An exploration of how war, uncertainty, and displacement inspired one of Japan’s greatest painters

Three essays by leading scholars in the field of Japanese art explore Sesson Shūkei’s unique life and unconventional painting style, as well as how scholarly perceptions of the artist have changed over time. Fifty-three entries highlight major works by Sesson as well as those by other artists before, during, and after his time.

Sesson Shūkei (ca. 1492 – ca. 1577) stands out as an anomaly in the history of Japanese art. Among the vast canon of Japanese ink painting, Sesson departed from convention. Inspired by the untamed landscape of the eastern regions of Japan, Sesson led a peripatetic existence caused by a lifetime of experiencing warfare and upheaval – yet he created some of the most visually striking images in the history of Japanese ink painting. Drawing on new art historical and sociological insights into Japan’s sixteenth century, this book considers how war, uncertainty, and displacement can spawn untamed creativity. This publication explores new ways of understanding and interpreting one of Japan’s greatest painters and the world that shaped him.

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Пролистать книгу Sesson Shukei: A Zen Monk-Painter in Medieval Japan

Following the former best-selling title; Heroes and Heroines, this title showcases the most trendy and updated illustrations by about 60 prominent character designers covering both video games and animation. Featuring a bilingual interview with Shiro Miwa, a leading comic artist who is also a character designer of 7th Dragon 2020 (cover art). Featured animations and video games designed from these titles: Girls and Panzer; Kantai Collection; Kill la Kill; Attack on Titan; METAL GEAR SOLID V; and much more.

Perfect the gift of giving. The only modern, practical guide to the ancient art of Japanese gift wrapping. Discover how to use Furoshiki - beautiful, reusable wrapping cloth, to make gift-giving extra special and joyful, and kinder to the planet too.

In Japan, gift-giving is an important cultural ritual, and the presentation is just as important as the gift itself. Learn 30 exquisite yet easy wrapping styles, involving knotted or intricately folded Furoshiki cloth, to wrap bottles, bouquets of flowers and other presents. You can also use Furoshiki to wrap and carry all sorts of everyday items.

With no cutting, sticking or waste, give thoughtful, beautiful gifts and say goodbye to single-use wrapping paper, bags and packaging for good.

About the Author:

Tomoko Kakita is a Japanese Furoshiki expert and an interior architect based in London, UK. She designs and sells her beautiful, nature-inspired Furoshiki at maspacedesign.com

Bringing together masterpieces from Japan's three great ukiyo-e collections, the exhibition catalogue of the historic UKIYO-E 2020 exhibition is now available worldwide!

This book is the exhibition catalogue for UKIYO-E 2020, an exhibition held in the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum from June 23 to September 22, 2020.

This exhibition has great significance because, for the first time ever, masterpieces from the Ōta Memorial Museum of Art, Japan, the Ukiyo-e Museum, and the Hiraki Ukiyo-e Foundation, museums that are reputed to be the three great collections of ukiyo-e in Japan both in quality and volume, were showcased together. The exhibition catalogue features 450 carefully selected ukiyo-e prints from the 17th to 19th centuries, offering superb coverage of the world's ukiyo-e masterpieces.

This book will not only become a timeless keepsake of a historic exhibition but will also be extremely valuable as the premier source covering the complete history of ukiyo-e.

"I lived in a haunted apartment." Davisson opens this definitive work on Japan's ghosts, or yurei, with a personal tale about the spirit world. Shifting from anecdotes to deep research to translation of ancient ghost stories, he explores the persistence of yurei in modern Japan and their continued popularity throughout the West. Colour images of yurei appear throughout the book.

About the Author:

Zack Davisson is an award-winning translator, writer, and scholar of Japanese folklore and ghosts. He is the author of Kaibyo: The Supernatural Cats of Japan (Chin Music Press), translator of Eisner Award-winning and Harvey-nominated Shigeru Mizuki’s Showa 1926-1939: A History of Japan, and a 2014 nominee of the Japanese-US Friendship Commission Translation Prize. Other translation works include the famous folklore comic Kitaro (Drawn and Quarterly) and the works of Satoshi Kon (Dark Horse).

