Daniel Miller @bydanielmiller - Tumblr Blog

flesh flowed back towards my palms bones unfurled to their terminus again my heart rose up to my chest from the place it thudded away in my throat In my throat a sound took shape a line took shape again. (at Taipei, Taiwan)

My first. Thank u @lsdnata (at Shanghai, China)

To pursue #art. To want to be the #droplet that rises out of the #bucket, #climbs the wall, wades #upstream through the #gutter, uphill across the roof, and with a #deafening bang, levitates into the cloud. The #desire to shun evaporation, and instead precipitate in #reverse. Just arrived in Taiwan, back in the warm embrace of my culture's internet. Prepare for an #instadump of epic proportions. (at Chengdu, Sichuan)

#art #droplet #desire #gutter #bucket #instadump #upstream #reverse #climbs #deafening

I saw a man strolling his #baby in the #rain on magazine. While walking, he released the stroller to light his #cigarette, and as he did so, the baby swerved into the rain. He caught the handles and noticed me there. As we passed, in the #eyes of his timid nod-smile I saw a #panic that was older than the baby. I saw its mother and his mother, and #father. There was a fear of responsibility, but also a fear of #irresponsibility. Maybe just that last one is newborn. (at Mid-City New Orleans)

#rain #panic #cigarette #eyes #irresponsibility #baby #father

#高野さん (at Artist In Residence Yamanashi / gallery AIRY)

#高野さん

In #japan , the act of throwing away trash is a victim of cultural authoritarianism. In some places, throwing away a pet bottle involves putting the bottle, the label, and the cap and cap-seal-plastic-circle in 3 separate bags. Then in each week there are several different days upon which different types of of trash are collected. There are no dumpsters. Where I live now, trash must be brought out no earlier than a half hour before pickup, so if you want to dispose of the trash that piles up massively due to rampant consumerism and an obsession with over packaging, you must wake up at 7, and arrange the trash neatly on the curb no earlier than 7:30am, and no later than 8am. In that perfectly orchestrated half hour, local grannies come to the curb, open the bags and sift through the neighborhood trash, confirming that everything is correctly organized, and rejecting the improper bags/shaming their owners. An interesting effect of this granny imperialism is that it makes discarding unwanted pornography an impossibility, as it is likely to be scrutinized and discussed by your entire community. Thus, there exists in the wild places of Japan secret pornography dumping spots. Places, like this shallow riverbed, littered with the detritus of Eros, mags and jewel cases. I have shown this photo to people, and several have regaled me with stories of being a pubescent boy scouring the underbrush for such a spot. In America, gods country lies spread-eagle, violated under your fathers mattress, but in japan, the space under your fathers mattress lies in the spread-eagle violation of #godscountry . I think it's absolutely lovely🖤 #communal #erotic #naturalism (at Ishinomaki, Miyagi)

#erotic #naturalism #japan #communal #godscountry

Ive found myself drawn to the road workers here in Tokyo.

In Japan, the definition of a “public space” feels different. When people are out in the street, everyone is in transit, chugging along from A to B. People dont tend to linger or stop and smell the roses, unless it is in designated stop and smell zones, or during special rose sniffing national holidays.

The exception is the steadfast soldiers of rampant construction. These guys, often elderly, are for the most part the only people that I see in public places, standing and watching. Shoulders relaxed, eyes scanning, breathing in and out as life goes by.

I had thought that it was a sad fate, to stand by the side of the road for 8 hours a day doing the job that an arrow-shaped plank of cardboard could accomplish. But an acquaintance of mine told me that she actually asked one of these sentinels whether he enjoys his job, and he told her that he did. He said that it wasn’t a young man’s game, but I imagine being a lone passive observer in a sea of activity must have his perks.