Almost Perfect Tokyo
Creative Artist Residence founded by Luis Mendo & Yuka Okada
Tokyo, Japan
Founded in October 2018, Almost Perfect is a creative artist residency that finds its home in a converted 100 year old rice shop that was run by the same family for several generations. Walk in and you’ll see the huge machines that founders, Luis Mendo and Yuka Okada kept as a tribute to its rich history.
Now the ground floor is a gallery space for guest artists to show their work with a small corner for a permanent collection of curated artworks for sale. They also host meetups that help connect artists with a larger community here. Upstairs on the second level is the guest room and a small office space, and the top level is home to its founders, Luis, Yuka and their cat, Señor.
I dropped by one afternoon in April to chat with founders Luis and Yuka about their own creative journeys and what motivated them to bring Almost Perfect to life.
Luis Mendo
When I ask where he gets his inspiration from, he immediately starts telling me about the history of the neighbourhood. The city which they are located in is called Taito-ku, and it is traditionally home to craftsmen and makers of all forms - from leather and buttons to tin cans and sketchbooks. In fact, Luis was first in the neighbourhood to get a custom made sketchbook when he and Yuka stumbled upon the building that now houses Almost Perfect.
Luis’ love for his neighbourhood is endearing. As we look out the window next to his work desk, he tells me about how friendly everyone is and offers anecdotes about the neighbourhood: local craftsmen, the best spots for coffee and chocolates, and the neighbours with cats.
Yuka Okada
On the side, she’s picked up drawing and creating mobiles, some of which hang in the gallery on the ground floor of Almost Perfect. Yuka makes these by hand, using found objects such as leaves, twigs and leather off cuts sold in the nearby workshops.
I love this little tidbit that Yuka offered about Luis: “Luis has an incredible skill of being able to sketch and still be present, in the moment. We’ll be out with friends and by the end of the night he’ll have drawn all of us at dinner.”
See what’s happening at Almost Perfect: https://www.almostperfect.jp/
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Visited April 2019, published June 2019.
Visited April 2019, published June 2019.