, an
abbreviation
An abbreviation () is a shortened form of a word or phrase, by any method including shortening (linguistics), shortening, contraction (grammar), contraction, initialism (which includes acronym), or crasis. An abbreviation may be a shortened for ...
for "decoration truck", are a style of decorated
truck
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construct ...
s in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
. Commonly featuring
neon
Neon is a chemical element; it has symbol Ne and atomic number 10. It is the second noble gas in the periodic table. Neon is a colorless, odorless, inert monatomic gas under standard conditions, with approximately two-thirds the density of ...
,
LED
A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor device that emits light when current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy in the form of photons. The color of the light (corresp ...
or
ultraviolet light
Ultraviolet radiation, also known as simply UV, is electromagnetic radiation of wavelengths of 10–400 nanometers, shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation is present in sunlight and constitutes about 10% of th ...
s, detailed paintjobs and murals, and stainless steel or golden parts (both on the exterior and the interior), dekotora may be created by workers out of their work trucks for fun, or they may be designed by hobbyists for special events. They are sometimes also referred to as .
History
In 1975,
Toei released the first in a series of 10 movies called ''
Torakku Yarō
is a series of ten Japanese action comedy films produced by Toei and released from 1975 to 1979. All ten films in the series were directed by Norifumi Suzuki and starred Bunta Sugawara as Momojiro Hoshi ("Ichibanboshi" or "first star") and Kiny ...
'' (''Truck Guys''). These films featured truckers who drove garishly decorated trucks around Japan.
This movie was a hit with both old and young, and the ''dekotora'' fad swept the country. While ''dekotora'' were present throughout the 1970s, they were restricted to north-eastern fishing transport trucks prior to the movies. In those days, ready-made parts for trucks were not easily available, so these trucks took parts from sightseeing buses or American military vehicles.
Modern times
The art form is associated with Japan's underbelly, as modified vehicles cannot pass the biennial safety inspection known as
''shaken''. Therefore dekotora operators are assumed to use grey-market certificate issuers.
Since the late 1990s, ''dekotora'' have been heavily influenced by the art of
Gundam
is a Japanese military science fiction media franchise. Created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Sunrise (now Bandai Namco Filmworks), the franchise features giant robots, or mecha, with the name "Gundam". The franchise began on April 7, 1979, with ...
. Other decorations are more akin to modern art and retro designs that closely resemble those found in the movie.
Styles
*
Kansai
The or the lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo and Shiga, often also Mie, sometimes Fukui, Tokushima and Tottori. The metropoli ...
-style
*
Kantō-style
* Retro-style
See also
*
Dekochari
The is a form of art bike indigenous to Japan dating back to the mid-1970s. "Deko" in Japanese is short for "decoration" and "chari" is slang for "bike". The ''dekochari'' was a response by children to the Dekotora ("tora" is short for "truck") ...
, bicycles modelled after ''dekotora''
*
Itasha
In Japan, an is a car decorated with images of characters from anime, manga, or video games (especially ''bishōjo'' games or ''eroge''). The decorations usually involve paint schemes and stickers. The cars are seen prominently in places suc ...
, cars decorated with
anime
is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...
characters
*
Jeepneys
A jeepney (), or simply a jeep (), is a type of public utility vehicle (PUV) that serves as the most popular means of public transportation in the Philippines. Known for its crowded seating and kitsch decorations, it is a cultural icon of the ...
, trucks originally made from surplus American jeeps from WWII, and later being replaced by installing surplus parts from Japan aftermarket.
*
Chiva buses
A chiva (Spanish for goat) or ''escalera'' (Spanish for ladder and stairs) is an artisan rustic bus used in rural Colombia and Ecuador. Chivas are adapted to rural public transport, especially considering the mountainous geography of the Andean ...
, colourful buses primarily seen in Colombia and Ecuador
*
Tap taps, painted Haitian "buses"
*
Truck art in South Asia
A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport freight, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructio ...
External links
Camion From Geibunsha official website.
References
{{portal, art, asia
Trucking subculture
Art vehicles
Japanese subcultures
Trucks of Japan
Public art in Japan