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Photo Essay: AICAD in Japan

Photos by Huiting Lian (Maryland Institute College of Art), Student Correspondent for AICAD in Japan, Spring 2023

A hand holding red chopsticks, grabbing pieces of meat. The table is covered with hot pot items including vegetables, meats, sauces, and more.

Winter is the season for hotpot! My housemate, Tomoko, works part-time at a hotpot restaurant. She invited us to the restaurant for a warm hotpot dinner.

Roth Bart Baron performing at a live house show in Osaka, Japan in front of a crowd at an indoor venue. Multiple band players on the stage with green, yellow, and blue lights.

After I started my semester in Osaka, I go to live houses once every two weeks. You can easily find music performances of almost any genre here. This is a photo I took during the performance of Roth Bart Baron. It’s usually not allowed to take pictures during the shows in Japan, but it’s allowed in this one.

Around 20 pairs of shoes by the front entrance of the house

This is the first scene I saw when I stepped into a CET-shared house for the evening Takoyaki party. Both CET students and OGU students came to the party!

A group of CET students in Osaka Japan at Sumiyoshi Taisha for a field trip with their instructor.

I had a field trip to Sumiyoshi Taisha with my classmates and the instructor of the Minzokugaku (folklore studies) class. We enjoyed the nice weather and learned more about the procedure of praying at a temple.

Three people walking towards the Tower of the Sun in Osaka, Japan.

I also got the chance to visit the Tower of the Sun by myself on a nice weather day after class. There is a huge park around the tower, and it would be wonderful to have a picnic under the sakura (Cherry Blossoms) trees in spring.

A bottled drink to the left of a bento box filled with rice, seafood meat, eggs, and more on a train ride tray

Last week, I took the Shinkansen to travel to Tokyo. It was my first time riding a Shinkansen, and I was super excited about it! I got this delicious bento from Shin-Osaka station and enjoyed it on the train ride. It only costs about 2 hours and a half to travel from Osaka to Tokyo.

The entrance leading to the front of the exhibition hall of student work at a graduation show in Tama Art University.

One of the reasons for me to choose AICAD in Japan is to have a look at the art schools in Japan. The main purpose of my trip to Tokyo is to visit the graduation show of Tama Art University. This is a photo taken in front of the exhibition hall. It’s also a great chance for me to get to know Japanese students’ design works.

A CET student looking at a wall of white and black art pieces in a design gallery in Osaka, Japan

I also explored various places in Tokyo after seeing the graduation show. Here is the G8 design gallery in Ginza exhibiting works of Nakajo Seigi.

CET students between large illuminated pink and purple balls at the TeamLab Botanical Garden in Osaka.

During a CET field trip, we visited the TeamLab Botanical Garden in Osaka. It only opens after 6 pm with illuminating installations in a botanical park. We had a great time interacting with the installations.

Cherry blossoms on a tree branch blooming in Osaka, Japan at nighttime

On my way home from the botanical garden, I ran into some early bloomed sakura trees. The sakura season is coming!

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