, I have been observant and I see that the girls come in pairs, at least. When you spot two girls together, on the train, out and about, they are coordinated, if not matching. They are sporting the same style and have made themselves (clothing, make up, accessories and etc) all to be of the same. Its like they are a matching pair.

This can quickly become a fun game to play - sit somewhere and see if you can spot the matching friend in the crowd.



Then, there are the school girls who are in uniforms. You would think that once they are in uniforms they all would look the same. Not so much. There is always little modifiers that are added on to the uniform to express that sense of individuality, except the group all share the same identify. For instance, there is this group of school girls all in uniforms but all of the girls all of converse style sneakers on, only that all of them are of different colors and patterns. Then, there was another group which all had "kicks" on by either nike or puma, same style but different color and patterns.

Is individuality is individuality when it is conformed within the will of the group? Can we all still be the unique snowflake that we are when we are all look the same?

Geisha spotting in Gion, or is it wild life hunting?

Dec 2, 2008
Kyoto, Japan

I think one of the must do thing for all of those who travel through Japan is at least an attempt to walk through the Gion district and have a sighing or two of Geishas as the culture and practice has captured the imagination of the West.

But as there are less than 100 geishas and 80 maiko left in Kyoto, less than 1000 of geishas and maiko in all of Japan, standing on the streets of Gion district in hopes to spot one of them begins to feel like a wild animal sighting of sorts. This feeling only deepens as double decker tour buses pulls through the narrow alley way full of tourists, Japanese and foreign.

At last, I see one! Dressed in full make up, hair and kimono, hustling down the street in small quick steps, my instinct is to pull out the camera and attempt a shot, but as all the other wild animal enthusiasts who have gathered near by flashes away, I quickly see that the Geishas do not really enjoy being photographed.

Out of respect (and also I rather suck as a paparazzi and I was not geared properly for wild life photography) I put my camera away after one lousy shot and started to take photos (albeit random and crappy) images of the gawkers instead. I think I really just wanted to annoy them in attempts to make them understand why the gawking and flashing cameras without any regard for the Geishas might just be a bit rude. I can't say if I was successful at annoying them and making my point know but I did get a few confused and dirty looks.

Plastic Food Models and Fake Foods

December 1, 2008
Kyoto, Japan

There are plastic food models outside of many Japanese restaurants to show you what the restaurant offers and what the costs are. Some of these food models looks amazingly realistic and delicious. Which got me thinking about a culture where much of your visual sensory experience relating to your meal is "fake" or "simulated." What effect does that has on the national psyche? the collective unconsciousness?

Then I got to wonder about the traveling sales men who goes from restaurant to restaurants to sell the owners updated or new models of the plastic foods. Where is the factory where they make these plastic foods? What about the factory workers who have to make the models and assemble them? Do you think the sales men has a big glossy catalog of plastic food options to choose from? Or do you think that the models are custom made to order for each restaurant? After all, I have seen quiet a bit of diversity in the arrangement of each models, even if the restaurants are all selling similar foods. Or do you think its a do it yourself kit that you can order? You get as many parts as you needs along with a large bottle of lacquer and you can arrange for the portions and presentation of the plastic foods as you see fit for your restaurant and when you are done, you pour the lacquer over it and wait for it to dry.


Then there are these miniature plush food replicas. Is it merely decorative? Or is it some sort of luck and prosperity kinda of talisman?

I am rather fascinated by all of these fake foods and if effect it has on the unconsciousness.

Sex Vending Machine

Nov 30, 2008
Tokyo, Japan

There are these vending machines eatery here in Japan where you order what you would like the eat from the selections listed on the machine, you put your money into it, it provides you with change and a ticket. You then give the ticket to one of the person working at the restaurant and they will shortly bring you what you have ordered.

At first I thought this was a great idea. You eliminate the need for an additional person to work as a cashier, the workers are not handling food and money at the same time, there is less chance of mistakes in changes made and most likely its a lot easier to tally out for the day. A rather efficient system to say the least.

Then I got to thinking, what if one day (maybe this already exists somewhere) you could order sex from a machine!? You can choose from a blond, a brunette, a red head, or from different nationalities, the type of service in which you would like to have, and the duration in which you would like the service to be.

We are already being fed by machines in many respects, we already live in a world in which we interact with technology more than we interact with other humans. Do you think a future in which where another one of our most primal needs is being fulfilled in such clean and dispensable way is too far off?

Think about how much simpler the industry of prostitution would be if the transactions can be done via a dispensary. There would be no haggling, the government would be able to tax the industry, there would be greater chance for fair pay for the workers, there would be less abuse by pimps because it would eliminate the need for pimps for many of the workers.

Hmmm.....Don just made the best suggestion of all here though, maybe we should actually make one, a sex vending machine as described above, as a piece of sculptural art....now we are on to something!