Japanese calligraphy is a challenge at the best of times. So why go to the trouble of using a piece of paper as large as the side of a bus, and a brush that's almost two meters long and weighs 50 kg?
Come New Year's and the usually urbane pastime of shodo (Japanese calligraphy) suddenly grows in stature, literally. The primary reason is the tradition of kakizome, where people take up brushes and paper to make written declarations of their goals for the year.
These aspirations are often crystallized in a single kanji (Chinese character), such as "yume" (dream) or "hajimeru" (to begin), with the boldness and clarity of the stark black strokes thought to reflect the writer's level of conviction.