Green Bear’s New Outfit

　The intense heat is set to continue until the end of this weekend, and it is said that, for the first time this year in Osaka, there will be a day when the temperature does not drop below 30 degrees even at night.

　The Green Bear at Umeda Kita Plaza. Its official name is TED HYBER, and since its installation at an event in April 2018, it has become a beloved symbol of Umeda.

　It was created by the French visual artist Fabrice Hyber. ‘Ted Hyber’ is a portmanteau combining ‘Teddy Bear’ with his surname, ‘Hyber’. For the artist, whose work centres on the connection between nature and humankind, green is a symbolic colour, and the bear is said to represent himself.

　He changes his outfit for every major event; for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, he was dressed as a rugby player. Until the end of this month, he is wearing a happi coat to coincide with the ‘Umeda Yukata Festival 2026’.