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We were out of the picture for a little while, so here is one of our articles from 2011 that we never got around to posting. Enjoy!
As panels at AnimeNEXT 2011 were also assigned to workshop-designated rooms, it was impossible to tell what "Suminagashi: Floating Ink" would be before attending and without reading the program guide. I was late due to hanging out and talking with others after the previous panel, but it turns out I didn't miss much in the way of exposition. When I first stepped inside, I definitely saw a workshop in progress. People were sitting in pairs at tables that bore shallow metal trays filled with what looked like colored water. To find out exactly what it was I had stumbled into, I asked one of the panelists who was circling around the room helping those at work.
While the art’s origins are debatable, “suminagashi” is the oldest known form of paper marbling — decorating paper by laying it atop a shallow bed of water laced with inks and can be traced as far back as 12th century Japan. As explained to me by the aforementioned panelist, the process of letting paper absorb the patterns of ink was used by monks to help extend the lifetime of handwritten scrolls so they would not need to be as frequently copied due to threat of deterioration. Reading up more on the matter, suminagashi emerged as an art form that involved gently blowing, fanning, or using a single human hair on the ink to create intricate patterns and spread worldwide in myriad fashion and form.
Most of the people at the workshop did not seem to be taking as much care with their projects (of course this was only an hour workshop). Instead, they randomly added ink spots here and there in their shallow pans of water and used a small paintbrush to make large strokes and patterns like so much modern art. Even though this produced naught but colorful Rorschach tests and tie-dyed shirts for paper dolls, the results were always quite fetching. Watching the process of con-goers-turned-painters trying to bring their own visions of patterns to life made me, after reading about the skills employed in eras gone by, nostalgic for the image of the lone artisan matching wits against the will of water, the ink's surface tension, and his or her own skilled hand.
Suminagashi seems an enviable art of patience and skill equally open to abstract painter and hobbyist. If you'd like to try your own hand at suminagashi, there's a detailed how-to here, and of course the Wikipedia page has tons more info than I've relayed here. Just wanted to wet your appetite!
With projector as campfire, Dunbar explains that the sheer age of Japanese culture means that every subsequent generation since the first has had a hand in building upon and inventing new ways to scare themselves and those who survive them. This leads to a culture with a dense history of superstition, specifically one with a ubiquitous focus on the fear of reprisal and retribution. Dunbar, equipped with his PowerPoint Pokdex, explains several types of ghosts along the way, examining nomenclature, common traits, and reasons for existence, and then accentuates select examples by reading aloud from actual tales.
The breadth of types of apparitions (and examples thereof) included in the presentation is impressive, but specific tie-ins to anime are minimal compared to Dunbars other panels. Luckily, anime viewers need only take in all the information this panel is offering and then apply it to whatever it is they are watching to appreciate the inherent anthropological aspect. Dunbar does, however, rather ingeniously link Japans fear culture with anime, explaining how the latter helps people cope with the former ... or as he so poetically put it, "as if the Japanese build Gundams to fight the monsters." Personally, I would have liked to have seen more insight like that but directed towards what spawned changes in specific fears and the resulting embodiments thereof between eras.
It speaks to Dunbars sense of presentation that this panel does not feel like an instructor orally reciting an encyclopedia entry. His intense interest in the subject matter and humorous delivery combine to produce an entertaining and informative initiation into the shadows that haunt the Japanese mindset. This was a great panel, and it was only the initial version. There was even extra time for more theories, stories, and examples, so like most Dunbar panels there are bound to be edits, revisions, and additions to look forward to in future versions. Look for it and request it for your favorite con!
Click here for more of our AnimeNEXT 2011 coverage
The cosplay at AnimeNEXT was as colorful as it was plentiful this year. There always seemed to be a seifuku, bright red coat, sword, or neon-colored wig no matter where my head turned. Characters from games and anime series, old and new, were on the scene and ranged from Mobile Suit Gundam’s Char Aznable to Princess Jellyfish’s Kuranosuke in "the" dress. What you’ll see in the photos above are some of the costumes and characters that caught my eye, workshops and panels I attended, and various shots from around the convention center. I’m not a photographer, so I offer you these purely so you can get a glimpse of the convention if you could not attend, or reminisce about it if you did.
Click here for more of our AnimeNEXT 2011 coverage
One unfortunate consequence of being late with my pre-con posts is that I lose the luxury of (not) clever titles like "See you AnimeNEXT weekend!" As a longtime punster, this is enough to make me consider founding a convention called AnimeTHIS, just so I can rectify the conundrum by writing "See you AnimeTHIS weekend!" The gag would certainly never get old.
Anyway, now that I've blatantly disobeyed the inverted pyramid of journalism, on to the actual meat of the post. Ani-Gamers will, as usual, be at AnimeNEXT in Somerset, NJ, presenting our shenanigans to whichever fools decide to wander into our panel rooms. We'll also be covering the convention, with both Ink and I attending panels and maybe asking a few questions of some of the guests. (Satoru Nakamura in particular looks interesting.) Other cool blogger folks in attendance include The Reverse Thieves (they're actually staying with me for the weekend), Scott VonSchilling, and Ed Chavez, all of whom will be on panels throughout the weekend.
If you're heading to the con for the weekend, make sure to attend "Satoshi Kon Tribute: Truth from Fiction" (Workshop 2) on Saturday at 11 AM and "Fandom & Criticism: The Art of Active Viewing" (Panel 4) on Saturday at noon. Yep, they're back to back — two straight hours of more IN YOUR FACE ANI-GAMERS ACTION than ever before. Oh, and Hisui from the Reverse Thieves will be joining Ink and me for Fandom & Criticism. If you need to brush up on your discussion points, why not listen to Ani-Gamers Podcast #032, which is a recording of last year's panel?
Our buddy DJ Ranma S from Anime Jam Session will also be running "Anime Incorrect," an 18+ panel based loosely on Bill Maher's late night show "Politically Incorrect" that will bring together four or five different members of the anime community — including yours truly and the aforementioned Mr. VonSchilling — to talk about topics of his choosing. Sounds fun to me! That's 10 PM Friday night, so you'll have to skip out on the second half of the must-see 18+ Anime Dating Game.
That's about it. We don't have our schedules prepared yet, but we might add them to this post later. Before then, however, feel free to let us know what you want us to cover in the comments section! Any questions you want us to ask the guests or staff?
