No No No No
Posted: October 30, 2011 Filed under: total bollocks | Tags: it, No, stop Leave a comment
Mylo Xyloto is a concept album. According to Chris Martin, the album is “based on a love story with a happy ending”, in which two protagonists: Mylo and Xyloto, who are living in an oppressive, dystopian urban environment, meet one another through a gang called “The Lost Boys”, and fall in love. Lyrically, the album is inspired by “old school American graffiti” and “the White Rose Movement.”
Our Magic Hour
Posted: October 29, 2011 Filed under: Event | Tags: Art, Gasius, Graffiti, Japan, Russell Maurice, Yokohama Triennale Leave a commentYokohama Triennale
How Much of the World Can We Know?
David Sausage: How come you’re here in Japan this time?
Gasius: You dicta-phoning it?
David Sausage: Yeah
Gasius: Then what?
David Sausage: And then I’m gunna type it up.
Gasius: Are you?
David Sausage: Yup
Gasius: Alright
David Sausage: You’ve been to Japan before and this is your second time s….
Gasius: You’re not going to video me?
David Sausage: No no no no no no..
Gasius: Well I apologise cause I’m eating my lunch.
David Sausage: No no no no..
Gasius: Right.
David Sausage: We can put a photograph on there.
Gasius: (pulls funny face)
David Sausage: Laughing hang on I’m gonna take a picture.
(takes picture)
Hahaha
Gasius: That’s a terrible one.
David Sausage: So er How come yer..
Gasius: Bey…
David Sausage: TELL Us about why you are here Russell!
Gasius: I’m here to do some work for Make Art Your Zoo, to do a textiles exhibition in LaForete for fashion week and to have a look about… Get some inspiration. Maybe do a small show with ‘Pumfka’ spelled P-M-K-F-A?
David Sausage: I’ll check it out later.
Gasius: Erm…
David Sausage: What’s your impressions of Japan? What’s your first impressions of Japan?
Gasius: Well I have been before so I kinda knew what to expect… My first impressions are always the same which are…. This place is BONKERS!
Laughing
Gasius: its upside-down… generally. Culturally this place is opposite to us.
David Sausage: What do you think of those works over there? We’re sat outside the Yokohama Museum of Art looking at a row of sculptures at the entrance. What do you…
Gasius: I hate them.
David Sausage: You said they were terrifying earlier.
Gasius: Yeah, they’re scary. And not in a good way. I know, scary can be good but… I dunno, they’re a bit too Tim Burton for me.
David Sausage: Aohhh…
Gasius: Awuggggh! (Chewbacca sound)
Laughter
David Sausage: How would you describe yourself. Are you a graffiti artist, an artist or something else?…
Gasius: Err I started a graffiti writer. I dont really write graffiti much anymore. I tag a little bit. Erm, I just don’t have time for it. I would just describe myself as an artist, and also at certain times, I’d describe myself as a designer.
Really, now, I design to make money. And I make for love.
David Sausage: Who would you describe as having a major influence on you, when you started making art for yourself?
Gasius: Hmm. Difficult to pinpoint.
It’s massively varied from now and when I started making art. I started painting canvasses when I was at college, ’97 I think. When did I do my first show… Ahm… …anyway. Influences? Then, definitely graffiti. People that were pushing graffiti to be not graffiti like Twist and Mike Giant, esp then.
David Sausage: Giant, you mean Shepard Fairey right?
Gasius: No. Mike Giant.
David Sausage: Mike Giant?
Gasius: Shepard Fairey actually stopped writing Giant cos Mike Giant was already writing Giant.
David Sausage: Ah!
Gasius: That’s when Shepard Fairey actually started writing OBEY.
David Sausage: I see. Right.
Gasius: And I guess that was all through skateboarding, skateboard art. I discovered Twist and Giant through skating. Giant was doing alot of the artwork for Think and Barry McGee (Twist) was doing alot of the artwork for Mad Circle and they were both my favourite skate companies because of the artwork. And then I found out afterwards it was them and that’s why I liked the artwork so much because it was graff(iti)-related.
David Sausage: So, You skated when you were younger?
Gasius: Yeah.
David Sausage: I didn’t know that.
Gasius: I skated from the age of errr… young! I guess 10 probably. I still skate occasionally but again, I don’t have time for it. And then, influences have changed loads over the years. I’d say my biggest influences now are probably… Guston and this German guy called Uwe Henneken.
