Now available in a beautiful new edition, this book presents a meditative, arresting and dazzling collection of 240 black-and-white images of Japan, made over almost 30 years by the internationally renowned photographer Michael Kenna.

A rocky coast along the Sea of Japan; an immense plain of rice fields in the snow; Mount Fuji towering over misty wooded hills; silent temples devoid of people but brimming with Buddhist deities; a Torii gate mysteriously emerging from moving clouds and water ― these are a few images from this remarkable collection of photographs by Michael Kenna, whose black-and-white work is highly renowned. Forms of Japan, brilliantly designed by Yvonne Meyer-Lohr, is organized into chapters simply titled, “Sea,” “Land,” “Trees,” “Spirit,” and “Sky.”

The quietly evocative photographs, often paired with classic haiku poems of Basho, Buson, Issa and others, provide a contemplative portrait of a country better-known for its energy and industry. Gorgeously reproduced to convey the enormous subtleties that exist in Michael Kenna’s traditional black-and-white silver prints, the photographs in this book include both well-known and previously unpublished images from all corners of Japan: Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, Okinawa and Shikoku.

About the Authors:

Michael Kenna is an English photographer, now based in Seattle, USA, best known for his black-and-white landscapes. More than 60 books and monographs have been published on his photographic work, including "Buddha", "Holga", "Rouge", and "St. Joseph’s College, Upholland" (all by Prestel).

Yvonne Meyer-Lohr is a designer and author based in Düsseldorf, Germany.

Japanese swords, particularly those wielded by famous samurai warriors, hold a continuing fascination for collectors of fine arts and historical military weapons. This book is designed to enhance one's appreciation for the wide variety of Japanese swords (as well as their related polearms), their manufacture and their preservation.

A fascinating opening chapter explains how the elite Samurai class dominated Japan for more than a thousand years, how technological and ideological advances overtook the Samurai in the 1860s, heralding a more up-to-date political and military system of governance, and how such changes affected Samurai sword design and manufacture.

Subsequent chapters present topics of greatest relevance to today's sword collector: namely, the modern Japanese sword; different types of swords and their construction and testing; collecting and studying Japanese swords (and the tremendously important etiquette involved); and techniques of preserving and polishing swords.

This book is beautifully illustrated with paintings, photographs, drawings, and maps. In addition, there is an in-depth glossary and useful tables explaining Japanese calligraphic symbols relating to swords, both of great value to the collector.

About the Author:

Clive Sinclaire is an instructor in the kendo form of martial arts and has been collecting Japanese swords for more than forty years. He is Chairman of the To-ken Society of Great Britain and frequently writes articles on Japanese sword culture and collecting that are featured on the society's website (www.To-ken.com) as well as in magazines. He has become a frequent visitor to Japan in the course of his research and studies, and in particular to the NBTHK (Nihon Bijitsu To-ken Hozon Kyodai) sword shows.

‘You will have a moment of quiet delight and a mood of introspection to carry you away.’ Edmund de Waal.

Prized by collectors from East to West, Japanese netsuke are tiny objects of wonder that originated as utilitarian accessories for traditional Japanese dress. Over the centuries these small carved toggles, designed to hook over the top of the kimono sash, evolved into high-fashion depictions of all aspects of Japanese life.

In this richly illustrated and highly accessible book, Julia Hutt draws on the V&A’s world-famous netsuke collection to explore the origins and techniques of this captivating art form.

About the Author:

Julia Hutt is Curator of Japanese Art in the Asian Department at the V&A. Edmund de Waal is a world-renowned ceramics artist and author of The Hare with the Amber Eyes

The best of Tokyo cuisine and culture, from AM to PM.

A Day in Tokyo is a culinary journey through one of the world's most vibrant cities.

From the bustling streets of Shinjuku to the hidden corners of Ueno, this book takes you on a delicious food adventure from breakfast through to dinner, showcasing the diverse tastes and ingredients of Japanese cuisine. Start the day with unbelievably fluffy Funwari Hottokeki, dive into some Tokyo-born Yakisoba Pan for a much-earned midday break and end the night with crunchy and tender Tonkatsu.

