Fuzz and Fur: Japan's Costumed Characters - Hardcover

Harrison, Edward; Harrison, John

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 193561312X ISBN 13: 9781935613121

Publisher: Mark Batty Publisher, 2011

Synopsis

With Fuzz and Fur: Japan's Costumed Characters, Edward and John Harrison delve into another bizarre and cute niche of Japanese popular culture by interviewing and photographing the men and women that create a niche in the phenomenon of kigurumi, which roughly means “dressing up as a stuffed toy.” While adoration for mythical creatures and popular anime characters is nothing new in Japan, this pastime has created a new marketing tool for local government institutions: yuru-kyara. Roughly translated as “amateur characters,” yuru-kyara are costumes based on local attractions and points of interest that help define any given area. Through a strange amalgam of hometown pride and cost-saving measures, municipalities often tap their citizens to design the characters. The same citizen enthusiasts also convene yuru-kyara conventions of their own, and give life to another aspect ofJapan’s enigmatic, yet utterly captivating, visual culture.

About this edition

• Publisher: Mark Batty Publisher
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 193561312X
• ISBN 13: 9781935613121
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 144