David Sausage: An artists or a graff-writer?
Gasius: Oh artist. I don’t really look at graff much anymore. Uhm, and also Ged Quinn.
David Sausage: Ged Quinn?
Gasius: Yeah he’s amazing. I mean obviously there’s loads more but ehm…
David Sausage: That’s who’s really rockin it.
Gasius: Yeah those guys are my favourites.
David Sausage: As someone who’s started off doing graffiti, and then gone on to do artwork as you yourself and er anyone, would call it. What do you think about the way graffiti has been assimilated and become part of the mainstream to the extent that… It’s quite prominent now with art in the art scene, in fashion design. What do you think about it’s influence on mainstream and contemporary art?
Gasius: I guess, when you look at it it’s easy to see why it became so big cos it’s so easy to access. I mean if you look at all art that gets massively popular it’s easy to access for everyone and that’s why it’s popular because people can look at it and instantly get it. And that is just instant. It’s political and subversive and it’s edgy and it’s… Yeah… uhm. But I’m kind of not into it, at all. I don’t know what I think about it getting big. It’s changed it a lot. It’s changed everything. It’s made a lot of people come out of the woodwork who maybe shouldn’t have. And… Yeah… It’s like anything though, it’s about opinion on what’s good and what isn’t.
David Sausage: Right. Shall we go inside?
Gasius: Yeah!
Yokohama Triennial finishes on Sunday, November 6th. You can visit three different sites BankART Studio, Koganechou, and the main Yokohama Museum of Art with a day ticket for ¥1500 with a free shuttle bus between the three throw in for free. Koganechou was a real let-down so save your time for the other two.
See http://yokohamatriennale.jp/en/ for details.
Heaven & Earth
Posted: October 26, 2011 Filed under: Event, Graffiti, People | Tags: AAGH, Art, D*Face, Eine, Graffiti, Mudwig, Paul Insect, Sickboy, Will Barass, Word to Mother, Xenz Leave a commentFather Sausage: Any confessions to make before your soul is consumed by hellfire that would make good reading for chottomatte?
Sickboy: I had a habit of slamming doors as I ran through them and almost broke a girls arm at primary school being called to lunch first she was a rather painful second.
Heaven & Earth: A major London solo show by Sickboy
November 3-6, 2011 at Dray Walk,
91 Brick Lane, London, E1 6QL
Featuring a special collaboration with…
Pinkyvision x Flip
Posted: October 25, 2011 Filed under: Skating | Tags: DRA, Flip Skateboards, Graffiti, Pinky Leave a commentPinky talks about his recent commission for Flip Skateboards!
OUR SAUSAGE RUNS INTO RIMTON!
Posted: October 24, 2011 Filed under: People 1 CommentOright Lads and Ladies. Savlon here. Just posting a bit of a treat on behalf of me cow-worker, David Sausage.
He’s been out of the Chottomatte HQ since Friday due to his recooperatin from a run-in with something of a leg end down in Yokohama…
British Gas
Posted: October 22, 2011 Filed under: People | Tags: Art, England, Gas, Gasius, Graffiti, Japan, Laforet, Russell Maurice 1 Comment
Gasius: How’s things?
David Sausage: Yeah they’re really good thanks.
Gasius: Wahh… The triennial is on innit? We can go hang out and see some things.
David Sausage: Yah? In Hull?
Gasius: No!
David Sausage: Haaaahaha I thought you were talking about Hull!
Gasius: No… I’m not going to Hull… I could live without going there!
Laughter
David Sausage: Bloody hell! I thought, that’s the first time I’ve ever heard of a tri.. Triangu…Triangle anything in Hull!!!
Gasius: Try drugs
David Sausage: Yeah there is something like that on.
Gasius: Yeah, it’s on til November.
David Sausage: I’m just not arsed about it.
Gasius: Why?
David Sausage: Is just yknow too… Woh! Is that Hard Gay?
(looks over to a domed tent next door to the Gasius Textiles Exhibit)
Gasius: Wuh….? (Turns head) Is that actually his name?!
David Sausage: Yeah… I think it might be him!!!
Gasius: Have you seen his sculpture? It’s the most amazing sculpture I’ve ever seen!!!
David Sausage: Well, that’s funny because I was only talking about him with my wife the other day. He was really famous on TV about a year or two ago. He was on all the shows and that and then what happens is…
Things kind of switch very quickly and they kind of disappear from TV. He was a one trick pony.
