One Japanese artist works in cardboard, and his marketing method involves crossplay and “kawaii power.” Let’s meet Nami Aidakko!
Being an artist is a tough gig. For every Yoshitaka Amano success story, probably hundreds of talented creators struggle to find a market and earn hard cash from their skills. Then, add to the mix competition from AI art bots, copyright infringement, market saturation, and other “businessy” words. Top that all with the cherry of life’s complexities. You’ll quickly realize that the likelihood of becoming a paid artist seems minute. Artists must innovate to survive.
From Mild Mannered Aidakko Shiyo to Feisty Nami Aidakko
Aidakko Shiyo is a Japanese sculptor from Zushi City, Kanagawa prefecture — roughly three hours from J-List HQ. His medium of choice is cardboard. Boring brown cardboard. He cuts it, folds it, glues it, and wears it. His character — or crossplay alter ego — is Nami Aidakko. She’s a cyberpunk weapons expert in a mini skirt.
Nami Aidakko’s cardboard crossplay came up on my Pinterest feed years ago. I collect pictures of Warhammer 40,000 miniature and scenery projects. Cardboard is involved. Lots of cardboard. I also follow this anime thing, which you might have heard of. Anyway, Nami’s kawaii face was going to come up sometime.
However, any popularity she has in Japan doesn’t seem to have spread west. At least not yet. For now, there’s very little information on the creative duo if all you’ve got is some rusty Japanese skills. You can find the Aidakko’s on YouTube. Their profile lists their other social media details.
Crossplay: The Japanese Perspective
I grew up in a house that wore our British colonial badge with honour (yes, with a u). We drank tea and watched cricket, even though England’s on the other side of the planet. That Britishness meant we watched Monty Python shows and the traditional annual pantomime. Those institutions understood a simple formula:
Man + Skirt = High Comedy
America has Mrs. Doubtfire (1993) and White Chicks (2004), after all, so the gag’s at least a Western one. Like much comedy, men in drag are funny because those gags draw on subjects we’re uncomfortable with. Throw the spotlight on whatever people are too polite to talk about, and you create instant joke fuel. That’s why we love fart jokes.
It’s easy to assume that Japan accepts crossplay wholeheartedly. But you know what they say about assumptions (“don’t make an ‘ass’ out of ‘u’ and ‘me’”). Talking to my Japanese colleagues about pink and purple anime hair nuked any fallacies I held about any deviations from the “normal.” Social norms hold society together, especially in a community-focused culture like Japan. However, Japan is ready to celebrate anything kawaii (cute). Crossplay — cosplaying a character from an opposite gender — at least publicly, celebrates cuteness. Most Japanese people are down with that. That’s “kawaii power.” If you’re a figure collector, you know how kawaii power has the potential to empty your wallet.
How to Cardboard Crossplay and Influence People
Japan’s power center isn’t large zaibatsu corporations like Toyota or Sony. It’s teenage girls. They decide what’s cool and cute and what the consumer buys. Let’s face it, the entire male population past puberty is in their thrall. You can’t resist kawaii power. My proof is anecdotal, but the number of anime with high school settings has to say something. Do you really need more proof than browsing the J-List store?
So, “girl power” might mean something very different in Japan, and it’s not a feminist war cry. If you appeal to that market, you can sell anything, including unpainted cardboard art.
Aidakko Shiyo’s cardboard crossplay methods might be unorthodox, but we just did check out a bunch of cardboard art. It must be working.
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So, you like cute girls with guns? They may be cute, but I hear they’re just as deadly. Recruit these two dangerous Nendoroid weapon experts today. We’ve got 416 and UMP9 in stock.
