Kamishibai Paper Drama in Japan
Kamishibai is a famous Japanese folklore art form. It is a way of telling stories with pictures on paper, also known as "paper drama".
Kami means "paper" in Japanese, and Shibai means "acting or telling a story". The artist places each picture behind a blank canvas and changes them according to the progression of the story he is telling.
Kamishibai is also used as a teaching aid in schools because it attracts students' attention. In recent years, this narrative style has been used by many youth groups to entertain programs that talk about traditional Japanese arts.
Since the 1930s, Kamishibai has become popular as street Kamishibai. After World War II, story-telling on paper was at its peak from 1945 to 1955. At this time, there were more than 30,000 street Kamishibai artists in Tokyo.
In the past, Kamishibai was performed by candy vendors to attract children and buyers. Those who bought candy were allowed to stand closer to the narrator.
The street artist Kamishibai constantly changes his voice to suit each character and the narration. Each story does not end in 1 day but lasts for many days and the audience is always eager to return to listen to it the next day.
Although art-on-paper storytelling is well known in Tokyo, it is rare for people to have the opportunity to talk to artists because they have to constantly travel to many places to make a living.
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The street artist Kamishibai uses paintings designed by hand by kashimoto, who specialize in painting on paper according to stories to sell or rent to Kimaishibai. Today, no one paints to supply street artists anymore.