Gasius: Go and look at his sculpture. It’s amazing. He’s actually a pretty good painter…
David Sausage: Aw is that really him?
Gasius: Could be a doppelganger. Ruth this is Spam.
Ruth: Hello. Have you been to a wedding?
David Sausage: Ahhhhh… I’m a priest!
Gasius: He is actually a priest.
Ruth: Are you? Oh.. WOW!
David Sausage: So… Er………. Yeah… I kinda………
Ruth: Which church do you work with?
David Sausage: Errr lots of different ones.
Ruth: Oh so freelance?
David Sausage: (Nervous laughter) aha yeah freelance priest, that’s my gig.
Ruth: Oh right…. Haha ….. Ha
David Sausage: Is that your tent?
Ruth: It’s my friends tent, I’m just helping.
David Sausage: Your English is very smooth, why?!
(Laughing)
Ruth: I used to live in London.
Gasius: Go and check out the sculpture dude.
(Walks over to Hard Gay)
Kid: かっこいい！
Hard Gay: かっこいいですか？マジですか？…きねん にねん？
(Hard Gay is peering over his glasses at this point properly staring this young Japanese kid out, everyone is laughing.)
Kid:きねんお願いします…
David Sausage: Excuse me, can I ask you a few questions?
Hard Gay: A few questions? Yes.
David Sausage: What happened to that guys arse?
(Laughter)
Hard Gay: What happened?!
David Sausage: Yeah it looks like it’s been sucked in or something…
Hard Gay: Ah huh… Nanto yu da ne?!… Ahm pardon me?
David Sausage: I mean WHAT HAPPENED?!
Hard Gay: What happened? Everything…
In the world…
David Sausage: …Got sucked into his arse?!
(Laughter) Got sucked into the arse!
David Sausage: That’s got to hurt… Wow… (Laughter)
Hard Gay: (Laughter) so, how about that?
David Sausage: Yeah, it’s very impressive.
Hard Gay: Oh thank you!
David Sausage: I like the style. This is Hard Gay right?
Hard Gay: (Surprised) yeah yeah yeah you know me?
David Sausage: You’re Hard Gay?
Hard Gay: Yeah
David Sausage: (Laughter) yeah very good!
Hard Gay: Real Hard Gay ね?
David Sausage: Excellent. I didn’t know you were a painter.
Hard Gay: YES Paintarrrrrrr! Performer, Comedian,,, EVERYTHING!!! Into the arse.
David Sausage: HA Ha ha,,. Into the arse! You give it everything!
Hard Gay: Heh. You,,, Do you live in Japan?
David Sausage: I do yeah. That’s why I know you.
Hard Gay: I design t-shirts and badges. I designed these (shows badges)
David Sausage: Oh かっこいい！
Girl: 本当にかっこいいですね
David Sausage: Thank you. Thanks a lot. Nice to meet you.
Hard Gay: Thank you! Thank you so…
David Sausage: I’ve got a card. I’m gonna give you m’card.
Hard Gay: Cut?
David Sausage: Card. Here.
Hard Gay: Chat mat…
David Sausage: ちょっと待って
Hard Gay: Chowmatte… Oh… CHOTTOMATTE! (laughs) ちょっと待って！! Haha ONLY chotto matte?!
David Sausage: Only chotto matte.
(Walking down the stairs of LaForet on the way to power lunch with Gasius, Ruth and Micke aka PMKFA)
David Sausage: You know what? I don’t know if I should show you this… I’m not sure if you’re Christian or not but here’s my card…
Ruth: My parents are. That’s where my name came from.
David Sausage: Sorry if you find this offensive or something but…
Gasius: He’s only allowed to show it to real Christians!
Laughter
David Sausage: Where are we going Rus?
Gasius: No idea. Let’s follow these two.
Michael: “Monster Cosplay” woh…
Gasius: What is Cosplay?
David Sausage: Puttin costumes on
Gasius: Right
Micheal: Playing around in costumes
Gasius: Play. Costume. Right.
Ruth: They’re gonna get dressed up and do Cosplay in the karaoke.
David Sausage: Really? In a karaoke room?
Ruth: Yeah
David Sausage: Man that sounds good I’ll be able to rock my priest outfit.
Gasius: Yeah you’ll be able to go after work. Go to karaoke and all the kids’ll be like fucking WOW that’s the new shit. Start rocking it with a top hat.
David Sausage: I think it’d look good.
Gasius: Yeah. Do you think they’ll let you customise it?
