Back then Japan was still sort of in a hermit stage wherein they just tend to keep to themselves after World War II and didn’t really participated in global trade as well as in other global activities. However, as they were slowly but surely coming out of their shell the Japanese people have started opening up to the idea of welcoming global trade on their shores, thus, the emergence of a new and modern Japan.

Now the popularity of both traditional as well as Japanese modern culture is widely evident in the Western world, just take for example the film Memoirs of a Geisha, which was the screen adaptation of the best-selling book of the same title. Japanese modern culture intrigues a lot of people, most especially westerners who look up to their funky fashion statements and ingenious technical gadgets.

The funky street style of the Harajuku district has gotten a strong following from people all over the world – with the fashion savvy, Japanese pop inspired outfits of these Japanese kids, they’ve been able to liberate other people and help them celebrate their own uniqueness. Pop singer Gwen Stefani actually has been strongly influenced by Harajuku street style and even paraded around Hollywood with her Japanese Harujuku kids posse.

As far as haute couture goes, modern Japan has the world famous designer Issey Miyake to boast of. His line of clothes has a clean and classy feel to it, which makes him a staple in the annual fashion weeks all over the world. Popular Japanese cosmetics brand Shu Uemura has been a common product in every fashionista’s makeup kit and their eyelash curler is still the best selling one in the world. Luxury brand, Louis Vuitton has also tapped the services of popular artist Murakami to help them make their signature bags have a fresher and youthful look. The white monogrammed “Murakami” inspired bags also took the world by storm. On top of these celebrated fashion icons, Tokyo is also one of the world’s fashion capitals, along with Paris, Milan and New York. Indeed Japanese modern culture is certainly not just about a booming economy but a place wherein unique Japanese creativity and high-class fashion mix.

Japanese anime is also what makes of the ever dynamic world of Japanese modern culture wherein people were treated to the funny and adorable antics of the Pokemon monsters – most especially the yellow Pikachu then there’s the cuddly Doraemon and the “queen of all things cute”, Hello Kitty. From cartoon characters, to video games to comic books as well as various other forms of commercial merchandise – even endorsements, these unique Japanese characters are all here to stay and are a big part of Japanese modern culture.