111018. Opening Nite.

A Really Cool Looking Lamp at Nepenthes.




Thursday night was opening night for some galleries in NYC. I attended three of them, Joshua Liner Gallery, Nepenthes Gallery and EV Gallery. It's always nice to check these events out because you never really know who will show up and for me, it s always alot of friends from different professions. It s usually time to catch up on last months happenings and maybe toot my own horn about my own happenings. Whatever. The images are rather spartan and I have to admit, as opening images or even event photos, they are so random that maybe I shouldn t even talk about openings but just say, 'these are images from thursday night.. and I took some snap shots of some friends and art. Enjoy'

The very Stylish , Eri Sorayama.



Hand in hand. Photographer and Stylist. Eri and Yuri Shibuya. EV Gallery.



Getting ready in the back. Nepenthes.



Getting Ready in the Front. Nepenthes. VSOP Show.




The Man at the Nepenthes. Angelo caught surprised by my camera's proximity.



Doing some time at Nepenthes. Kenta. Designer.



Post O'alls' Art Show. Chattin it up at the counter.



Post O'alls and Hells Kitchen Sounds. Very Nice Vibes in Nepenthes.

111019. Yuri Shibuya's group art show! THE INFERNO

On thursday , October 20, 2011, my good friend , Yuri Shibuya is in an art show! Coming from a string of runaway hits in JAPAN, she is bringing her visual aesthetics to NEW YORK CITY!
From what I am gathering of the presenters of the show, it looks to be heavy on the documentary and fly on the wall images as well as up close and in the mix looks! It should be quite an eye opener and a fun one to boot!!
Hamburger Eyes from what I ve seen is pretty RAW and Imaginative! This should be one for the ARTS!
The Opening Reception will be from 7 - 10 at 208 east 7th street, New York, NY... east village! If you have a chance, come by and gape!

11-10-10. a video scaped up from the past!

This is a quick little video directed by my good friend, Yuri Shibuya. Check it!







I think its from the archival files of 1957.. sometime around the great one, Von Dutch. It was a swinging era! Everything was new! Even the surfboards were getting smaller and I m pretty sure Von Dutch created the first Kustom Surfboards out of fiberglass cos he was doing all that with his cars. Anyways, Enjoy!





Bottom of the Board.




Top of the Board.

11-09-12. Virgin Free Fest and Kiyocera Shuji

Help Japan and your wardrobe.

Virgin Free Fest was in the woods this year! It was a good ol' festival in nature with ferris wheels, carnival tents and a skatepark! Kiyocera was one of the main sponsors of the event and they pumped it up with innovative sound/sight experience in form of outdoor dance party coupled with high tech camera/sound/sight bending non stoppable party dancing, space aliens dancing...



An alien in a suit!



A tree tall alien!




Twin Dancing GLOB Aliens!


... a solar charging stations with benches and lounge chairs AND shuji on tee shirts by masters/artists;
Mayo Kohama, Eiko Berkowitz, Yoshiko Komatsu, Yuri Shibuya, Asako Miyahira and me, Mike Ming!






Art is an expression and extention of ourselves. Yuri Shibuya and Asako Miyahira extending and expressing.




Japanese culture emphasizes subtlety. Yu-chan and Eiko-chan emphasizing.



Man on phone: ".. YES! SHUUUUJJJJIIIIII by masters!! I m going to get 'GAMMBARREE JAPAN!!! "



It was a non-profit $5 donation for a shirt with Japanese Calligraphy! As expected, this event was a smash! From the time the gate was open until even after the lights went out, there were people trying to scramble for tee shirts. It was a successful all day affair that saw throngs of people wanting to help Japan and get something special written on their tee shirts in return.



The Angels, the crowds and the shuji tent.






Lights out in our tent, party is ON at Kiyocera Sight/Sound Tent!


I would like to thank those who were involved and organizing this event and for allowing me to participate for a wonderful cause.

Kiyocera for making it happen, Virgin Mobile for the event, Mother NYC for production, Mayo Kohama for displaying amazing Shuji Power(!!!), Eiko-chan and Yu-chan for all the help in figuring the characters out and for dealing with all those customers who were 'outside the box' (I overheard more than 1 strange request coming from their direction), Yuri Shibuya and Asako Miyahira for traveling with me and having patience to deal with me, Charles Lahti for calling us out and envisioning this amazing event, Christine from Mother NYC to produce this event and trusting us to do the amazing job we needed to do, Kiyocera Angels for keeping the tent running smooth in the chaos of all those shirts getting written on and drying, all those who donated for an excellent cause and Hurricane Katria to wander away from the proximate seaboard and leaving us the beautiful weather to fill in for her insted!! Thank youses!!