Capture the delicious flavours of Tokyo at home with 70 recipes and insider tips on where to find the best local eats. A Day in Tokyo is the ultimate book for food and travel enthusiasts.

About the Authors:

Brendan Liew and Caryn Ng have spent more than a decade travelling to Japan, traversing its cities and rural countryside to explore, learn and live the local culture and cuisine. In 2016, they established a pop-up Japanese restaurant, Chotto, in Melbourne, bringing traditional ryokan-style breakfasts to the city. The cafe transported diners to Japan on a cultural and culinary journey spanning old and new, inspired by everything from countryside dinners on the Nakasendo trail, to the food of Japan's far north and deep south, and the animated feasts of Studio Ghibli.
A chef by training, Brendan has worked at restaurants including Kadeau in Copenhagen and Benu in San Francisco, and the three-Michelin-starred Nihonryori Ryugin in Tokyo and Hong Kong. He studied the craft of ramen making in Osaka before settling on specialising in kappo and modern kaiseki cuisine.

From the author of global bestseller Japan: The Cookbook, more than 250 delicious, healthy vegetarian Japanese recipes for home cooks

In this collection of new recipes, Nancy Singleton Hachisu, the most authoritative voice in Japanese home cooking today, showcases Japanese vegetarian dishes, bringing the exquisite flavors of the nation’s elegant cuisine to those who follow a plant-based diet or want to lower the amount of fish and meat they eat.

Recipes are divided by cooking style – dressed, vinegared, deep-fried, simmered, steamed, stir-fried, grilled, pickled, and sweet – alongside which Hachisu shares her expert knowledge of the ingredients, culture, and traditions of this unique culinary style.

‘Extraordinary … a must-have book for anyone who loves vegetables!’ – Amanda Cohen, James Beard-nominated chef and owner of Dirt Candy

About the Author:

Nancy Singleton Hachisu is a native Californian who has lived with her Japanese farmer husband in Saitama prefecture since 1988. She is the James Beard Award-winning author of five books, including Japan: The Vegetarian Cookbook and Japan: The Cookbook. Hachisu has written for The Art of Eating, Lucky Peach, Saveur, Food & Wine, Travel & Leisure, National Geographic Food, and BBC Travel, and she participated in the ‘Salt’ episode of the Netflix series Salt Fat Acid Heat.

With over 300 stunning photographs and woodblock prints along with extensive historical and cultural commentary, Japanese Swords is the ultimate authority on Samurai weaponry.

Historically, Japanese warriors considered their swords to be more elevated than simple weaponry. Their swords were both lethal tools and divine companions -- social and religious icons. Traditionally worn by the samurai as a sign of social status, the Japanese sword represented the junction between the ruling military class and those whom they ruled. Moreover, the samurai sword was a technological and artistic marvel. Many scholars consider it to be the finest sword ever constructed.

Concerning symbolism and historical importance, no other blade comes close to the Japanese sword. With a historical, iconographical, and technological perspective, author Cohn M. Roach provides an in-depth study of these magnificent weapons in Japanese Swords. This richly illustrated sword book weaves the blade's primary influences together, tracking its history and illuminating its progress from infancy to grandeur. By studying the evolution of the Japanese sword from this perspective, we better understand Japan and its warrior archetype.

Combining research materials from multiple disciplines, Roach uses his expertise as an educator to guide readers through the sword's rise to greatness in a unique way. This book discusses the history, development, and spiritual symbolism of the sword, as well as the esoteric metallurgical techniques used in making it. It also covers the intense training practices used by skilled swordsmen.

Japanese Swords also includes accompanying online videos featuring a beautifully-filmed documentary that explores the traditional swordmaker's craft, an introduction to the Japanese sword at a sword shop in Kyoto and a visit to a dojo for a beginner's class in the medieval sword-drawing art called iaido.

