Spaces In-Between: Shops at Ameyokocho, Ueno

In his book, East Asia Modern: Shaping the Contemporary City, Peter Rowe discusses the idea of spaces in between buildings and urban blocks and how this either relates to traditional village life or to commercialized spaces in a busy city (121). In particular, he mentions how extensive these visual effects are in intensely developed areas such as the commercial zone in front of Ueno Park (130). He categorizes these visual elements into an order of three: 1) signage and other advertising are incorporated into urban spaces in such a way that it conveys a "strong vertical dimension"(132), 2) the same advertising devices cover the entire facade of a building in a way that is not intrusive to both its inhabitants and its overall appearance, and 3) signs can be read "as a kind of running text" by pedestrians passing by or across the street. Rowe also states that these three parts combine to paint a highly visual sensation (132). 


If we consider Ameyokocho, Ueno, specifically the area of the main street adjacent to Mode Off, we will find that the area mostly conforms to the order of visual elements that Rowe has mentioned. 


First of all, we have 1) signage masquerading as upward extensions of buildings:

On the top right hand corner of the picture, we have the Mode Off signage, complete with its own lights to highlight the visual element at night, followed by that of another store somewhere in the middle of the picture. Both are structures that are not originally part of their corresponding buildings, but became so for purposes of advertisement. Both advertising devices also literally add to the height of the buildings, which create the sense that they are taller and more important than they originally are. 


Secondly, we have 2) signage which covers the entire outer appearance of the building in a way that blends into it:

In the picture above, banners and signs on the lower half of the image cover the white/grey spaces of the otherwise plain buildings. There are so many of them that it looks like they are overcrowding and encroaching on the free spaces of the buildings. However, the many different colors, shapes and fonts present a colorful picture of a busy city which has much to offer, such as (in this case): food, shopping, and other commercial services.  


If we look closely at the ground level in the picture below, we realize that these advertising devices are not, as Rowe says, limited to being on the premise of the building itself, but also between buildings and on the floor within the confines of the shops:

Bridging the two buildings in front of a small street is a huge sign named 上中 that characterizes one of the several complicated small streets of Ameyokocho. This marking is quite important, especially for first-time visitors to Ueno, since it is quite easy to get lost in the maze of similar-looking alleys and shops. Between the two buildings and in the shop itself like the jewelry shop on the bottom right hand side of the picture, signs are also placed to signal the presence of the shops. Somehow the main signage usually place above the entrance of the shop is no longer prominent enough to attract customers and shops require the aid of other banners and posters hung elsewhere to point to customers that they need to come patronize the stores. 


Lastly, we have 3) the "running text" sort of signage:

The "running text" is especially visible on the main street, where the banners and signs face the drivers of automobiles as well as riders and passengers in other types of transport. Of course, they are also meant to be read by pedestrians as Rowe says, but in the case of this picture, the banners on the top right hand corner appear to be angled and placed for the sakes of those on the road.

In comparison, the banners in between buildings on a small street like in the picture below, where cars rarely pass through, are ordered in a haphazard stacked manner that one cannot possibly see everything at one glance:

These signs, I argue, are then aimed at pedestrians since one can only full read each sign as they advance along the small street. Again, this "running text" aspect seems to convey the sense of a city culture that is exploding with too many things to do and see. 


In fact, Rowe explains the installation of signage with: 1) in history, banners and flags have traditionally been used in East Asian cities as a form of decoration and advertisement, 2) competition between establishments resulted in the "use of all available space for signage and advertising"(133), and 3) "there is an element of self-perpetuation and expectation in this practice"(133), that signage became to symbolize retail districts and this tradition has not stopped since then. 


I think this is true not just for signage attached to buildings, but also for advertising devices within the confines of the shop itself. Taking the example of Mode Off, which I may have mentioned a few times before so please bear with me: 1) banners and signs in the store not only liven up the atmosphere of the place, they also indicate information like a sale or the arrival of new items, 2) competition for space and customers in recent times has led to hard sell even within the space of the store - this is not just limited to the visual aspect but also audio (in the form of announcements) and face-to-face contact in touting for customers like in the picture below: 

The person in a white shirt in the middle is actually an employee of Mode Off touting for customers just outside the store. I suppose this is an example of using all available space and means to attract customers to come to their store. Lastly, which I think links to Rowe's notion of perpetuating local expression, 3) the practice of having signage and advertisements has been so ingrained in Japanese consumer culture, together with keigo, shop girls and layers of wrapping, that it is hard to imagine another way of shopping in Japan. The service industry in Japan is arguably the top in Asia and one of the top in the world, and it would be a mistake to say that their promotional techniques have nothing to do with, because I think it has everything to do with it. Everything that the employees do at Mode Off is for the purposes of attracting more customers and getting them to purchase or sell more items and increasing their overall sales.


To end off, I would like to make the point that promotion is so avid (at least in Ueno) that even before a store is due to open, signage and other advertising devices are already put in place, like in this example:

If this doesn't look familiar to you, it is because it isn't. This is the new eatery (read: fast food) which will replace the ramen shop opposite Mode Off and next to McDonald's. At this point in time, it clearly hasn't opened for business and is in the midst of interior renovation, but this hasn't stopped its management from promoting the food outlet in the form of banners and signage. This just adds to the busy nature of the city - that business never really stops because a closed store just means an opportunity to open another one. 


I know I haven't posted on Green House even though I said I would in the previous post, but I haven't gotten the chance to go back and gather more information. So I will try to do that in the next post.