Tuesday, August 31, 2010 0 comments

Fall and rise of empires?

This past week news outlets have reported that now the economy of Japan has been eclipsed by that of the People's Republic of China (not certain if the figure includes Hong Kong and Macau).  It is interesting to see the history make a full circle, with the reemergence of both China and India as the potential next superpowers.  China and India (the other two being Egypt and Mesopotamia/Iraq) were known as the four major ancient civilizations.

On the other hand, Japan as a true empire lasted only from the late 19th century with its defeat of the Russian navy and ended in the 1990s as Japan's economic dominance began to wane.

It appears today that Japan has no future, except through some kind of union with China.  Only a decade ago I could have proposed a union of Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Taiwan as a kind of "Oriental Union."  Today it seems that Taiwan's clout is soon about to evaporate, and no such union can possibly counter China's increasing dominance in economy and geopolitics.

As I was thinking over this interesting historical development, I have conceived this proposed design for the new flag and emblem of Japan, if it were to become annexed into China.

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By iridiacreative at 2010-08-31


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By iridiacreative at 2010-08-31



This was a quick project just to show my conception of the design.  The purple, the colour of Japanese aubergine, is one of the traditional colours of Japanese fabrics.  The design of the emblem reflects common Japanese themes of the ocean waves, Mt. Fuji and a cherry blossom, while also conforming to the design standard of such emblems that include five stars of five points, evoking the national flag of China that features five stars, to symbolize the region's ties to the People's Republic of China.  Overall design of the emblem is also a cross between classical Japanese heraldic design (the mon) and a composition of a typical socialist national emblem.



This is intended to be a parody.  No further political statement is implied.

Thursday, August 26, 2010 0 comments

Re-introducing Art Windows from IrisCat.

Art Windows.  Why get a "window splash" if you can get a real art from a real working artist?  IrisCat is proud to relaunch this after a period of re-evaluation.

This summer, after a period of re-evaluation and hiatus, IrisCat is redefining and relaunching the popular window painting service to do what IrisCat does the best.  It has come to Sarah that even calling it a "window painting" does not do justice.  After three years in business, some people have mistakenly called it a "window treatment", and even more people have mistaken this for a "window splash."  The problem is that they all serve different purposes from different technical approaches. What IrisCat Designs does is a commissioned temporary or semi-permanent works of art reflecting the artist's distinct style informed by various disciplines such as illustration, hand-drawn letterings, and acrylic and watercolor paintings.  Generally, this suits much better for a smaller-sized project.  Unlike other businesses in the area providing window painting or "window splash" services, your project will be done by a real working artist with experiences that include solo and juried shows.


IrisCat Designs is here to provide an elegant, perhaps smaller, and light-hearted (but not grotesque) alternative for businesses that are conscious of the images they project to the community.  With all this, the prices are remarkably affordable (varies by various factors), and whenever feasible environmentally sustainable methods and materials are used.Southeast Grind, April 2009 Southeast Grind, April 2009

http://iriscat.info/artwindows-windowpaintingalternatives.html
 
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