This is Michael Fiorella's TypePad Profile.
Join TypePad and start following Michael Fiorella's activity
Join Now!
Already a member? Sign In
Michael Fiorella
Tokyo, Japan
Bilingual, 25-year resident of Japan. Expert on Japanese consumers, lifestyle products and Japan market entry. Curator of The Spark Galleries, a syndicate of online shops selling art, antiques and home accessories.
Interests: Sosaku hanga, Japanese woodblock prints, Japanese kokeshi dolls, Japanese antiques, Japanese vintage, fine art photography, graphic design, market trends in Japan, Japanese consumers, Japan market entry strategy, Japanese language, Chinese martial arts, world travel, world cuisine, movies, TV, books.
Recent Activity
New on Hikifuda.com "Musashi Miyamoto"
Image
Here's an exciting new print just added to the Hikifuda.com store. In it Musashi Miyamoto, Japan's inventor of the double-sword fighting technique, battles an enemy. To see the full image (this one is cropped) please click on the URL below: http://www.hikifuda.com/store.html#!/~/product/category=4742257&id=21459179 Continue reading
Posted Mar 16, 2013 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Hikifuda "Kid Warriors" just added!
Image
Three child "warriors" battle it out in this antique hikifuda advertising poster from Japan. Fabulous colors and great action! This print bears the shadow of another print in the left third so it's been heavily discounted. Check it out in the Hikifuda.com shop at http://www.hikifuda.com/store.html Continue reading
Posted Mar 8, 2013 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Young Beauty
Image
This item just added to the hikifuda.com store. We're not quite sure who this young beauty is. There print shows some text in the upper right corner but the cursive style is extremely hard to read. She might be a princess, or she might be a character from a Japanese... Continue reading
Posted Mar 4, 2013 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
7 Lucky Gods & Red-crowned Japanese Cranes
Image
This beautiful hikifuda is now in the Hikifuda.com store! The Seven Lucky Gods climb a hill against a backdrop showing a red sun and two red-crowned Japanese cranes. Beautiful gold pigmented ink used for the clouds! Hikifuda take well to modern mattes and frames. This example shows a medium width... Continue reading
Posted Mar 2, 2013 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Antique Yoshiie Minamoto Print
Image
This item just listed in the Hikifuda.com store. Check it out by clicking on "Store" in the navigation bar above, and then choosing the "Samurai / Action" category. Continue reading
Posted Feb 21, 2013 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Hikifuda scene from "Treasury of Loyal Retainers"
Image
Great combination: Mt Fuji & the Treasury of Loyal Retainers, also known as the 47 Ronin. Now available in the Hikifuda.com store (click on "store," above). Related articles Gorgeous Mid-Century Modern Art Flower Continue reading
Posted Feb 20, 2013 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
New items in Hikifuda.com store (to see items...
Image
New items in Hikifuda.com store (to see items directly, visit http://www.hikifuda.com/store.html) Continue reading
Posted Feb 19, 2013 at SPARK GALLERIES
Comment
0
Additions to Hikifuda shop
Image
Recently added to the hikifuda.com store . .Enjoy! Continue reading
Posted Feb 19, 2013 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Hikifuda for Kimono Shop
Image
This hiki-fuda shows a woman and girl outfitted in fancy kimonos and carrying items used to celebrate the Japanese New Year's holidays. The rectangular portion on the upper left is a mini calendar that provides highlights for the year, Taisho 2, or 1913. The poster would have hung in the... Continue reading
Posted Feb 10, 2013 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Pricing
A note on pricing: Be sure to check your favorite items from time to time. Prices can and do change -- that item you were hoping to buy may have just gotten more affordable! Continue reading
Posted Feb 10, 2013 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Awesome Bunny
Image
This rabbit-shaped bottle opener was recently added to our home decor store Seleclectic. What a gorgeous combination of modern Japanese design and traditional Japanese craftsmanship! Available here. Continue reading
Posted Feb 10, 2013 at SPARK GALLERIES
Comment
0
Hand-painted Antique Kokeshi Dolls, "Sosaku" type
Image
Newest item added to our Kokeshi store (on Etsy). A very stylish pair of sosaku-type wood kokeshi dolls, made in Japan circa 1950's. To see more photos and/or purchase the dolls, click here. Note: "sosaku" type dolls are those with a creative flair not usually seen in traditional Japanese kokeshi. Continue reading
