From August 6 until October 20, 2022, the APPI Kogen Ski Resort in Iwate Prefecture is hosting a special art project titled A Butterfly’s Journey: Embracing Lights. Mika Ninagawa, a leading Japanese photographer active in film, design, and fashion, has teamed up with Hiroaki Miyata, a professor at Keio University’s School of Medicine and the man behind the theme project at the Japan Expo 2025. Miyata produced the exhibition and video works, and the exhibition itself focuses on sustainable art concepts. A large-scale video installation uses the site’s abandoned ski lift station as a canvas, wowing audiences. Don’t miss the many photographs on display as well!

ONE PIECE, a manga running in the Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine for 24 years, will be releasing its 100th volume on September 3 2021.l, while the 1000th episode of the anime will be aired on November 21. To commemorate this major milestone, the franchise will be starting a number of grand projects to ‘connect’ with the world.

One of those grand projects is the ‘WE ARE ONE.’  mini series, with five videos co-produced by Toei Animation and Shueisha to be released starting on August 30, counting down until the release of  the 100th volume on September 3. 

The videos are directed by Ninagawa Mika, who has won a selection of awards within Japan and overseas for her vivid and colorful videos. Accepting the challenge to take charge of this unprecedented video project, the live action shots featuring known actors were directed by Ninagawa while the anime shots were produced by Toei Animation. The videos show off a new side to the wonderful world of ONE PIECE. RADWIMPS new song TWILIGHT will be used as the theme song as four protagonists step into the future in this short drama collection.

Scene1 is an animation featuring Zoro and Sanji of the Straw Hats. The pair usually bicker, but when they’re faced with losing their companions during the Davy Black Fight, the two join together to protect their gang. One the pair have decided to help make Luffy’s dream of becoming the pirate king come true, nobody can stop them!

Director Ninagawa Mika Comment

I feel like there are people who have read the series deeply, as well as those who happened to discover it, and those who are yet to read but are still able to sympathize with the story. I will be happy if everybody can enjoy the videos.

RADWIMPS Comment

There are so many adults like us who grew up reading ONE PIECE, as well as students and parents, with all of us just trying to achieve our goals and targets each day. I feel that during those days, the ONE PIECE characters have always helped us to keep on pushing forward. It is my hope that this project will help people feel a little stronger when facing the future. 

Photos
©Oda Eiichiro / Shueisha／
©Oda Eiichiro / Shueisha, Fuji TV, Toei Animation

Anime
©Oda Eiichiro / Shueisha, Fuji TV, Toei Animation

Priv. Spoons Club’s popular graphic series NoSleepClub will launch a colorful new collaboration with photographer and film director Mika Ninagawa on September 8, 2021. 

Lined Hoodie: ¥15,400 each (Tax Included)

Lined Sweatshirt: ¥14,300 each (Tax Included)

Long Sleeve T-shirt: ¥10,780 each (Tax Included)

The new collaboration features numerous colored long tees, sweatshirts, and hoodies. As with the first collab, the theme is ‘COLOR IS POWER,’ which expresses Priv. Spoon Club’s hope to color the world with their clothing creations. Now more than ever, they’re hoping to give people some hope during the ‘new normal.’ Perfect for fashion-conscious adults, the back print features one of Ninagawa’s creations, a playful and uniquely-colored photo crossed with NoSleepClub’s neon graphics. 

A pop-up store will also be held at Isetan Shinjuku starting on release day, featuring items created in collaboration with Mika Ninagawa from September 8-14, and Priv. Spoon Club’s 21AW Collection from September 15-23. 

Which colorful piece would you like to rock this fall? 

The Nippon Foundation Paralympic Support Center will be publishing the 5th issue of GO Journal, a graphic magazine that shakes up the future with Para Sports, on August 24, 2021. Ninagawa Mika is in charge of the creative direction and photography. She has photographed track-and-field star Nakanishi Maya for the front cover. Also appearing on the cover is Yukinobu Ike, a wheelchair rugby player, highlighting their roles as Japanese Representatives for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics

The cover graphic featuring the two players has been released in advance. 

GO Journal is a graphic magazine that throws away prejudice against Para-Sports and Para-Athletes, encouraging individuals to strive for a more diverse and inclusive society that recognizes, accepts, and utilizes diversity, regardless of gender, age, or nationality. 

The magazine promotes and pushes Para-Athletes and Para-Sports through art, fashion, and culture, with creative direction by Ninagawa Mika. The magazine is composed mostly of striking visuals and candid interviews with the athletes and is available for free at libraries and events throughout Japan.

Between July 24 and September 30, there will be an exhibit held on Lower Stable Street at the transport hub known as Kings Cross Station in London. London is also the birthplace of the Paralympics. 

