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"NEW YORK \u2014&amp;nbsp;Japan, the purveyor of technology that gave us Toyota, Nikon, and Playstation, arguably has its best days behind it. For the past twenty years, the country has been experiencing economic stagnation in light of rising competition from China and South Korea for its bread and butter \u2014 the manufacturing of electronics and automobiles.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; We are facing such difficulties,  Japanese fashion journalist&amp;nbsp;Yoshiko Ikoma&amp;nbsp;told&amp;nbsp;ARTINFO.  The market for us isn\u2019t expanding. It\u2019s shrinking. &amp;nbsp;What's Japan\u2019s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's (METI), then, come up with as a solution? Jumpstarting international interest in its other endeavors, of course \u2014 fashion, design, anime. And to put a little umph in its appeal, they named their latest campaign Cool Japan.Ikoma is currently the producer of  Future Tradition WAO,  a Cool Japan traveling exhibition of contemporary design aesthetics formed with Japanese traditional craftsmanship debuting stateside in New York this weekend. The combination of \u201Cwa,\u201D Japan, and \u201Co,\u201D birth, WAO stands for the rebirth of Japan (while simultaneously letting out a sound of awe). It fuses ancient traditions with new technology, familiar shapes with foreign designers. Featuring a crystal Baccarat bowl created for tea ceremonies, cypress trays accented by neon plastic lids, keyboards crafted from walnut and oak, and lacquered USB drives adorned with Japanese cultural symbols in gold leaf, the show is a demonstration of the Japan\u2019s duality \u2014 a deeply traditional culture rooted in meticulous, time-perfected craftsmanship with an inventive and innovative eye towards the future.We\u2019ve always known Japan was cool \u2014 let\u2019s not forget the pioneer in progressive, futuristic design also gave us (and&amp;nbsp;Gwen Stefani) Harajuku fashion, Metabolist architecture, and&amp;nbsp;Murakami. But the nation needed some practice in capitalizing on its cool factor.  We\u2019d like to expand our market,\u201D Ikoma said. \u201CWe have so much to offer in terms of the arts, but Japan has no idea how to sell outside Japan. For now we have to cultivate the new possibility on the global stage.  Future Tradition Wao  is on display at Capsule Studio through February 12. To see highlights of its innovative offerings, click the slide show.&amp;nbsp;[content:advertisement-center]&amp;nbsp;"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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