Updated on October 31, 2014
Kawaii
by Shirley Lau
October 31, 2014
It was a scene that kept your eyes busy – and made you feel young and alive. Young girls clad in mini skirts, platform heels and all manner of outlandish accessories happily posed for anyone's camera. Cute-looking models took to the stage and sashayed down the catwalk in trendy outfits. A male DJ in schoolgirl uniform and a blond wig sent the crowd dancing wildly as he danced in his quirky, mockingly cute way in between playing the funky pop tunes.
Welcome to Moshi Moshi Nippon Festival, an extravaganza designed to celebrate Japan's world-famous kawaii culture, and to promote it globally (which explains the free entry for all foreign visitors whereas locals paid an admission fee of 3,500 yen). Held on the last Sunday of September, the event was Japanese pop culture at its most fun, funky and, above all, kawaii. It brought together a dizzying array of Japanese pop elements at the Tokyo Metropolitan Gymnasium in Sendagaya, from music to fashion, cosplay otaku culture to anime. Among the biggest highlights was a performance by Kyary Pamyu Pamyu, the queen of kawaii.
The crowd consisted of mostly young locals, but there were also a good number of curious tourists and expats living in Tokyo intrigued by the kawaii culture. "I'm here to get inspired by the kawaii style. It's so cute, chic and sweet," said Anne Marie Crandall, a 23-year-old American who teaches English in Seoul and is on a short visit to Tokyo.
Wearing short skirt and a shocking pink blouse with a big ribbon, Miss Crandall is a big fan of the kawaii culture. And she is not alone. The culture of kawaii, which means cute and pretty, has gone global. Kyary Pamyu Pamyu has for one gained popularity in the West thanks in part to internet videos that have gone viral. In Paris, there is a girl DJ duo called Girls from Kawaii, formed by two Parisian women whose style is a mix of French chic and Japanese kawaii.
Manami Okazaki, journalist and co-author of Kawaii: Japan's Culture of Cute, believes kawaii has a prominent place in Japanese culture because of its flexibility. "It is adaptable and applicable to many creative outlets, which has made it the dominant pop culture aesthetic in Japan. Many cultural luminaries have [incorporated] kawaii aesthetics into their work, and [so] you can see kawaii culture prevalent in fashion, character design, graphic design, food design, and art. Many of these things are not for children but for adults, as well. With Japan’s top designers, manga-artists, artists and even scientists injecting so much energy into the kawaii movement, it seems inevitable that it would become a something as powerful and ubiquitous as it is now.
Though it is quintessentially Japanese, people like Miss Crandall prove that kawaii also has a strong appeal to foreigners today. "Overseas, I think kawaii culture is particularly strong where there is an anime and manga presence, and a strong familiarity with Japanese culture, such as France," Ms Okazaki explains. "It also provides an alternative to mainstream American pop culture, which celebrates femininity in different ways. Kyary is hyper-feminine, but very sweet and innocent, whereas for many people, mainstream US music icons may seem overly sexual"
So can we imagine a Japan without the kawaii factor? Yes, but life would be a little dull, Ms Okazaki believes. "[Without kawaii], I guess Japan would lose a lot of its charm. Making something kawaii is making it user-friendly, and accessible. It is connected with the notion of thinking about others, and making that extra effort to please people. You can make a bus stop as is, or you can make it charming and funny by designing it into the shape of an apple or a strawberry. A lot of people who dress in kawaii fashion do it not only for self-expression. They also like to entertain other people by dressing in elaborate ways. I also think kawaii culture is an outlet for females in Japan to celebrate their femininity in creative ways."
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