Ghosts, demons, Yokai... This is the nightmarish collection of supernatural beings from Japanese folklore as portrayed in Ukiyo-e masterpieces!

Japanese folklore is a goldmine of terrifying supernatural Yokai monsters, demons, phantoms. A large number of Ukiyo-e woodblock printings created in Edo period (1603-1868) depict these monstrous beings in the illustrations of popular folk tales and horror stories. This book contains 70 Yurei (ghosts), Oni (demons), Kaijin (sorcerers) and Yokai (supernatural monsters) with a basic introduction to each creature s story in Japanese /  English bilingual text.

These phantoms and monsters are described vividly in 120 Ukiyo-e art pieces, all created by great masters such as Hokusai, Hiroshige, Kuniyoshi and so on, giving readers a clear and terrifying image of what such supernatural figures might look like.

These images have been passed down through the years, and many art genres in Japan today, including manga and games, are heavily influenced by them. This is the best reference book for Japanese art lovers, folk culture lovers, as well as Japanese pop-culture lovers. It also offers fresh ideas for those searching for new inspirations for tattoo art and design.

A lavish survey of the Khalili Collection’s world-renowned holdings of traditional Japanese kimono, from the Edo period to the 20th century.

The Khalili Collection of kimonos comprises over 200 garments spanning 300 years of Japanese textile artistry. The form of the T-shaped, straight-seamed, front-wrapping kimono has changed very little over the centuries, yet the collection reveals an astonishing variety of designs. The garments presented here convey the remarkable creativity of designers who produced works of art that would enfold the wearer. The enormous range of patterns were executed in a complex combination of techniques, with some garments requiring the expert skills of a number of different artisans.

The Khalili Collection includes formal, semi-formal and informal kimono, underkimono and jackets, worn by women, men and children. Represented are the sophisticated garments of the samurai elite and the affluent merchant classes of the Edo period (1603– 1868), the shifting styles and new colour palette of Meiji-period dress (1868–1912) and particularly the bold and dazzling kimono of the Taisho- (1912–26) and early Sho-wa (1926–89) eras, which utilized innovative techniques and drew fresh inspiration from both past traditions and the modern world.

Here, an international team of authors examine the art and evolution of the kimono in the historical context of the 17th to the 20th centuries, under the editorship of Anna Jackson, Keeper of the Asian Department at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

Contents List:

Introduction • I. Edo (1603–1868) • II. Meiji (1868–1912) • III. Taisho/Showa (1912–1989)

About the Author:

Anna Jackson is Keeper of the Asian department at the Victoria and Albert Museum, and Honorary Curator of the Khalili Collection.

The first book to chronicle the golden age of Japanese bicycle design.

Japanese bicycles have long been at the forefront of both competitive and recreational cycling — from top-flight racing bicycles to collectible custom fixed-gear frames. This comprehensive and stunningly illustrated book presents a fascinating overview of the most prolific and celebrated period of Japanese bicycle design, between the 1950s and the ’80s, when uniquely talented artisanal craftsmen produced some of the most iconic bicycles of the twentieth century.

From the recognizable silhouettes of major manufacturers like Fuji, Panasonic, and Bridgestone to the rarest frames from artisanal builders like 3-Rensho or Nagasawa, Japanese bicycle designers dominated the cycling world and created machines that are still revered today. Illustrated with specially commissioned photographs of fully restored bikes, and supplemented with artifacts and ephemera from technical manuals to photography of the legendary Keirin racing circuits, this book is must-have for anyone with an interest in cycling and the phenomenon of Japanese design.

About the Author:

William Bevington is an information and product development designer, a passionate collector of Japanese bicycles and cycling ephemera, and the foremost authority on the leading Japanese brand Fuji.