About the Author:

Colin M. Roach, M.Ed. lives in the high mountains of Utah with his wife and three sons. He is a private school administrator with expertise in the areas of differentiated teaching and learning, and a member of the All Kinds of Minds Institute's national teaching faculty. Mr. Roach is an avid student of Japanese history, culture, and martial arts. Four generations of familial connection to Japan have fueled Mr. Roach's passionate study of Japan's archetypal warrior culture. In addition to his academic study of sword-related symbolism, he has trained with some of the top teachers of aikido and iaido in Japan and America. He holds the ranks of Youdan (4th degree) in iado and Sandan (3rd degree) in aikido. He also holds the teaching title ""Shidoin" in both arts. Mr. Roach often travels to teach sword-related symbolism, traditional Japanese swordsmanship, the etiquette involved when handling a Japanese sword, and iado's role in cultural preservation.

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Пролистать книгу Japanese Swords: Cultural Icons of a Nation: Cultural Icons of a Nation: The History, Metallurgy and Iconography of the Samurai Sword на Google Books.

Yokai Attack! is a nightmare-inducing one-stop guide to Japan's traditional monsters and creepy-crawlies.

Yokai are ethereal sorts of beings, like ghosts, nearly always encountered at night; everyone has their own take on how they might look in real life and what sorts of specific characteristics and abilities they might have. This book is the result of long hours spent poring over data and descriptions from a variety of sources, including microfilms of eighteenth-century illustrations from the National Diet Library in Tokyo, in order to bring you detailed information on almost 50 of these amazing creatures for the first time in English.

Illustrations, created by the talented Tatsuya Morino, detail the potential appearance of each yokai. Alongside each illustration is a series of "data points," with each yokai's significant features at a glance -- especially handy for any potential close encounters.

Yokai Attack! will surely convince you that Japan's tradition of fascinating monsters is a long one -- yet far from being history.
Book 1 of 3 in the Yokai Attack! series. Others include Ninja Attack! and Yurei Attack!

About the Author:

Matt Alt and Hiroko Yoda are a husband and wife team who run a Tokyo-based translation company that specializes in producing the English versions of Japanese video games, comic books, and literature. They are the co-authors of Ninja Attack! and Yurei Attack!, both originally published by Kodansha International and with new expanded editions from Tuttle Publishing.

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Пролистать книгу Yokai Attack!: The Japanese Monster Survival Guide на Google Books.

This collection of projects by the "father of modern origami" contains detailed instructions for 60 of the master's original works.

Master origami artist Akira Yoshizawa was a true innovator who played a seminal role in the rebirth of origami in the modern world. He served as a bridge between past and present -- between the ancient traditional craft and the development of origami as a contemporary practice -- inventing new techniques and in preserving the traditional Japanese forms. In fact, the notational system of diagrams widely used today to indicate how models are folded was developed mainly by him. Above all, Yoshizawa was responsible for elevating origami to the status of an art form.

This beautiful origami book is the first comprehensive survey of the extraordinary work of Akira Yoshizawa. In addition to 60 models from his private collection, it features over 1,000 original drawings by the artist, and English translations of his writings in Japanese on origami, all of which are published here for the very first time.

Origami projects include:

- The Koinobori and the Helmet
- Butterflies of Every Kind
- Fairy Tale Crowns and Caps
- The Lion Mask
- The Tengu Masks

and much more!

Akira Yoshizawa also contains an explanation of the Master's personal philosophy of origami by Yoshizawa's widow, Kiyo Yoshizawa and an insightful introduction from Robert Lang, a leading artist and exponent of origami art in the West.

About the Author:

Born in 1911, Akira Yoshizawa is the father of modern origami. The publication of his first collection of models in the early 1950s caused a major sensation. In 1954, he founded the International Origami Centre in Tokyo. In 1955, his original works were exhibited for the first time at a show in Amsterdam, an enormously successful event that introduced him to the West. It was during these years that he came up with a system of notation based on a series of symbols and graphic signs indicating various types of folds and thus created a method that was later adopted by many origami artists and is still in use today. In subsequent decades Yoshizawa folded and taught origami, published books on the art, and participated in innumerable events on an international scale. As his fame spread throughout the world, he came to be seen as the most distinguished representative of the art, a pioneer of many techniques used in modern origami. Yoshizawa died in 2005, on the day of his 94th birthday.
 

