Tattoos of Light, the fleeting designs carved by the city

When walking through the city, there are moments when I suddenly stop in my tracks.
It is never a famous piece of architecture or an intentionally staged landscape.

It happens when light reflected off a building's glass
paints accidental shadows or patterns
on the opposite wall, the road, or the exterior of a building.

This photograph, too, captures one such moment.
When I saw that scene, a phrase naturally came to mind.

"Tattoos of Light"

An unforgettable phrase I encountered 20 years ago

About 20 years ago,
I picked up a certain book.

Hiroya Kawabata
"Tattoos of Light: Tokyo Diffused Reflection Scape"

I remember how, the moment I saw that title back then,
I thought, "What a tasteful phrase," and
it left a strong impression on my heart.

More than the content of the book itself,
this phrase was etched into my memory.

I no longer have that book with me.
Even so, this phrase alone
remains strangely vivid.

Since then, the way I see the city has changed a little

Since then, when walking through the city,
I have become unconsciously aware of the light.

Glass, metal, signs, windows.
Just by the angle of the sun changing slightly,
the city shows a completely different expression.

It is not a special place.
Just an ordinary intersection, just an ordinary afternoon.

Even so,
the shadows that exist only in that moment
are certainly carved there.

Every time I encounter such a scene,
I capture it in a photograph,
and look back at it many times afterward.

As if,
it were a sign the city showed us for just a fleeting moment.

“Uncalculated Light”

To be honest,
I don't think there are many architects who strictly calculate
such accidental reflections and shadows and incorporate them into their designs.

Architecture is
always bound by realistic conditions such as function, structure, regulations, and cost.

Even so, I have
attempted something close to
“using shadows.”

A white wall and a single tree

I planted a large tree in front of a pure white wall,
shone a spotlight from below,
and tried to project a beautiful shadow.

In theory,
it didn't seem like a difficult thing at all.

However, the result was different.

The angle of the light,
the density of the leaves,
the distance from the wall,
the season and the time of day.

With just a slight difference in conditions,
the shadow would easily fall apart.

The beautiful shadow I had envisioned
did not appear,
and I ended up abandoning the attempt.

Between accident and intention

Strictly speaking,
the “tattoos of light” discussed in this book
and what I attempted are not the same.

However,
if there is something they have in common,
I think it isthe perspective of treating shadows as a “phenomenon.”

Things that cannot be fixed in form.
Things that disappear with time.

That is precisely why,
the moment you see it,
it leaves a strong impression on your heart.

A city designs unconsciously.

Even if no one intends it,
the city reflects light on its own,
and draws shadows on its own.

It is not a sign,
nor architecture,
nor art.

It is simply,
a landscape that only those who are there can notice.

I think the phrase "Tattoos of Light"
expresses such unconscious behavior of the city
very accurately and beautifully.

For the next moment to be carved

Again today,
somewhere in the city, light is reflecting,
and casting shadows.

Whether you notice it or not is up to you.

I think that,
I will continue to stop in the same way,
take photos,
and remember.

Along with those words.

📘 Featured Book

Hiroya Kawabata
“Tattoos of Light: Tokyo Diffuse Reflection Scape”

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