We saw these kawaii decals for sale in Tokyo. According to the in-store display, they are intended for mobile phones and iPods, but could go on anything.
I was amazed to see the familiar and consistent visual brands of Marvel superheroes so dramatically localized, reflecting the Japanese kawaii (“cute”) aesthetic by infantilizing Wolverine, Spiderman, and the Hulk.
In the Hong Kong Art Museum store, we found a bunch of cute products with this funny character Matchman. I was trying to figure out which trinket to buy and bring back as an odd cultural souvenir until I stumbled across some pencil cases or stationery with what seemed to be serious religious overtones. I looked further and realize that it was a sneaky Jesus-pushing character, designed to appeal to “the kids” (and naive foreigners, I guess). I hate seeing that stuff sneaking past us, doesn’t speak well to the mission, if it’s about tricking you!
Shades of Veggie Tales!
The New York Times offers an analysis of cute and a helpful infographic
Sales of petite, willfully cute cars like the Toyota Prius and the Mini Cooper soared, while those of noncute sport utility vehicles tanked.
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King Kong’s newly reissued face has a squashed baby-doll appeal, and his passion for Naomi Watts ultimately feels like a serious case of puppy love – hopeless, heartbreaking, cute.Scientists who study the evolution of visual signaling have identified a wide and still expanding assortment of features and behaviors that make something look cute: bright forward-facing eyes set low on a big round face, a pair of big round ears, floppy limbs and a side-to-side, teeter-totter gait, among many others.
Marmoset
Marmot