Laughing
David Sausage: Yeah! I’ll put some gold skulls on it next to the crosses!
Laughing
Gasius: Oh that reminds me have you seen that weird religion church thing, they’ve got like swastikas on the doors?
David Sausage: That’s Buddhist symbols.
Gasius: They’ve got these like saints on the outside… Definitely NOT Buddhist. These Japanese saints have got like halos that’s not Buddha is it?
David Sausage: Really woh I’d like to see that.
Gasius: Does Buddha have halos?
David Sausage: Yeah… He can rock halos as well.
Gasius: Yeah he can do it… It’s not copyrighted!
Michael: Have you seen the fake cathedral in Aoyama? The fake chapels they look slightly smaller.
David Sausage: Yeah they look like you could pick them up dont they?
Michael: You organise weddings?
David Sausage: Nah it’s not me I work for an agency.
Michael: They just want the image don’t they?
David Sausage: Exactly. I went to the interview and the priest there was like “you know, I like black people they’re very joyful and happy but we can’t use them in the weddings”
Gasius: Ohhhhhh man!
David Sausage: He said it didn’t fit the image so, it’s a shame. I just thought, you realise if you said that in America you’d be killed!
Gasius: Well it depends whereabouts in America you said that. If it was Southern America they wouldn’t flinch probably. They’d be yeah that’s alright mate, fine.
Later in the restaurant
Michael: Do you drink whisky?
Gasius: Yeah sometimes. Generally I try steer clear of spirits since I was ill from them.
Michael: Are you recovered from that?
Gasius: Yeah 99% …99.9%
David Sausage: You recovered?
Gasius: Yeah I was quite ill.
Michael: You feel different with the 0.1%?
Gasius: It’s just different if I drink a lot with stuff like that.. Well not with stuff like that it…
David Sausage: WELL THAT DON’T MAKE Y’ SPECIAL!!! Y’THE SAME AS EVERYONE ELSE!!!
Gasius: Well yeah..
Michael: It’s good that you took him down.
David Sausage: Took him down a peg. That’s m’job. No, but you had a proper problem with drink didn’t you for ages I remember Ziml told me your body couldn’t tolerate alcohol could it?
Gasius: Yeah.
David Sausage: You, Pinky and Ziml. All three of you guys have been saying you’re not that bothered about graffiti anymore. But that to me is crazy. That was always what it was all about.
Gasius: Yeah. Yeah yeah. At the start of it, but it’s just changed now. I mean it’s just not a priority for me. I would paint if I had loads of time but I don’t have time to draw letters you know. When I have time to draw I need to do just drawings or paintings or prints. I dunno. There’s just no time furrit.
David Sausage: Everytime I paint I’ll just freestyle it. I don’t use any sketches, I just paint.
Gasius: But for me, to make the effort to go and paint I want to have an outline that I’m happy with so it’s like, as fresh as possible bit of lettering cos otherwise for me it’s pointless. It has to be the best I could do.
David Sausage: That’s your approach isn’t it?
Gasius: Yeah, it’s always been about the nicest possible letters for me. I can’t paint an outline from three years ago. I need to sit there for a good few hours and drawing drawing drawing until I get each letter the right balance of freshness. I just don’t draw letters anymore it’s just not… See that’s what I mean, I don’t have a log of outlines I can just pull out and say I really want to paint this one. And otherwise, without that I just don’t have the drive for it… I dunno.
David Sausage: You’re more into the artwork now right? The painting?
Gasius: Yeah. But even painting characters on the wall is a way of doing it. Me and Dan (Mudwig) for quite a while were painting walls with weird shit but… I just think the whole Urban Art thing… I don’t know what it’s like here, it’s probably very different but, in England especially, the whole Urban Art thing has just become so fucking played, you know (laughing)
David Sausage: Yeah, I know what you’re saying.
Gasius: It’s become like a dirty word Urban Art it’s just like eughhhh!
David Sausage: And it’s almostlike..
Gasius: ..I don’t want anything to do with it. I don’t want my work to be bracketed in that. That’s some other shit that those guys are doing. Yeah I came from graffiti and its the most important thing in my work like but,
David Sausage: It just seems like a waste to me. All this stuff now. Their work it doesn’t have roots in proper graffiti like you guys, I mean Ziml and Pinky too. All these guys now they’re like “yeah, I do Urban Art” they’re milking it big time.
Gasius: Yeah I know.
