Ahh, natsu (夏)...

It means "summer" in Japanese, and also happens to be the first two syllables in the word natsukashii (懐かしい), which is "nostalgic." A mere linguistic coincidence.

And yet, for many of us, there's something unmistakably nostalgic about summer vacations, which are usually a privilege of youth. With the cool autumn wind now blowing in the trees, those who feel that summer was too short can surely sympathize with such feelings.

Japanese illustrator Natsuya なつや, whose name could be interpreted as "summer shop" or "summer dealer," has an unmistakable knack for encapsulating that nostalgic spirit through the iconography of Japanese summer. Set against a backdrop of ocean blue-green hues, Natsuya uses everything from popsicles, ramune bottles, watermelon slices, sports drinks, swimming rings, and sailor uniforms to create semi-abstract compositions.

A recurrent theme is water and transparency, either through the imagery of pools, the contents of a bottle or even a water-filled plastic bag, the kind of which you use to take home goldfish won at a kingyo-sukui (金魚すくい) goldfish scooping stand at a Japanese summer fair.

With Natsuya's gracious permission, we've reproduced a few illustrations here below, beginning with the one we just alluded to:

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Here, a certain famous Japanese sports drink brand name is partially replaced with the word "kurage," meaning jellyfish:

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A Morning Glory which blooms in mid-summer replaces the horn of an old-fashioned phonograph, while watermelons, swimming pools, and swimming rings feature on the records:

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This illustration combines an electronic device somewhat reminiscent of a first-generation iPod with a swimming pool:

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The shape of this popsicle transformed into a swimming pool is reminiscent of that of a Gari Gari Kun popsicle, the original version of which is colored blue and has a ramune flavor.

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In Japan, "cider" is the name for clear citrus-flavored soda. In this illustration, pouring out the contents of a carton of "Natsuya Cider" (an obvious play on words on a certain famous brand) reveals a section of a swimming pool with lanes visible at the bottom. There's something satisfying about seeing this cross-section of pool water as if it were some kind of jelly dessert...

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Speaking of desserts, here's a jelly cake with a nice vacation resort pool inside:

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Finally, here's what the doctor ordered for those who suffer from summer nostalgia. Be sure to follow the recommended dosage. (As for recommended BGM, we suggest Poolside.fm)

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If you'd like to see more amazing summery illustrations, follow Natsuya on Twitter.