A tiny archive
Ceramic Cup from MeetDish, Osaka. B&W Photo via Jett Printer, Haircut Card from a Kissaten in Kyoto, Flower Photo by me, Dubrovnik. Small Art.
Recently I went on a Beauty Retreat, in the foothills of Japan. I took the bullet train from Osaka, to a tiny village called Arima Onsen. It was like living in a fairy tale for 4 glorious days. Waking up to the sounds of a lazy river under the window next to my bed, the gentle sound of the trees swaying in the wind and the laughter of 8 women. Essentially the sounds of a beautiful quiet.
I love the respect for each other in Japanese shared spaces. On the train its quiet, in the cafe the gentle sounds of people talking with friends, walking down the street I can only hear traffic, but there’s people everywhere. There’s no one face timing or waving their smart phone around, in the cafes there’s an absence of people in Teams Meetings discussing budgets (no Barry I dont want to hear about your new KPI’s), there’s respect for shared spaces that I think we’ve lost here post Covid.
But this post is about the joy of small things as art.
When I returned home, I took out all the little tickets and photographs from my trip and smiled. This collection is my small art.
I took a cute little camera with me called the Jett Press (well worth the $85), and it came in so handy. We took a group photo one day and I printed eight copies there and then — one for each of us. In Kyoto, I photographed the best coffee I’ve ever had, printed it out and wrote a personalised thank you on the back.
How lovely to leave a tiny note of gratitude behind. A photograph, a few words, a little moment of thanks.
In Kyoto, I went to the Marimekko exhibition at the art gallery, literally across the road from my hotel. And to my absolute joy, when I paid my 20 yen, I received an actual ticket. A cute, real-life ticket to an event. Oh, the happiness of a real piece of life, in the form of a ticket.
I had tea at Rokka, an old-fashioned coffee house where the owner’s sister had done all the artwork. There, I found this gorgeous little business card for haircuts.
Divine.
And so, as you go about your days, weeks and months, don’t forget to collect the little things.
Tickets. Photographs. Business cards. Receipts. Notes. Menus. Anything that catches your eye or holds a tiny memory.
Because when you put them together, they become:
They become the mood of a holiday.
The memory of an event.
The day you took the train somewhere.
The little coffee shop you stumbled upon.
The exhibition you wandered into.
The person you met.
The moment you wanted to remember.
Little fragments of a life, gathered together.
A tiny archive of the ordinary and extraordinary.
Little mementos of a life well lived.