David Sausage: I wouldn’t let these guys if I were you! I’d be like this is where I started. Graffiti.
Gasius: You, true but it’s become such a cliche I just don’t want to become part of it. You know what I mean? So, cheese. It’s just cheese.
Laughing
Gasius: And like fair enough, you’re selling stuff but it’s got no integrity or whatever. I don’t really wanna become like doing the street adverts. You know there’s guys that just go and paint shutters down Brick Lane it’s just like, doing their street logo over and over again and then doing screen prints of it and then selling prints because of the street advertisement and it’s just like – that’s not graffiti.
Michael: It’s a formula.
Gasius: Yeah it becomes formulaic. I dunno, there’s loads of hideous stencils and its just people are selling stuff because it’s A stencil and…
Michael: But does it sell though?
Gasius: Some of it. Yeah some of it sells really well and it’s just shit you’ve never heard of. Random random stuff and they’ve probably spent a lot of time on online forums and it’s just like, they’ve got themselves related to things.
Michael: Are there a lot of galleries and places that stock that?
Gasius: Bits yeah. Not loads but yeah there’s a few. Hideous. I don’t know, I try and ignore it.
David Sausage: Thus is what I’m saying. Bringing it all back to what it is. It’s just going to paint a wall isn’t it? And that’s why I find that really refreshing.
Gasius: Yeah. I mean, I always enjoy it.
David Sausage: Let’s go and paint then.
Gasius: Yeah of course! You’re forcing me into it?
David Sausage: Yeah I totally am!
Gasius: Hahahaha! Funny!
Emerging Director’s Art Fair – ULTRA004
Posted: October 20, 2011 Filed under: Event, Places, Uncategorized | Tags: art fair Leave a commentI am again participating in the Art Fair called ULTRA004 taking place in Spiral in Omotesando.The show is split into two period. Entrance free.
☆October side 28 Oct – 30 Oct
☆November side 1 Nov – 3 Nov ⇒ my booth is No.30「三福星」-three lucky stars
Featuring…Yu Uchida, Takatoshi Ise, Tamaki Matsuda.
http://gembafirm.blogspot.com/
ULTRA004 Flier
Work by Takatoshi Ise – Ceramist
Work by Yu uchuda – Glass work
Work by Tamaki Matsuda – Lacquer
King of the Hull Style – Elite
Posted: October 13, 2011 Filed under: Graffiti, People | Tags: Devious Rebels of Art, DRA, Elite, Graffiti, Hip Hop, Hull, Leebo, Sheik 2 Comments
“This writer should be given the props…
King of the Hull style Leebo aka Elite
A truly original writer taking his inspiration from Hip Hop and filtering it through the spirit of Northern Working Class culture.
A true original and unsung hero. Makes all that off key shit look tame…
Leebo deserves a book.” Pinky DRA
“Lee was the only 4 element HipHopper of the 80s-90s in Hull. A true Legend in his own right, an original guy who’s influence for his creativity I reckon was himself. He was a good friend then and still is now. Respect Leebo.” Shade DRA
“Small man, big ideas. One of the most underrated in British writing history. The original Hull Don” MORN One
“(His style) reminds me a little of what Petro is doing now – True Hull head” Eko TCF
“King of the Cosmic flow” Paris TCF
And now for your listening pleasure we are going to go back to 1992 and have a listen to the sound of the main if not the main originator of all things unique, fresh and from the heart in Hull graffiti and Hip Hop – Leebo is what it’s all about.
These ten tracks were released as an album “Two Sides” by D.R.A.M.A the music wing of the Devious Rebels of Art in 1992. DJ Sheik and Elite on the mic.
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 1
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 2
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 3
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 4
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 5
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 6
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 7
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 8
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 9
DRAMA Two Sides by DJ Sheik and Elite – Track 10
All images from Mr Pinks Flickr – http://www.flickr.com/photos/misterpinks/
All music copyright 1992 Sheik and Leebo.
*If you want to hear these tracks or any other mp3 files on your iPhone I recommend the Download app to download them straight to your phone.
Toshio Maeda Interview Part 4
Posted: October 8, 2011 Filed under: People | Tags: Interview, Manga, Toshio Maeda, Urotsukidoji 3 CommentsToshio Maeda Interview part 4
Inkfetish: Do you update your site daily?
Toshio: Yeah, we update daily with a photo yeah mmm (see Toshio’s photos here)
David Sausage: You were reading a lot of books when you were younger,, do you still read a lot of books now?
