UPDATE:
In 2015, we started a specialist shibari learning resource, ShibariClasses.com, based on purpose-made educational software which allows full multi-media tutorials. This is now undoubtedly the most comprehensive resource ever produced with around 40 full-length tutorials and growing. These are not 5-10 minute ‘paint by numbers’ videos, some have over an hour and a half of core video content, plus notes, links and examples, which explain not just the tie but also the ‘why’. Our unique ‘ingredients’ based approach brings a real understanding which makes the subject easy to learn whilst enhancing safety and creativity.
I have been giving a lot of consideration to the future direction of this site and indeed the business in general. As they both develop, more and more things compete for my time, so there are never enough hours in the day. It’s time to cut some dead wood so I can concentrate on what is important and do it well. We have decided that our time would be best invested in developing the site to become the most comprehensive and authentic shibari learning resource on the net. There are numerous sites with wonderful photos and video of Japanese bondage but no single repository of quality tutorial material in the form of video and articles. My site is already recognised as one of the foremost resources but the mission is to the best.
To this end, we are going to be adding weekly tutorials and exploring other ways of teaching by video, e.g. informal discussions, building a video collection of common errors. Already, there are at least 15 video tutorials on-line, most of which are in the new members area which is where you will find new material. Given the depth of our experience, and the exposure Nina and I have to Japanese and western rope masters of the highest level, you can be assured of the best advice. We will still be posting unique photos and video of our work and of the world’s foremost riggers but the emphasis will be on teaching kinbaku. Of course, a lot can be learned from observing good practice so the galleries are an invaluable resource and not just for your viewing pleasure 😉 The latest tutorials are on suspension techniques which complement the Suspension Techniques class on Saturday, 7 September.
In order to create more time, there will have to be less involvement in ‘vanity projects’. By this I mean, activities which are just promotional without any massive gain in terms PR or cash. It would be all too easy to do nothing but tour the world from one event to another on free travel and accommodation invitations and collaborating on art/photo/video projects but meanwhile bills need to be paid and work that does pay them gets put on hold.
I’m also beginning to understand why Osada Steve decided to do less ‘circus bondage’ and more spontaneous and intimate Studio 6 sessions. Carefully rehearsed and choreographed shows are not for me. That needs discipline and I feel that kinbaku should be from the heart. I don’t rehearse and choreograph sex or other intimate interactions, so why should I do so with kinbaku? Admittedly, it would be far easier to have a couple of standard shows that I could do in my sleep but that would be boring. Where’s the ‘kokoro’ in that? Rehearsed too? On the rare occasions that a show is planned, I more often than not look down at my hands to find they are doing something entirely different from what I had in mind and it ends up ad hoc anyway 🙂 Of course, there is more pressure with big shows because one is expected to put more effort into creating a ‘performance’ and something different. Since most of my shows are unrehearsed, and based on little more than a tenuous plan at best, this brings the added stress of wondering if the improvisation will come off. They don’t always but when they do I think this is when the magic happens and it becomes real kinbaku for me. One of my most intense moments was my first show with Nina at Legarti. We met only the night before and we didn’t even discuss what we would do in the show but it’s one we will never forget. Lack of rehearsal does bring up some interesting challenges. Nina and I only got around to trying the rather severe Kazami Ranki suspension I’d planned and hour and a half before the show. Unfortunately, we discovered Nina’s back doesn’t bend in the same way as Gorgone’s and Gestalta’s. Consequently, I improvised, with the combined challenge of doing it over a rather voluminous wedding dress that had rather more traps for my fingers than I’d anticipated. To bastardise a quote from one of my favourite movies: “The life of the repo man rope man is always intense!” ‘Repo Man‘ is an anagram of ‘rope man’. How cool is that?
So, in summary, less touring, big shows and unpaid work, more time on creating the most comprehensive shibari learning resource on the net and getting to the heart of kinbaku.