Posted Feb 10, 2013 at SPARK GALLERIES
Comment
0
Gorgeous Mid-Century Modern Art Flower
Image
Mid-century modern design meets Japanese printmaking in this beautiful rendering of a Japanese Camelia. An original vintage serigraph, the work was created by Sosaku Hanga* artist Norinaka Suzuki. It's a limited edition print, numbered #2 of 15. It was handmade by the artist in 1984. See this print at Japanese... Continue reading
Posted Feb 9, 2013 at SPARK GALLERIES
Comment
0
Antique Poster for Kimono Shop
Image
This hikifuda advertising poster / handbill was recently added to our shop at www.hikifuda.com Made in Japan in 1913 ("Taisho 2"), it shows a woman and girl outfitted in fancy kimonos and carrying items used to celebrate the Japanese New Year's holidays. The rectangular portion on the upper left is... Continue reading
Posted Feb 9, 2013 at SPARK GALLERIES
Comment
0
Samurai takes back enemy flag, antique advertising poster, Japan
Image
Just added to the hikifuda.com store. Antique poster showing samurai taking back his clan's flag from the enemy. Excellent artwork and in great condition. For display reference, shown matted and framed (hikifuda.com shop sells prints only). Continue reading
Posted Nov 22, 2012 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Antique Japanese advertising, hikifuda, "Boys Marching Playfully"
Image
Something about these boys made me recall a marching scene from one of my favorite childhood books, Where the Wild Things Are. Anybody else remember? Hope to get this item into the store in the next week or so (update: this item now available! Click on "store" in above navigation... Continue reading
Posted Nov 20, 2012 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Hikifuda Poster, samurai grocer
Image
Just acquired this fabulous antique poster for a Japanese grocer, dated Taisho 6 (1917). Hope to get it listed in the store soon. Love the magenta kimono! Continue reading
Posted Nov 18, 2012 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
MOMA to celebrate post-war Japanese art, 1955-1970
Image
Japanese Art Exhibition: Tokyo 1955–1970: A New Avant-Garde Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), New York City November 18, 2012 — February 25, 2013 From the MOMA website: From the mid-1950s through the 1960s, Tokyo transformed itself from the capital of a war-torn nation into an international center for arts, culture,... Continue reading
Posted Nov 16, 2012 at SPARK GALLERIES
Comment
0
Antique Japanese advertising posters. Lucky gods, kimono beauties, musical duets & adorable children
Image
Here's how some of our antique Japanese advertising posters (hikifuda) might look framed*. These woodblock and lithograph prints from the late 1800's / early 1900's (a.k.a. the "Meiji Era") run the gamut condition-wise, from pristine to fair. But once they're matted and framed, they all look fabulous. Take a peek... Continue reading
Posted Nov 16, 2012 at SPARK GALLERIES
Comment
0
Modern Japanese woodblock prints. "Pheasants in the Snow","Garden of Ryuan Temple", "Autumn Forest B"
Image
Iwao Akiyama, Taizo Minagawa, and Fumio Fujita rank amongst the most creative and tasteful Japanese print artists of the mid-late 20th century. Akiyama (b. 1921) studied under modern print grandmaster Shiko Munakata (whose influence is immediately apparent). His works artfully combine modern colors, traditional rusticism and delightful whimsy. Here we're... Continue reading
Posted Nov 16, 2012 at SPARK GALLERIES
Comment
0
Recent addition: antique hikifuda, "Two Lucky Gods"
Image
"Two Lucky Gods", available on http://www.hikifuda.com/store Recently listed in our online shop. An e-bira-type hikifuda. Two Lucky Gods, one making a big leap, the other standing over a pile of money while holding a large calligraphy brush. Beautiful antique Japanese advertising poster from the late 1800's, early 1900's. Listed in... Continue reading
Posted Nov 12, 2012 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
More sosaku kokeshi
Image
Check out these new items recently listed on Japanese Kokeshi Dolls on Etsy. To see the entire product lineup at Japanese Kokeshi Dolls, click here. Continue reading
Posted Nov 7, 2012 at SPARK GALLERIES
Comment
0
Michael Fiorella has shared their blog Spark Productions
Nov 2, 2012
Michael Fiorella has shared their blog SPARK GALLERIES
Nov 2, 2012
Site Design
Image
Early snapshot of site prototype If you're reading this you can now see the basic look and feel we're implementing for hiki-fuda.com. Design-wise our watchwords are "simple," "clean," "elegant" and "easy to use." Continue reading
Posted Sep 22, 2012 at HIKIFUDA.COM
Comment
0
Subscribe to Michael Fiorella’s Recent Activity
The Typepad Team
View all »
craig elmore
View all »
0 Favorites
Blogs and Sites
Around The Web