Toshio: Errr … Now I tend to read a lot of books in English because I have already read a lot of books in Japanese.
David Sausage: Who’s your favourite Japanese author?
Toshio: Probably you know Natsume Soseki. So many times I have read the same book. You know when you get older… Your angle changes because you get mature. So I read it again and again and again.
David Sausage: Hmmm it’s almost like books have a life of their own the books are like people. They seem to change when you come back to them.
Toshio: They change… The content of them changes. It all depends on YOU!
David Sausage: It’s not what you’re taking it’s what your giving.
(Everyone is munching snacks)
David Sausage: What do you think about the porn industry here in Japan? It’s very visible everywhere you go…
Toshio: It’s the same as everywhere, as London and America.
David Sausage: Yeah but even in London if you wanted to go to a sex shop the windows might be blacked out or covered. You might have a curtain to hide customers like the love hotels do here to hide car number plates.
Toshio: Is that right?
David Sausage: Things are put in brown paper bags it’s all very discreet. This kind of thing… If you walked around with this kind of thing…
Toshio: Well err.. How about on the website?
David Sausage: Well of course because, that’s private that’s in people’s house. People are very private about sex.
Toshio: Yeah yeah, your country… No sex actually!
David Sausage: I think that’s a bit rich coming from Japan! Japan is very sexual in it’s nature, but in terms of the amount of sex people are having here, Japan ranks very low.
Inkfetish: Yeah I heard the government are trying to encourage more people to have sex.
David Sausage: Yeah well, the birth rate is very low…
Toshio: …yeah
David Sausage: People aren’t having sex,, well actually, people are having sex in love hotels…
Toshio: Well you know the average couple have a shag once a month, or two months, I guess.
Inkfetish: Once… a… month?
Toshio: Every month.
Inkfetish: Wow…
Toshio: Yeah , you know including the married couple. It’s like you know, we are the Nymphomaniac, but we are not…
David Sausage: But why is that? Because it’s more open and more visual, you can see it in public places, in Shinjuku and Shibuya, you can walk outside and see thi…
Toshio: You know, we have history from Edo era. You know that, from that era there were so many printed materials, you know, filthy art, we saw it. So it’s nothing for us. And then when you are really into a, how can I say? Such websites or cybersex you are really hooked up. You tend to lose your real interest in…
David sausage …the world?
Inkfetish: …real sex?
Toshio: …real lady. Reality. Why? Probably we like a… the idea…
Inkfetish: yeah yeah I think that’s true. That’s the problem with Japan.
Toshio: … Of a cyberlady because they are flawless and they aren’t nagging. You know, Bitching out, they don’t complain right?
Laughing
Toshio: And you know, the men really like that. It’s better to wank off then deal with a nasty…
David Sausage: …human.
Toshio: …cunt.
Toshio: After you have had that several times you tend to lose interest. Not as a human but as a sexual animal right?
David Sausage: Yeah.
Toshio: Right? So we men are just like that. Ladies don’t understand our sex drive.
Inkfetish: No, it’s true.
David Sausage: They don’t do they? Well, it’s like you said earlier. You’ve written,
Toshio: I’ve?
David Sausage: You’ve written erotic stories for women and they’re asking for details in these kinds of things. What is it women want from…
Toshio: You should read Nancy Friday. You know, Woman on Top, the author of that? Secret Garden or Forbidden Fruit, she wrote that. So, you know how promiscuous they are in all this.. Hehehehee haa haha! It is about the nasty fantasy they have.
David Sausage: Hmm maybe I don’t wanna read that!
Laughter
Inkfetish: I think women think about sex as much as men.
Toshio: Hmm but they never say. It’s nastier than you know the locker room talk of men.
Inkfetish: If you get girls together they will talk together about sex, graphically.
Toshio: But you know we (men) share our sexual bloopers or fiascos as fun. You know? How you really fucked up with a particular lady or something like that you know. Premature ejaculation because you just didn’t make it or something like that you know and we are laughing each other but yknow their talk is a little bit serious.
Munching
Toshio: But you know in Britain you have a little different attitude toward sex am I right?
David Sausage: NO SEX PLEASE WERE BRITISH! A lot of British people are like that. Not necessarily the younger people.
Toshio: But you are younger right? I don’t mean the teenager but now.
David Sausage: Yeah.
Toshio: So, you guys you don’t talk about sex when you were young? About how to make out or seduce or…
David Sausage: I think that’s all we talked about!