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Пролистать книгу Japanese Steel: Classic Bicycle Design from Japan на сайте издательства.

Fujoshi, or Yaoi fandom supporters of femme gay media aimed at teenage girls represent an ever-increasing market in Japan. Best of Bishonen presents an up-to-date art collection of beautiful boys popular with Fujoshi or Yaoi girls. 

Seventy-nine artists are featured within, with details in Japanese and English. 

Some of the artworks are actually sought-after illustrations taken from the popular online game Touken Ranbu (in which players control legendary swords anthropomorphized as attractive young men) and Vocaloid PV. 

Best of Bishonen promises to satisfy Fujoshi girls with its unique claim as the complete Yaoi art collection! Best of Bishonen is also an indispensable book for anyone wishing to sample the visual pulse of this exciting trend. Additionally, five artists have created new original works exclusively for this project. 

Featured illustrators include: Shishunnki Suzuki Jiro Naoe Marimo Nao Tsukiji Fuji Mitsuya Toinana Aomiya Kara Shikimi Nagarenaitessyu And more!...

In the field of graphic design, Japanese graphics has established its unique reputation around the world. This book sorts out the development of Japanese graphics into three stages: postwar 40 years, the golden 10 years and the 21st century to the current. Along the way, briefly talk about Japanese aesthetics, Japanese tea ceremony, Japanese traditional painting and manga in order to explore the cultural roots of Japanese graphics.

A large quantity of graphic works by Japanese designers are displayed under four categories: Logo, Poster & Book, Branding and Packaging. To deepen the understanding of Japanese graphics and its development, this book features articles written by renowned designers, including Masaaki Hiromura, Daigo Daikoku, Eisuke Tachikawa, Masaomi Fujita, Eriko Kawakami and Ren Takaya.

1. A comprehensive introduction of the development of Japanese graphics after WWII and masters emerging from corresponding stages.
2. A brief talk the cultural roots of Japanese graphics — Japanese aesthetic, Japanese tea ceremony, Yamato-e, Ukiyo-e and manga
3. Articles written by eminent designers, such as Masaaki Hiromura, Daigo Daikoku
4. A collection of excellent graphic works by Japanese designers

Ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world") is an art form that originated in the metropolitan culture of Edo (Tokyo) in the early seventeenth century and involved collaboration between artist, carver, printer and publisher. Printed on fragile paper using a technique of woodcut or woodblock printing, the early black and white designs soon gave way to delicate two-colour prints and then to multicoloured prints. Favourite subjects were portraits of beautiful geisha and courtesans, popular kabuki actors and sumo wrestlers, erotica, scenes from nature, historical subjects and even foreigners in Japan.

The charming, carefully selected ukiyo-e in this book reflect not only Japan's rich history and way of life but also reveal the author's love affair with an art form that has captured the imagination of people all over the world./p>

At the heart of a Japanese garden is harmony with nature. More than simply a landscape of trees and flowering shrubs, a Japanese garden provides a place of serenity and rest, filled with peaceful spots that lend themselves to meditation and contemplation. Japanese Gardens celebrates and illustrates this ideal, showcasing the exquisite natural beauty of more than 20 quintessentially Japanese gardens-big and small, urban and rural, traditional and contemporary.

The expert author-and-photographer team behind this book excels at capturing and explaining the essential elements and techniques that distinguish Japanese gardens from those of other countries. The featured sites range from large feudal period gardens, temple gardens and private and countryside gardens to mountain flower gardens, tea gardens and gardens devoted to miniature bonsai.

Enter the world of the stylish Japanese house, where every object in sight is a work of art. Japan Style introduces 20 special residences. With more than 200 color photographs, this book showcases the stunning beauty of old homes, and reveals how they are cared for by their owners.

Traditional Japanese homes, with superbly crafted fine wood, great workmanship and seasonal interior arrangements, have an aesthetic of infinite simplicity. Unlike Japanese inns and historical buildings, the houses featured in this book are private property and are not open to public viewing.

