Ken Kagami and Tan: A Naturally Close Parent-Child Bond. Spending Time Together with L.L.Bean. | feature

Ken Kagami and Tan—always maintaining a natural parent-child bond. Spending time together with L.L.Bean.

Ken Kagami, a contemporary artist who transforms his unique sense of humor into art, and his daughter Tan, who is about to start high school. While parent-child relationships often become strained as children reach a certain age, the bond between these two remains naturally close. In this feature, they head out into the city wearing the “Japan Edition” from L.L.Bean. We catch a glimpse of their current lives—a father watching over his grown daughter—as they chat in their usual easygoing manner about the fashion trends that have recently caught their attention, how they spend their time at home, and even their feelings for one another.

Photo_Shinji Serizawa

Styling_Shota Iigaki

Hair & Makeup: Miri Sawaki

Text_Tsuji

Edit_Ryo Muramatsu, Tsuji

I hope you’ll become someone who can recognize others’ sadness.

—What are you two usually like when you're at home?

Ken: In the morning, she’s in a bad mood right after waking up, so she hardly says a word (lol).

— (laughs). To you, Tan, what kind of father is Mr. Kagami?

Tan: I think he's probably pretty funny (lol). He's always saying weird things at dinner.

Ken: "I guess it must be fun" (laughs). Almost every day, we eat dinner together as a family and enjoy spending time together. That's when we talk the most and laugh the most.

—I’m curious what it’s like to have a dad who’s a contemporary artist.

Tan: I've never really thought about it, but since I've been in this environment since I was born, I've just naturally accepted it.

Ken: He’s been coming to “Strange Store” since he was a baby, and he sees the studio too, so for Tan, that’s just normal. When I was working in the studio one time when he was little, he walked in, saw a pair of socks I’d left on the floor, and asked, “Dad, is this a piece of art?” (laughs).

Tan: Oh, maybe there was (lol).

Ken: I really envied that sensibility. When I was little, looking at my father's socks, I could never have thought of something like that.

—That’s what you call a gifted education program, isn’t it? (laughs).

Ken: Back when Tan was still in preschool, whenever he’d lose one of his shoes on the way to or from daycare, I’d always react to it. “Whoa, that’s so cool!” I’d say. Since he grew up seeing me react like that, I guess it just became second nature to him. I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, though (laughs).

Tan: Even when we're walking down the street together, if I suddenly realize he's gone, it's usually because he's taking pictures of things on the ground or picking them up, so I've gotten used to it.

—Are there times when you feel glad to have a dad like him?

Tan: Hmm, I can't think of anything... (lol).

Ken: That's too bad... But I was worried about what I'd do if someone told me, "It's a place where they'll buy you anything!"

Tan: But things like how he's "family-oriented," and so on.

Ken: (Tears).

—Mr. Kagami, what kind of adult would you like Tan to grow up to be?

Ken: I hope you grow up to be someone who can truly recognize other people’s sadness and pain. That way, you’ll become a kinder person. Other than that, as long as you stay healthy, I have nothing else to ask for.