“The streets of Tokyo are a never ending source of inspiration” tells us Said Karlsson, Founder & Photographer of Tokyofaces.com. Having lived in many major cities before with the Japanese capital he has found the best city he has lived in so far. A place bursting over with energy and people, yet the residential areas have a local and quiet vibe, that help you not to feel lost in all that space. Said description, stories and wonderful images about his current home and the colourful crowd he is surrounded by, makes us long for a little adventure in this city as well…
Your site features Stylish Japanese Fashionistas. “We not only pick out people with style and elegance, most importantly people who have an aura and charisma about them.” What makes someone a charismatic person – especially just seeing someone for some instances, what are the things that make you approach them to be featured on your blog?
It might seem odd, but things like facial expression, how they walk, how they interact with other people plays a big role in this. First impression means a lot on if I approach someone or not.
Do you actually live there all throughout the year or you divide your time between Tokyo and your home country Sweden?
My home is in Tokyo. Usually I spend a month or two in Sweden every summer, but that’s about it. This year I was too busy to go at all though.
How has your perception of the city changed from the very first time you saw it and after all the time that you have spent there and explored it?
When I first came here I was amazed by everything and I thought everything was a chaotic mess. Even though I’ve lived in a few major cities before, like Stockholm and Berlin, the scale of everything is just on a completely different level here. These days I’m used to it, and I’ve also realized that even though the central parts of Tokyo can be bustling with people and somewhat overwhelming (even after living here for 5 years), the residental areas are very quiet and has a very local vibe to them. This is especially true for Shimokitazawa, the area where I currently live. It’s just a few minutes by train from Shinjuku, with skyscrapers and the largest train station in the world, my neighbourhood feels very much like a quiet small town.
What are the most inspiring things for you within the Japanese culture. Within fashion and art, but also about life there in general…
Central Tokyo never gets boring! There are always good shows or exhibitions coming up. In combination with safety here, and that everything is very clean, neat and tidy (including the people), this is by far the best city I’ve ever been living in. The only downside is the lack of real nature in the city center. Fortunately it’s less than an hours train ride to the south to reach the ocean, and one hour to the west there’s some mountains with great hiking trails! And of course, as a photographer, the streets are a never ending source of inspiration! I still enjoy just walking around with a camera around my neck, taking photos of people, or doing more general street photography.
Can you tell us any inspiring Japanese quote? Like from a poet, a song text or an old saying?
There’s an old japanese proverb saying “Derui kugi wa utaeru”. It means “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down”, or “don’t be different”. While this is indeed true in many parts of japanese society, like in schools and at workplaces, where being different is frowned upon, there’s also a huge number of Japanese people who are giving this old and narrow minded way of thinking the finger, and who seem to do everything they can to be as different as possible. Those people inspire me a lot!