Japan Style offers a rare glimpse into the intimate world of the everyday Japanese and fascinating insight into the traditional architecture of Japan.

The entire fascinating story of Japan told in one exciting manga-style volume!

A History of Japan in Manga tells the action-packed saga of Japan from its misty origins up to the present day. Epic battles, noble Samurai and duplicitous leaders are all portrayed in modern manga fashion! The lively stories in this book include:

- The Dawn of Japan: The Birth of Buddhism and the transition from hunters—gatherers to agricultural societies of ancient times
- The Genpei Wars: Davage battles between the Taira and Minamoto clans that led to the powerful warlord Minamoto no Yoritomo naming himself Japan's first Shogun
- The Onin Wars: A decade-long struggle for domination of Japan in which thousands of Samurai fought and tragically lost their lives
- The 47 Ronin: Loyal Samurai who vowed to avenge the death of their master, choosing honor over surrender and being forced to commit mass ritual suicide as a result
- The Satsuma Rebellion: A dramatic last stand by Samurai loyal to the Shogun who revolted against the new Meiji government and its plans to finally modernize Japan
-  And many more!

Dozens of indelible portraits, manga stories, maps and info-sidebars bring the full sweep of Japanese history to life in one easy-to-read book!

About the Author:

Shunichiro Kanaya is a lecturer in the Department of Japanese History at Toshin High School in Musashino, Japan. He is the author of several books on Japanese history and has appeared as a history commentator on NTV, Fuji TV and TV Tokyo.

Zack Davisson is an award-winning translator, writer, and folklorist. He is the author of books like Kaibyo: The Supernatural Cats of Japan, Yurei: The Japanese Ghost, and Yokai Stories, and the translator of books like Soseki Natsume's I Am a Cat and Shigeru Mizuki's multiple Eisner Award-winning Showa: a History of Japan. In addition, his comic work includes Demon Days: X-Men from Marvel, Wayward from Image, and The Art of Star Wars Visions from Dark Horse. He has lectured on manga, folklore, and translation at numerous colleges and contributed to exhibitions at numerous museums. He currently lives in Seattle, WA with his wife Miyuki, dog Mochi, cat Shere Khan, and several ghosts.

An introduction to the Japanese art of living of Ogata through the vision of its founder, Shinichiro Ogata.

As an expert in the cultures and traditions of ancient Japan, Shinichiro Ogata has dedicated himself to a contemporary reinvention of this solemn yet simple ideal of a harmonious life. His eponymous spaces in Japan and Paris are at once a tea salon, pastry shop, restaurant, bar, art gallery, and crafts and housewares store where every element is infused with a pared-back, refined style, holistically in tune with surroundings and nature.

Beautifully printed, this elegant volume provides a comprehensive overview of Japanese art of living, with chapters on tea, cuisine, wagashi (traditional confections), crafts, fragrance, and floral art. Readers are invited to consider a new outlook, nourished by millennia-old traditions and materialized through exquisite objects and sensorial experiences. Each section explores the details and innovative possibilities for deeply rooted traditions as well as the social and aesthetic rules that sustain them, while beautiful photographs showcase Ogata’s signature design as well as its flagship Paris space. Written in the first person, Shinichiro Ogata’s text offers a deeper understanding of his creative process and unique aesthetic vision. This is an exquisite book for aficionados of Japanese refinement and craftsmanship.

About the Authors:

Shinichiro Ogata is a Japanese designer. He founded Simplicity Co., Ltd. in 1998, a multidisciplinary company with activities ranging from a design studio to tea, cuisine, wagashi, crafts, and other fields. Ogata opened in Paris in 2020. Dennis Paphitis is the founder of Aesop. Kei Osawa is a French-Japanese researcher and curator at the University Museum, the University of Tokyo.

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Пролистать книгу Ogata: Reinventing the Japanese Art of Living​  на сайте издательства.