An insider's look at the myriad styles of private homes of Japan, showing how Japanese interior design continues to evolve in a new era.

Exploring the art and craft of Japanese residential interiors, author Mihoko Iida provides an insider's look into the wide-ranging interior design of her country's private homes. Featuring twenty-eight exemplary residences around Japan – from urban apartments to mountain and seaside escapes – the book showcases aspirational minimalist homes alongside functional live/work spaces and traditional historic dwellings.

Throughout, Iida demonstrates the enduring philosophy of integrating the natural landscape into the home, and details the influences and continuing evolution of Japanese interior design. The book also showcases homes designed by some of Japan's top architects, such as Kengo Kuma, nendo, Koji Fujii, Arata Endo, and Takamitsu Azuma.

'It’s not just a sumptuous survey of the country’s design - it’s also a love letter to the spaces we inhabit.' - T: The New York Times Style Magazine

About the Authors:

Mihoko Iida is the executive features editor of Vogue Japan.

Danielle Demetriou is a British writer and editor who has lived in Japan since 2007, and is often found traveling across the country, writing design, architecture and lifestyle stories for international magazines, newspapers and books.

Superb Yokai images from the world's leading museums and private collections!

Japan's vast pantheon of supernatural creatures includes demons (yokai), monsters, ogres (oni), ghosts (yurei) and magicians--mythical beings from folklore and popular culture which continue to thrill readers of traditional stories and manga today.

This richly illustrated book by Andreas Marks, the leading authority on Japanese woodblock prints, presents authentic illustrations and descriptions of 100 different creatures, including:

- Bakeneko: Monster cats in human form who lick lamp oil and prey on humans born in the year of the Rat
- Han'nya: Female demons with sharp and pointed horns, metallic eyes and a smirking smile
- Hihi: Large ape-like monsters who live in the mountains and have superhuman strength, enabling them to kidnap and kill humans
- Mikoshi-nyudo: Yokai with an enormously extended necks who appear only at night
- And many more!

The striking visual examples in this book are drawn from the rich canon of early Japanese prints, books, and paintings--sourced from leading museums, libraries and private collections worldwide. They show the "original" forms and appearances of the creatures which form the basis for all subsequent depictions.

Also included are two long handscrolls from the Minneapolis Institute of Art (A Collection of Monsters and Night Parade of One Hundred Demons) which are reproduced here for the very first time.

Prints and Paintings sourced from the following list of museums, libraries and private collections:

Art Institute of Chicago
Christie's, London & New York
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Harold B. Lee Library, Brigham Young University
Kyoto University, Main Library
Library of Congress
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Minneapolis Institute of Art
National Museum of Japanese History
Princeton University Library
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
Smithsonian Libraries

About the Author:

Dr. Andreas Marks is the Mary Griggs Burke Curator of Japanese and Korean Art and director of the Clark Center for Japanese Art at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. From 2008 to 2013 he was the director and chief curator of the Clark Center for Japanese Art and Culture in California. He has a Ph.D. from Leiden University in the Netherlands and a master's degree in East Asian Art History from the University of Bonn, Germany. A specialist of Japanese woodblock prints, he is the author of 18 books. In 2014, he received the International Ukiyo-e Society award in recognition of his research and publications. In 2018, he received a book award from the International Fine Print Dealers Association.

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Пролистать книгу Japanese Yokai and Other Supernatural Beings: Authentic Paintings and Prints of 100 Ghosts, Demons, Monsters and Magicians на Google Books.

A modern approach to traditional Japanese floral design.

Award-winning flower designer Shinichi Nagatsuka explains how anyone can create beautiful arrangements using his signature N Style method. Easy to follow, it is based on accent lines rather than the complex system of rules used for traditional Ikebana.

Accent lines are the natural shapes of the flowers themselves -- which means vertical arrangements require a different eye than horizontal or round ones, for example. By understanding how the shapes of flowers and plants affect your design, you'll learn to choose just the right ones to achieve your desired look and feel.

With over 280 color photos and 42 projects, Modern Japanese Ikebana unlocks the mysteries of the art of Ikebana. By following the N Style method, you can bring a natural flow to your arrangements, achieving balance and overall harmony of design.