Photographs of 8 athletes will be displayed in 10 light boxes, featuring photos from the upcoming GO Journal issue. 

Comment from Creative Director Ninagawa Mika: 

“The Para-Athletes’ strong spirits are the essence of human strength and a source of hope for many people. Their mental strength makes their physical body shine. 

I wanted to capture that brilliance with my lense. I aim to shoot in a way that captures the athletes’ strength and share that moment, shining with strength and beauty, with everybody.”

Nakanishi Maya (Track and Field) | Japanese Representative for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics

“I used to have a complex about my prosthetic leg, but now I’ve accepted it and turned it into my weapon. It’s difficult to accept your own weakness, but once you do, you can turn it into your strength. That is what I want to those who have no confidence in themselves through GO Journal.

Yukinobu Ike (Wheelchair Rugby) | Japanese Representative for the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics

“I feel like I showed another side of myself during the shoot. Not in that it wasn’t myself, but in the way that humans have many charms that can only been seen from certain angles.

The Paralympics can spark a variety of feelings within the viewer, but I would like people to think that they can give back to themselves, be inspired, and even learn new things about themselves. My hope is for people to be able to watch with that perspective.

Make sure to pick up the latest issue of GO Journal, the magazine that respects individuality and promotes diversity to the next generation!

Fashion magazine Oggi’s popular Warui Otoko (“Bad Boys”) feature has turned into a photo book. Released on February 12, it features a collection of photos of handsome ‘lady-killers.’

Warui Otoko stars a special selection of current popular Japanese actors and artists that have women across the country in thrall. The photos are taken by internationally-renowned Japanese photographer and director Mika Ninagawa who has captured the lovely line-up’s alluring nature beautifully.

Yudai Chiba | Photographer: Mika Ninagawa

Koji Seto | Photographer: Mika Ninagawa

Every issue, the editors hand pick female readers’ requests of heart-throbbing situations, and in turn, Mika Ninagawa makes those dreams come true in the form of photos, such as “What if Kentaro Sakaguchi was my co-worker?”, “What if I visited an aquarium alone, and while I was there I just happened to be standing next to Masaki Suda?”, “What if I had an appointment with Kuranosuke Sasaki on a Saturday night in a bar?”, and so on. The feature also includes interviews with the handsome men photographed.

Below are comments from some of the ‘lady-killers’ featured in the photo collection.

Comment: Eita Nagayama

Eita Nagayama | Photographer: Mika Ninagawa

“I just met with Mika Ninagawa before the shoot for Warui Otoko for another magazine. Getting to shoot with again, I couldn’t help but think, ‘so it’s one of those times.’ Usually when I look at Ninagawa’s various pieces and how she works, it gives me insight into what she’s thinking during that time. That being said, I think we’ve created something interesting together this time. What made it so interesting for me was the theme of ‘Bad Boys.’ Ninagawa photo conveys my idea of a ‘Bad Boy.’ I wonder why it’s so fun to do?”

Comment: Tori Matsuzaka

Tori Matsuzaka | Photographer: Mika Ninagawa

“I first met Mika Ninagawa around eight years ago. It’s been a considerably long time since I’ve known her, but this ‘Bad Boys’ [feature] is only the second time I’ve shot with her. It didn’t feel like we hadn’t shot together in so long, but I was really nervous when the shutter closed on the first shot. There might have been things we overcame, like that sense of it being the first time again, but to say ‘you haven’t changed’ after eight years would be pretty bad. In the time you don’t meet with someone, their way of thinking will have changed, not to mention their physical appearance, and that may show itself. I thought to myself, Ninagawa is sensitive to details, she’s someone who’s going to see through worries like that. That’s how nervous I was with that first cut after these eight years. I wonder how it will come out of her?”

Comment:Ryota Katayose (GENERATIONS from EXILE TRIBE)

Ryota Katayose | Photographer: Mika Ninagawa

What impressed me most about shooting with Mika was how quick she was when we started. But there was absolutely nothing stressful about it. We were chatting naturally, and before I knew it, the shoot was over. The Warui Otoko pages have been a buzz on social media, so I remember how happy I was when I found out I’d be part of it. But in all honesty, when I look at it now, I think how childish I looked <laughs>. If I get the chance again, I want to make myself look even more like a ‘Bad Boy.’”

Takumi Saitoh | Photographer: Mika Ninagawa

“When this serialisation was released in book form, it garnered attention with the ladies, and orders skyrocketed on online book shops! Prints for additional copies were decided before it even went on sale. The volume is a keeper, and has stirred the imaginations of girls, so check it out.”

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