In recent years, it has been common in Japan that people show “V sign,” sticking out fore finger and middle finger, when taken pictures. This sign started thirty some years ago during the Vietnam War. Young protesters in America printed the sign on T-shirts that they wore as a symbol of the anti-war movement. The sign became popular among young people in many countries including Japan. In Japan, the “V sign” was first seen in TV dramas on sports, and then started to be used during sport games. Because people usually associated the sign with victory, they rarely called the sign the “peace sign".
Several years passed, and a TV commercial of a camera brand was aired in which an actor quite popular at that time was making the “V sign.” He uttered the word “peace” while making the sign. The commercial was a big success. The word “peace” that the actor said was not interpreted in Japan as containing any political meanings. The commercial was so influential that a number of people started to make the “V sign” when taken pictures. At first, only youngsters around twenty years old were making V signs, and it gradually affected high school students, middle school students, and then elementary school students. Now people of all ages, from toddlers to the aged, make the “V sign”. One possible explanation of this sign having been this widely-accepted in Japan is cultural and historical. When taken pictures, people outside Japan often do not hesitate to openly express themselves by making a variety of poses. On the contrary, Japanese people traditionally pursed their lips tightly and stood up straight. To Japanese people, who are still quite shy about openly making poses, the "V sign", in which they use as few as two fingers, may be the most suitable way at this point to express themselves when taken pictures.
↑ I am sorry for my poor care and wording. My intention is that I want you to draw you design similar to the picture I transfered the other day. It is a design for T-shirt. Incidentally we have only one picture.