About the Author:

Shinichi Nagatsuka is an award-winning floral designer whose work has graced such events as the ceremony marking the Dalai Lama's visit to Japan and others. His authored works cover ikebana at all levels, from the most basic to the most intricate, including Tuttle's Easy Ikebana. He is an active instructor who has made numerous television appearances in his native Japan, in which he demonstrates design basics and tutorials for quick flower arrangements. He is president of N Flower Design International, an instructional network teaching floral design throughout Japan. You can watch his popular videos at youtube.com/user/charisumaflower2.

A captivating and comprehensive guide to Japan's elite class of warriors -- revised and updated with over 70 color photographs!

The Samurai played a leading role in Japanese society for centuries, and this is the first encyclopedia to showcase the fascinating history and culture of these enigmatic warriors. With a new foreword by Samurai scholar and martial arts expert Alexander Bennet and over 70 new color photographs, this newly designed edition offers the most comprehensive and enticing collection of Samurai information available today.

This book contains 171 highly detailed alphabetical entries and essays on a broad variety of intriguing topics, including the following:

- Samurai weapons and armor, including the fearsome katana sword
- Famous Samurai including Miyamoto Musashi, Japan's greatest swordsman; Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa shogunate; and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, a unifier of Japan and notorious persecutor of Christians in the 16th century
- The Battle of Sekigahara, the largest battle ever to take place in Japan, and the Boshin War, which led to the fall of the shogunate and restoration of imperial power
- The Bushido code -- the legendary Samurai code of chivalry and honor

The new foreword by renowned Samurai historian Alexander Bennett provides expert insights into the lives and philosophy of the Samurai. Also included are many informative sidebars, suggestions for further reading, a selection of primary sources, and over 125 illustrations.

About the Authors:

Constantine Nomikos Vaporis is a professor of history at the University of Maryland, Baltimore where he teaches Japanese and East Asian History. He has received prestigious research fellowships, including a Fulbright Scholar's Award and an NEH grant. His books include Breaking Barriers: Travel and the State in Early Modern Japan and Tour of Duty: Samurai, Military Service in Edo and the Culture of Early Modern Japan. He recently collaborated with TedEd to produce an educational animated short film entitled "A Day in the Life of a Teenage Samurai."

Alexander Bennett is a professor of Japanese history and Budo theory at Kansai University. He co-founded and continues to publish Kendo World, the first English-language journal dedicated to Kendo. He holds black belts in several martial disciplines including Kendo Kyoshi 7-dan, Iaido 5-dan, and Naginata 5-dan. His published works include The Complete Musashi: The Book of Five Rings and Other Works and Hagakure: The Secret Wisdom of the Samurai.

Illustrations: over 125 archival images, including 70 in full-color

Learn how to create a tranquil outdoor space at home with this practical and inspiring guide!

With instructive drawings and step-by-step techniques, Inside Your Japanese Garden walks you through designing and creating your very own Japanese garden. From small projects like benches and gates, to larger undertakings like bridges and mud walls, this book provides a wide variety of ways to enhance the space around your home, no matter the size. Instructions on how to work with stone, mud and bamboo -- as well as a catalogue of the 94 plant varieties used in the gardens shown in the book -- round out this complete guide.

This book also features 19 gardens that author Sadao Yasumoro has designed and built in Japan, and some -- like those at Visvim shop in Tokyo and at Yushima Tenjin in Tokyo--are open to the public. From small tsuboniwa courtyard gardens to a large backyard stroll garden with water features, stairs and walls, these real-life inspirations will help spark your own garden plan.

These inspirational garden projects include:

- Tea Garden for an Urban Farmhouse featuring a clay wall with a split-bamboo frame and a stone base
- The Landslide That Became a Garden with a terraced slope, trees, bushes, long grasses and moss
- A Buddha's Mountain Retreat of Moss and Stone with vertical-split bamboo and brushwood fencing
- Paradise in an Urban Jungle with a pond, Japanese-style bridge, and stone lanterns

Each garden is beautifully photographed by Hironori Tomino and many have diagrams and drawings to show the essential elements used in the planning and construction.