Inkfetish: Yeah.
Toshio: So how come sex becomes the secret agenda?
David Sausage: I guess when you’re younger sitting with your mates, guys or even a group of girls you could talk about it.
Inkfetish: I think it’s different though. If you’re in a relationship with your girlfriend, I feel different talking about sex with my girlfriend then when I’m talking with my friends.
Toshio: Of course!
Inkfetish: But if I have a one night stand I tell everyone!
Toshio: Yeah yeah yeah have fun. But you don’t talk about general sex.
Inkfetish: How’d you mean general sex?
Toshio: Not sex between you and a particular person but just sex in general.
David Sausage: Not really.
Inkfetish: No. Not the graphic details.
Toshio: You know I think women are worrying about it. The details with their friends,, and men don’t.
David Sausage: Obviously I think the main difference and it’s been said a lot already, is that men get off on things visually right? It’s a visual thing.
Inkfetish: With women it’s more situational.
David Sausage: With women it’s more, getting into a mental state.
Toshio: Hmm yeah. But when you are young you need that right? It’s a hormone…
You know always cartoonists are talking about sex a lot because sex is the big theme about our work, our manga. Right?
David Sausage: I remember seeing some of the drawings by the early Disney studio animators,,, not necessarily things that got made into animations but things they did for themselves an each other and they were really filthy and smutty, rather like yourself!
Inkfetish: When you draw something like Urotsukidoji did you think “I wanna draw something that might turn someone on?”
Toshio: No. Nothing.
Inkfetish: Was it something you found to be fantasy?
Toshio: Err.. Hmm.. You know I just choose some things…
Inkfetish: .. A combination of things?
Toshio: Yeah a combination of readers taste and things. It might be better for readers, but mostly I don’t care!
Laughing
Toshio: But it’s not my taste,,, mostly means nothing.
Inkfetish: I thought Megumi in Urotsukidoji was very sexy. She was Amino’s sister with the green hair.
Toshio: Hehehe
Inkfetish: Is that based on anybody?
Toshio: Errrr imaginary. Of course you know it’s a typical type of person you know, cocky, greedy, selfish girl that exists in Japan.
Laughing
Inkfetish: And another interesting thing is there are scenes where Amino is watching Megumi have sex with a monster…
Toshio: Hmmm hnn
Inkfetish: …and you know, its like, that’s strange
David Sausage laughing
Inkfetish: Cos that’s like a brother watching his sister… Getting fucked. And that was strange because that’s another taboo.
David Sausage: I remember watching TV here and a group of Japanese comedians telling funny stories and one guy was talking about when he was 12 or 13 and sneaking over to his sister’s bed and slowly lifting up the blanket so he could get a cop of her breasts…
Toshio laughing a lot
Toshio: You know, that kind of taboo, I wanted to depict that.
Inkfetish: Yeah but I think it’s healthy to do that to an extent.
David Sausage: So long as it doesn’t go too far yeah.
Inkfetish: It puts it out there and it’s liberating, to explore ideas like that…
Toshio: Hmmm yeah, it seems we are civilised – we are not. Basically we are animals. We like to rape if it is possible.
Goes very quiet
David Sausage: I can’t actually vouch for that Toshio.
Laughter
Inkfetish: I think what he’s saying is, when you see a girl on the street there can be an instant reaction – I wanna fuck her.
Toshio: You can imagine her face is sucking your dick, sometime, men are just like that. If you are tied up with the law or a relationship or something like that, you know, if you really want to do what you can, you know what I mean, probably you just have a shag with a woman. You know with the knockout on the train, you know, not do on the train…
Laughter
Toshio: …but somewhere else. But that’s our fantasy right?
David Sausage: Yeah
Inkfetish: Yeah
David Sausage: It’s very simple. But I imagine that’s the same for all men. I guess for women their fantasy is a bit more elaborated from what you’re saying.
Toshio: That’s what I want to depict in my manga you know? If you are human, or omnipresent or omnipotent… You are almighty god! You can do whatever you want and you know you will do that. It’s a theme.
Inkfetish: It’s like the movie hollow man have you seen that?
Toshio: No
Inkfetish: It’s about a scientist who finds out how to become invisible and slowly slowly slowly he starts to become evil. Because he starts to think what can I do now?
Toshio: Title is Invisible man? Hollow man… Hollow man… Hollow man
Inkfetish: But he ends up raping women and it’s what you would do if suddenly there were no consequences and no one could catch you, what would you do? How far would you go?
