Being witty and being culturally appreciated are two independent things in visual communication design. More often than not, on one hand, the Japanese sense of ‘playfulness’ is manifested in enigmatic images, which express intriguing aspects of Japanese psyche. On the other hand, the Western sense of humor is often light hearted, as its major aim is to raise a smile instead of ambiguity. This ethnographic study examines the essence, categories, and sentiment of playfulness in Japanese context. It also explores in detail the situations in which playfulness is used and, where permitted, how Japanese artists and designers come up with playful ideas and encode meaning in their works. The conclusion focuses on how the Japanese sense of playfulness has long been used to establish cultural influence, social voice, and individual distinction.

中文翻译：

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机智与模棱两可：日本视觉文化中的趣味性

在视觉传达设计中，诙谐和被文化欣赏是两个独立的东西。一方面，日本人的“玩乐”意识通常表现在神秘的图像中，这些图像表达了日本人心理的有趣方面。另一方面，西方的幽默感通常是轻松愉快的，因为它的主要目的是微笑而不是模棱两可。这项民族志研究考察了日本语境中嬉戏的本质、类别和情感。它还详细探讨了使用趣味性的情况，以及在允许的情况下，日本艺术家和设计师如何提出有趣的想法并在他们的作品中编码意义。结论侧重于日本人的嬉戏意识长期以来如何被用来建立文化影响、社会声音和个人差异。