About the Authors:

Joseph Cali was born and raised in New York City and graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design with a degree in Fine Art and Painting. He has lived and worked in Japan as an interior designer, graphic designer, copywriter and illustrator for over 30 years. His work has appeared in numerous books and publications. He is the coauthor, with Azby Brown, of The Japanese Dream House. His other books include The New Zen Garden and Create Your Own Japanese Garden.

Sadao Yasumoro, now in his eighties, has been a Japanese garden designer and builder for over 60 years. After high school he traveled all around Japan to study nature and visit the country's great gardens, and was deeply moved by the beauty of garden landscapes made by unknown masters. He went on to study under some of Japan's most famous garden designers, including Katsuo Saito. Yasumuro's work has appeared in many publications in Japan. This is his first book in English.

Illustrations: over 300 photographs and plans; 20 inspirational projects

A detailed examination of the beautiful and sensitively realized addition to the famed Portland Japanese Garden by contemporary Japanese architect Kengo Kuma.

Kengo Kuma: Portland Japanese Garden introduces the star Japanese architect's first public project in the United States. Kuma won the Portland Japanese Garden invitational competition by proposing a design that, while executed with contemporary materials and the latest construction technology, also builds on the principles of traditional architecture and craftsmanship. The resulting group of small buildings superbly blends with its magnificent natural environment and provides an outstanding example of Kuma's artistry of seamlessly connecting nature and architecture as well as past and present without falling into the trap of mimicry or sentimentality.

The book includes chapters on the reverence of nature and Japanese culture, on architecture and gardens in Japan, on the architecture of Kengo Kuma beyond the garden, and on craftsmanship and design, as well as on the new buildings and the garden itself, which is widely considered the most beautiful such garden outside Japan.

About the Authors:

Botond Bognar is Professor and Edgar A. Tafel Endowed Chair in Architecture at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Professor Bognar is an internationally renowned scholar of the history and theories of contemporary Japanese architecture and urbanism. He has written some twenty books and monographs, more than thirty chapters to books, and many essays and articles in professional journals. He is the recipient of several distinguished awards and recognitions including an Arnold O. Beckman Fellowship, a Japan Foundation Fellowship, the Architectural Institute of Japan (AIJ) Cultural Appreciation Prize, and many others. Balázs Bognár is an architect and partner at Kengo Kuma & Associates in Tokyo, Japan, and served as project architect for the "cultural crossing" at the Portland Japanese Garden. Kengo Kuma is a celebrated Japanese architect and principal of Kengo Kuma and Associates. He is a professor at the Graduate School of Architecture at the University of Tokyo.

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Пролистать книгу Kengo Kuma: Portland Japanese Garden

A lavishly illustrated history of Japanese screens — limited to 3,000 numbered copies

Japanese screens (byobu, meaning “barrier against the wind”) are made of wooden lattices with two to twelve panels, covered with a paper or fabric canvas. They are unique for being beautiful artworks as well as portable furnishings, acting as backdrops for court ceremonies or partitions for intimate tea services. Artists have embraced screens as three-dimensional objects, creating dynamic compositions that guide the viewer’s eye from one panel to the next.

This sumptuous book explores the 1,300-year history of Japanese screens. The authors, leading experts on Japanese art and culture, describe how screens developed from the eighth to the twenty-first century, from their ceremonial use in palaces and temples to their functional and decorative use in ordinary Japanese homes. They examine the stylistic evolution of screens and the wide variety of subjects, such as animals, the seasons, The Tale of Genji, and calligraphic designs.

Bound in the Japanese style and housed in a handsome clamshell box, this volume also comes with a poster-sized reproduction of an exceptional screen, suitable for framing. Japanese Screens will be an essential addition to any art lover’s library.

About the Authors:

Anne-Marie Christin was professor emeritus of classical literature at the University of Paris, founder of the Center for the Study of Writing and Image (CEEI), and author of A History of Writing.

Torahiko Terada is a professor of comparative culture and literature at the University of Tokyo.

Claire-Akiko Brisset is a professor of Japanese cultural history at the University of Geneva.