couldn't have said it any better...

"Creativity is the basis of self-expression. Why are some people supposedly more creative than others, and why can't others open themselves up enough to be able to express who they are?

Creation is the birth of something, and something cannot come from nothing. When someone creates something: a painting, a poem, a photograph, the creativity comes from an idea, from a feeling, from emotion, or from a combination of ideas, feelings and emotions that are somehow "reborn" from all our experiences and perspectives.

Creativity is the desire to express ourselves. To formulate these expressions, we have to draw from our "reservoir" of experience, dreams, desires, and experimentation and mix together what was, what is, and what could be… I don't think you can learn it, it is rather something that evolves. Your perception of everything in your life fills up this reservoir.

Some people are drawn to create and express themselves, others are drawn to reflect, to analyze. But in the end, they all could be creative if they had the desire to explore the way in which they are integrated in the world of their experiences. Because creativity is really a rebirth, a true tone we feel for ourselves and for our world. Then our work becomes a real part of who we are. Maybe all this is a question of how deep we are willing to go…"

by Peter Lindbergh

with Lily, New York, June 1996

roids.

oh, japan.

oh, japan...

...night out in shinjuku.

all you can eat/drink complete with your own private room = ¥2600.

amazing. the japanese group in the room next to us matched our energy to perfection. we ended up all in the same room. drunk. laughing. socializing as much as possible w/ the language barrier and all. rare in japanese culture. so of course this was a highlight. moving on...

purikura. twice. arcade. no toilet (fml). picture us hurriedly walking around shinjuku trying to find a bathroom. thanks burger king. for the toilet, and for the amazing fries. moving on...

all night karaoke/all you can drink... again, with private room = ¥3000.

we sang, we laughed, we drank... until i passed out. (missed all of my selections... i wonder who sang them)... woke up it was 7am. friends were still going strong with the karaoke.... though some had passed out as well. moving on...

shinjuku station. maranouchi line home. makudonarudo. thanks for having my egg + cheese mcmuffin ready in 30 seconds.

sleep 'till 2:45. blackout curtains. magic.

oh, japan...

...night out in shibuya.

wake up sunday afternoon. call from nathalie. meet at meji-jingumae. food + drinks. then on to sunshine studio. amazing video installations, once again, being projected on the wall (stay tuned for an animation of sorts i made of the installation). drinks + coffee. conversation. moving on...

leisurely walk from shibuya to roppongi. and then on to akasaka. again... makudonarudo. walk upstairs... people are asleep waiting for the first train. jazz is being played. this can't be mcdonalds. just can't. but it is. more conversation. 5:15am. first train here. i walk them to train. and then walk home. sleep. but i'm sure i'll be doing it all over again tomorrow.

Sunshine Studio Wall Art Installation from Vaughn Richardson on Vimeo.

documentaries.

unique pieces.

finding unique pieces of clothing, or other items, has been a constant for me since i've been here. i've gotten what i consider to be some pretty cool pieces-- nothing in excess, just some things that will remind me of my time here. i like searching for things. for me, it exemplifies the magic of tokyo. with stores not just at ground level, but above you and in basements, things can be easy to miss. so taking the time to look... to go in places... and then wait it out. and then... if i think about the item more than 3x, i'll go back to purchase. next comes the task of remembering where exactly the store is. yea... good times.

99 bottles [of ...] on the wall.

words.

so i haven't really written anything on the blog in a while, so i figure i'll take some time whilst i have a moment to splatter a few thoughts. i'll be redundant and divulge just how amazing tokyo is. such an organised, lively, diverse, interesting, complicated yet simple, respectful and might i add, CLEAN city. being here envelops you. you wish your japanese was better so you could do more. but it's not better... not even close! (lol) so you settle for the feasible, which is just as impressive! with so much to see and do and taste... so much at eye level, above it and below it... it's virtually impossible not to find yourself lost in wonderment. even in the rain, tokyo shines (as experienced with nathalie this week in a brilliantly eclectic neighborhood called koenji). as i type this, my mind races at a pace to where i can't catch up, thus the words escape me. so you know it must be good. it's more than good. it's... more. simply put. tokyo is more. you see more. do more. live more. drink more. read... less (unless you know kanji, katakana and hiragana)... but... explore more. spend more. eat more. walk more. experience more. think more. snap photos... more. find yourself bowing... more. being inspired... more. smiling to yourself... more. more. more. more. (whoa... seeing more spelled out so many times makes the word look weird/abnormal/not a word... or maybe it's the bits of foreign languages i've picked up scrambling the brain signal that sees the word as normal). anyway. suffice it to say, tokyo (and other parts of japan as well!... can't wait to do more traveling) is a place worth coming. do yourself the favor.

p.s... there are some good shows coming up back west [america]. i'm kind of feeling some type of way that i won't get to see them.

sigh.

yukimi [of little dragon]...

...if by the craziest chance you're reading this... COME TO TOKYO!!!!

my first prints.