Me with my custom Mayo Kohama shuji shirt!!

110804. Snacky and Mike Ming

Snacky is an awesome little dig that serves up a nice asian affair tapas on Grand Street in cozy Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York. Its an establishment that has spent over ten years being the hip bar/restaurant before it was hipster-burg.




When the owner, Sandy Pei, decided to renovate the look, she honored me with a call to do up the roll gate box. I thought it would be appropriate to hit it with the red and gold, chinese festivity colors, and keep the look free-stripped and abstract.
It was a beautiful day to paint the outside and a great photographer friend of mine, Yuri Shibuya, came through on her bicycletta and took some flicks before she went off on her next adventure.. oh, the travelling photographer.





Snacky is located 187 Grand Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Yuri Shibuya is located where ever she pleases, camera in tow and ready to
shoot whatever she pleases.
www.yurishibuya.com

Tokyo Day 20 June 8 2008

Day 20 was the short independent film show case. This is the deep underground film showing. Sometimes so deep, no one has even seen it because it was never released! You couldn't even You Tube, it's held on lock down. The show began at 2.30 pm promptly and the list of film directors are as it was viewed.

. Space Showers time lapse Mural Project. dir. Mike Ming
. Kenji Hirata and DJ Clock time lapse Felt project. dir. Joey Garfield and Kenji Hirata
.'Invisible Kingdom' dir. Cameron Lombsbread
.RJD2 Video dir. Joey Garfield
.'Two Days..' dir. Mike Ming
.'Collective Improvisation' dir. Ryuichi Strush Wheels
.'Street Sounds' dir. Yuri Shibuya
.'!!NEXT!!' dir. Mike Ming

The films were musical and Visually Oriented. Some were skateboarding oriented and mostly abstract documentary film vision. Special Thanks goes to all the film contributors and directors for creating their audio visual ideas and the incredible audience that joined us for the presentation. Thank YOU!! We went out and celebrated with Yakitori and Kushi!!

Tokyo Day 6 May 25, 2008

So, today I rest. But check these out!! Holla!! From the camera of Yuri Shibuya!!


(who are you?)


(this is the ladie's coach...)

Tokyo Day 5 May 24, 2008

Going to work. Who knew what the day's event was going to be like? Yuri Shibuya and Kumetani Satoshi, unawares of the quiet before the storm. But you know what, it s all in a day's work.

GreenRoom Surf Music Festival in Yokohama's Osanbashi Hall was quite an event. There was some people checking it out.


There were 3 stages, this was one of them.




(Positive Vibrations!! Saritah, giving thanks.)


(Keison Getting Ready)


It rained, but that did not stop the organizers from keeping the rain off the outdoor geo dome wood performance space.







(Umbrellas work, too.)



There were artists galore. The people behind the whole surf culture industry image, the people behind the cameras and those behind the mics and on the stage.



(yusuke Hanai was mad busy)



(two of the thirty five rythmn knockers called Panorama Steel Orchestra)

(Pepe California. The Next Krafterk, Chemical Brothers do it yourself band! Had me JUMPING!!)

(Models of 'Fine' Magazine.. fashion getting in the mix)

(two lovelies from australia, one dork. Saritah and Natalie of Blue King Brown)

(Battling the forces of evil and ill intent. Jonas Kaku, Jonas Glass Vision)


(exactly)


(check out the hat!)


(Taisuke Yokoyama. OG Shonan lens man)


(Naoko. Live Finger Painting the Booth)


(Don't Mess with this guy. OG! Cyborg Magazine and Dangerous Legendary Lensman, NISHI with Good buddy, Rick!!)

(Future Generation)


(John from California and Yuri from Kichijoji)

(Shonan Lensman)


(The man, Kamaichi, organizer of this little throw down with DJ Tommy of Shonan Surf Mafia and killer selector!)



It is what it is.. a music festival requires organization and funding.

(thirsty?)
17 Bands, 7 djs, 42 artists and 3 stages later, I m tired, my legs are tired and my mind is swimming. The lights, colors and sounds engulfed my being. The now was later and I m at the key pads typing stuff out, which I am finding no good words to express with. The sounds were all positive, the artists were all positive and the audience, they made the floors bounce and the walls shake!


(can you feel IT, SUCKERS!!)
Did I mention there was a tree house? When you got to the top of it, there were three stained glass window pieces and when you looked through.. did I mention there was a tree house?







I m done, put a fork in me, until osaka.