Mary is Tired
Kawakita was commissioned to create Mary is Tired in 1977, as displayed in Figure 1.3 (see Appendix). The main characters in this manner poster are a universal pair of mother and child. However, the woman holding a baby is not just any ordinary mother. The two photographed models in Mary is Tired signify a holy pair of people, The Blessed Virgin Mary and baby Jesus. Figure 1.3 (see Appendix) resembles a non-dominant choice in Christian iconography, as the artist claims to choose these models to evoke pathos from a cute looking Asian baby (Kawakita, 2008).
Another signifier in this poster is Kawakita’s use of global knowledge. Kawakita uses the preeminence of Mary and Jesus to make his own, newly rearranged message for Mary is Tired in 1977. The appropriation of Mary is Tired is taken from Raphael’s original 1505 painting of Madonna dell Granduca, as shown in Figure 1.4 (see Appendix). In the appropriation, the artist uses micro-signifiers by including Asian models, the iconic clothing worn by the models, and the gaze from the mother figure. Conversely, as the original painting by Raphael in Figure 1.4 (see Appendix) shows, a muted pallet of colors and no sign of stained glass are in the classical painting.
Time for No Smoking
Similar to Mary is Tired, the manner poster, Time for No Smoking, greets a commuting audience by grabbing attention with an icon from the West. As shown in Figure 1.5 (see Appendix), Time for No Smoking showcases one zoomed in portrait of a famous actor from the United States named Marion Mitchell Morrison, commonly known as John Wayne. The signified meaning behind this brief one-lined message and cowboy John Wayne is to be mindful of smoking tobacco only during the designated times in train stations in Japan. This poster supports a cultural rule, stating that in between the times of 7:00 a.m. and 9:30 p.m., to avoid smoking. Non-smoking times start again from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. on the public train platforms. Rules such as the directions of allocated hours to smoke tobacco, are strategically written in aesthetic mediums provided by commissioned manner poster art and iconicity.
The appropriation of Time for No Smoking is taken from a 1965 LIFE magazine cover that features John Wayne’s battle with cancer (see Figure 1.6). The original title of the LIFE magazine was After a Bout with Cancer. The signifiers from the LIFE magazine cover are used in similar, but adapted ways in Figure 1.5 (see Appendix), Time for No Smoking. This poster highlights universally known signifiers, such as a cowboy hat and gun. As displayed in Figure 1.6 (see Appendix), the LIFE magazine cover, After a Bout with Cancer, highlights John Wayne with stomach cancer in the latter portion of his Hollywood career. Quickly moving commuters could identify John Wayne’s easily recognizable, American cowboy face in 1982 after some time from his death in 1979.
The main goal of this poster is to communicate that smoking around crowds of people is inappropriate. Kawakita employs a lesson in a brief line of text, to refrain from smoking during rush hours in Japan. Rather than simply writing a warning such as “No Smoking,” the artist uses bold color and creative humor to encourage commuters to put out their cigarettes during “Non-smoking” times in Japan. When taking both Figures 1.5 and 1.6 (see Appendix) into consideration, there are noticeable differences in the colors of the appropriated image by Kawakita. The artist involves red as an attention-grabbing color on the border and the handkerchief of John Wayne. Additionally, a background of mountains and dessert-like terrain is portrayed in Figure 1.5 (see Appendix), giving Time for No Smoking a more holistic “cowboy” context.
The disciplining of one’s own behavior for the sake of not bothering those in proximity supports the idea of a holistic happiness orientation in Japan. Doh and Inoguchi (2008) describe happiness as “having certain things that give one passive pleasure” (p.408). The peace of mind granted that one can stand in line for the train without inhaling second hand smoke is a form of passive pleasure for non-smoking commuters.
Clearly Show Your Train Pass
The brief and catchy textual line of advice offered in Figure 1.7 (see Appendix), Clearly Show Your Train Pass, follows a pattern that is created in all four posters. The message structure of the “one-liner” succeeds in its effectiveness, reminding commuters to comply without being overly intrusive. Since there is not a police officer or train attendant verbally enforcing the suggested social behavior depicted in Clearly Show Your Train Pass, the poster succeeds in being non-intrusive. The Tokyo Metro Authority’s motivation to hire Hideya Kawakita from the 1970s to 1980s was for the purpose of representing perceived, albeit less critical, social problems in Japan. These social problems are, moreover, decided by a cultural consensus in Japan. In Clearly Show your Train Pass, the seemingly simple compliance of showing a train or bus ticket clearly to a train station attendant might be taken for granted. The signified meaning in Clearly Show Your Train Pass is to be alert and ready to show one’s train-pass clearly and effectively to the train station attendant. The rationale behind the message is that the annoyance of waiting in long lines due to other people’s mindlessness is a social problem or source of everyday conflict that is worthy of attention.
The appropriation of Kawakita’s Clearly Show Your Train Pass originates from an 1812 painting by Jacques-Louis David entitled Napoleon Bonaparte in His Study at the Tuileries. The signifiers in this newly appropriated poster consist of Napoleon Bonaparte’s “hidden hand” that rests halfway inside his jacket. In addition, the background coding of Japanese language as displayed in Figure 1.7 (see Appendix) translates to “Have the ticket clearly visible.” The strategic borrowing from one culture for a new use in another culture (Leeds-Hurwitz, 1993) is an obvious process when observing Bonaparte’s hand in Clearly Show Your Train Pass. In addition to a bolder color pallet used in Clearly Show Your Train Pass, a background layer of Japanese text is discursively present. Notably, one of Napoleon Bonaparte’s famous quotations is “The word impossible is not in my dictionary.” The background of Figure 1.7 (see Appendix) is intentionally layered by Kawakita to resemble a page from a dictionary. The text direction in Japanese is vertical, and displayed realistically in the manner poster. In the dictionary-resembling background Japanese text of Clearly Show Your Train Pass, the brief line of “ていきけん「定期券」はっきり見せること.”(Kawakita, 2008) translates to “clearly show your train pass.” The implication of intertwining a cultural norm and dictionary page is that clearly showing one’s train pass should be as respected as any rule you might find in a dictionary.
The intention behind Clearly Show Your Train Pass is to decrease the possibility of people standing or waiting for other passengers to locate their tickets for the train attendant. What is also socially implicated in this poster is that people should not take their time when in public because there is a risk that other people will be inconvenienced. While the message of this poster remains entirely simple, the social implications of organized and prepared passengers support a greater cultural value for other-orientation in Japan.