So I have to admit I have personal reasons for choosing Chinatsu Ban as the artist I want to observe. I have a thing for elephants, perhaps in a similar way that Chinatsu Ban is obsessed with elephants. I suppose I cheated a little and did a little bit of reading on her. Her thing with elephants stems back to when she was a child and had an elephant figurine that she cherished. It became a symbol for her for peace and safety. From her own words, Ban explains that elephants and the underpants that she portays in her art are comforting for her that help her deal with the fear she possess that she will die someday. In my readings I have not found an explanation for the colorful poop that also accompanies her art with elephants. Perhaps they are there because poop is a fact of life.
In this picture I can see the sense of childishness, the playfulness of the baby elephants with a bigger (I suppose adult elephant) and how this can relate to the kawaii culture of not wanting to grow up and live in innocence for as long as possible. Then I feel that the underpants on the elephants represents protection fromvthings in everyday life. As if the picture is saying, go ahead and play, just be prepared for the necessary things in life too. As much as the people in the kawaii culture want to be carefree, they can't ignore the fact that they still have to be protected from certain things. Some things in life are unavoidable. I think this is the kind of emotion that the artist is trying to show.
Hi Quinnface! ^_^
ReplyDeleteI must say, for your bottom image, all I can say in 'nomnomnom!' XD
But you have a point about the underpants being protection! Perhaps the random poop in the pictures represents that we can't always be protected and that eventually accidents will happen (most likely in Ban-san's case it's death... haha, whoops... XD) It's interesting that the kawaii culture is wrapped up in this; after all, it's this type of culture that is accused of stopping young girls from being prepared for the harsh realities of this world... Perhaps Ban-san is trying to screw with our brains and say, hahaha look at this the cherished comfort really is just as flat as this artwork because eventually life is going to hit and you have no way to deal...
Not sure what to make of the underpants pattern on the underpants, but Quinn's comment about protect is quite apt. Elephants, as gentle giants (although not so gentle in real life), may also provide a sense of security. And there's always the Freudian trunk, perhaps. As for the poop, that definitely fits into the kawaii thing. Poop, often thought of as kawaisoo, is simply kawaii here. Somehow the big elephant is both parental (motherly?), with the two baby elephants, and childlike at the same time.
ReplyDelete-Mizenko
awwww elephants! I love how the bigger the elephants get the cuter they are~~!! I find it really amusing that an elephant with random underwear drawn on it's butt is appealing and cute!
ReplyDeleteIt is cute ! Especially because of the tiny ones, it must be one of the tropes. The color and their use creates the impression of a sweet and comforting world where we have nothing to be afraid of. If we had to be afraid of something the gigantic figure of the elephant would take care of it anyway. It reminds me of Babar the Elephant, e gently creature of my youth :
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babar_the_Elephant