David Sausage: Hmm it’s an interesting subject isn’t it? How far would you go? Well I guess we have society and family so we can’t really do these sort of things, society is not going to work but it’s interesting yes, if you are unrestrained… Where would you go?
Toshio: In the chaos as I mentioned before, people tend to show their own flag, their true colours,,, so like that you know… Until then you don’t know who you are.
Inkfetish: Yeah. It’s scary.
David Sausage: HEEEY!
Toshio laughin
David Sausage: Hello!
Toshio: It’s the boogey man inside of me!
Inkfetish: Yeah I think that’s really true. The horror film I told you about, Martyrs, is about that subject. The story is, it’s a horrible story but, they want to torture these women, to the point where they feel so much pain that they, er.. That they get sight into er… Another dimension, they can see beyond reality… It’s called er…
David Sausage: Into a hypnotic state?
Inkfetish: Yeah yeah yeah and they have a sort of out of body experience and … Not let them die si they can come out of that state and report back what they saw when they were in that state so they can … but maybe you should watch it? I know you don’t like horror films
Toshio: Errrrr
Inkfetish: But it’s quite intellectual.
Toshio: Yeah that kind of horror might be ok but I don’t like to see you know, just the splatter films…. The intestines.. Just spread or something like that.. Aaaah it’s so scary believe me I don’t like to see horror movies.
David Sausage: I’m surprised to hear you say that!
Toshio: I can’t see that!
David Sausage: I’m trying to remember your work and… Isn’t that kind of thing in your work?
Toshio: You know a drawing is another story. That is a totally different. But I cannot see scary movies.
David Sausage: But how much do you think making something like a drawing or a piece of art, makes something happen after it? Makes people want to it or feel that emotion or whatever that’s trying to be depicted? Hmm what I’m getting at is…
Inkfetish: Do you ever worry that your…
Toshio: Ah the effect yeah yeah yeah like the Matrix err the man saw the Matrix and killed his parents because he believed himself, he was living in the Matrix world? Just like that right?
Uhh I think manga you know manga is just manga. You know now people are blaming the video games or the DVDs but before that the movies were always the target. Because in the films the guns and knives… well such people are seeking a flimsy excuse for what they are doing. ‘Of course I was impressed by this filthy manga’.
Inkfetish: These people who go crazy and do stuff, if it’s not er, if they didn’t watch Urotsukidoji and do it they would watch Die Hard and do it or something else. If they’re crazy theres always something there that’s going to make them do it.
Toshio: You know I hate the pedophile manga that’s why I’m making the sci-fi manga. You know it’s a completely made up story if it’s sci-fi.. The creature is raping the girls. No human is… How can I say this… I’m really against such manga with pedophile. The victims look like…
Inkfetish: What do you call it? Loli manga.
Toshio: Loli manga.. Five or six years old. I HATE that. That’s why my art style is American. You know sometimes the High School girl gets raped but they are mature. I believe they are mature enough to do that.
David Sausage: But it’s interesting where you draw the line at… You know, you can draw violent things and sexual things but you can’t draw children because the argument is it’s ok to draw violent and sexual things because people will do that anyway, because that’s how people are. But it’s the same kind of argument in a way, I’m not saying it’s acceptable, but it’s the same argument in a way.. The argument is flawed.
Inkfetish: …As fantasy material.
David Sausage: It just shouldn’t be there.
Toshio: But there is the line, as for myself.
Inkfetish: You know the love dolls? Realistic sex dolls… You can buy for really expensive money. They have dolls made to look like children.
David Sausage: I remember seeing that on Justin Lee Colins TV program “Turning Japanese”.
Inkfetish: But there was the argument on there that… It was a way for them not to do it in real life. That it was an outlet for their twisted fantasies or whatever. I don’t think you can blame the manga artists you have to look at society.
David Sausage: Yeah.
Inkfetish: Its just that manga is a reflection of the society rather than manga influencing audiences. Obviously you’ve got daughters so you’re going to have stronger views.
David Sausage: Well… we’ve all got mothers, sisters, daughters, wives.
Toshio pulls out some original artwork.
Inkfetish: Which one is this, La Blue Girl?
Toshio: Urotsukidoji
David Sausage: Culture Club?! Boy George!
Inkfetish: 80’s classic!
David Sausage: That’s beautiful.
Chotto Matte 