Rating: 
Summary: Ordinary Tokyo Apartments Circa 1992
Review: Contrary to the American media's presentation of urban Tokyo as home exclusively to Japan's wealthy, this book shows that like every city Tokyo also has room for students, artists, and young professionals who'd rather live in a cramped flat than suffer the long commutes to suburbia.Filled with hundreds of small color photos this book shows city apartment living as it really is. Some apartments are sloppy, others tidy, some are without furntiture, others have too much, but all the flats are small and affordable. This book is geared toward those who want to see how Tokyo urbanites really live, not those who are looking for a style guide for living in small spaces. The subjects have no better talent or budget for decorating than New Yorkers, Londoners or any other equivalent average urbanite. While I enjoyed the book, it's worth noting that the photos appear to have been taken in 1992. of some of the more technologically focused flats, the photos already seem dated.
Rating:
Summary: A Pig-pen's delight
Review: I had seen a review of the book originally somewhere (I think Met. Home) and thought it would give my wife (a class 5 stacker and slob extraordinaire) and me some ideas on how to better organize our own cramped living situation. Boy was I wrong! The book shows some 500 dizzying pictures of cramped up Japanese dwellings- the effect is both dazzling and disturbing. It made us feel like neatnicks in comparison, much like the classic tale of the rabbi who adds goats to a family's house because they want a larger one. I would have given the book 5 stars had it been printed in a larger format- the small size (paperback size) makes the pictures too myopic and intentionally makes everything seem all the more cramped but my eyes needed at least a day to recover from looking at it.
Rating: 
Summary: This Mess is a Place!
Review: I love this book in so many ways. If you actually read the text it not only explains his concept on doing it but makes you look around and explains why you are happy sitting inside an apt that seems like a toybox. I have felt this way for a long time but wondered if this was my "shameful" little secret. I love to walk into a home that feels like LIFE goes on in it, artists collecting and creating inspirational things, musicians collecting objects that create and inspire sound, children can run in and live and breathe and not feel bad for wanting to be children. As beautiful as the homes you'd see in AD may be (and I DO love to look at them) they are like paintings on a wall- pretty but not alive, designed by a pro and not what the world is for the person inside. Its not piles of stuff in this book its great hints at who the people are living happily in a sprawling city. My only problem with this book is that there isn't a volume 2 on the East Village NYC- hey Tokyo isn't the only city with a certain style... Call me when you are in town I'll show you Kyoichi... :)
Rating:
Summary: This Mess is a Place!
Review: I love this book in so many ways. If you actually read the text it not only explains his concept on doing it but makes you look around and explains why you are happy sitting inside an apt that seems like a toybox. I have felt this way for a long time but wondered if this was my "shameful" little secret. I love to walk into a home that feels like LIFE goes on in it, artists collecting and creating inspirational things, musicians collecting objects that create and inspire sound, children can run in and live and breathe and not feel bad for wanting to be children. As beautiful as the homes you'd see in AD may be (and I DO love to look at them) they are like paintings on a wall- pretty but not alive, designed by a pro and not what the world is for the person inside. Its not piles of stuff in this book its great hints at who the people are living happily in a sprawling city. My only problem with this book is that there isn't a volume 2 on the East Village NYC- hey Tokyo isn't the only city with a certain style... Call me when you are in town I'll show you Kyoichi... :)
Rating:
Summary: Gil
Review: I stumbled across this little book one day while souting around at my local bookstore-I flipped thru the pages, and I was intrigued by the way the small spaces were used..I did not buy the book that day, and waited months before deciding to buy a copy. When I went looking, it was no where to be found, and I regret not buying it that day. then lo and behold, I was able to order it last week, picked it up this weekned and spent most of the evening scouring thru it. I spent time in Japan myself, and was amazed at how they efficiently use the little space available to them. It is true-How many of us live in cold minimalist empty shells devoid of the company of our treasured possessions? I would venture to say very few, and I would consder those folks very unlucky people, but that's how they chose to live, and I respect them. Give me my knicknacks, Kitsch, culled items from the curb, hi-fi systems, game consoles, books, and I am a happy man. Kyoichi, I know you are probably not reading this, but if you are, PLEASE write another book. You have a loyal follower in me...Gil
Rating:
Summary: Perfect for chill out reading/viewing
Review: I stumbled onto this book in of all places- Tower Records in Shibuya! I was looking for a unique photo book of Tokyo to take back to Toronto (and show everyone the "real" Tokyo), and it doesn't get much more unique (or real) than this book.
It is both entertaining, and at the same time very informative. I have always enjoyed looking at how people live, and this is the perfect book to do this.
It is perfect for the "coffe table", or anywhere that guests of your own home might be sitting around with nothing to do- a real conversation starter for sure.
I highly recommend this one for anyone that is interested in the true way that Tokyoites live. I only wish the author could create a new version- "Tokyo Style TWOthousandfive"? Seen.
-Rog
Rating:
Summary: What's Wrong with Stuff?
Review: I, for one, am all in favor of stuff. My own, my best friend's, my second cousin's, and even (especially) an anonymous Japanese surfer's. It's interesting. That's why I enjoy this book so much. It's almost like a "Where's Waldo? - Japanese Interior Edition." These apartments are loaded with an amazing assortment of kitsch, electronics, albums, etc. It's a visual adventure. What kind of fascinating items will I find in each picture? It's great...but it's not for everyone, as other reviewers have noted. In fairness, I do agree with those who felt the book is filled with nothing but pictures of stuff and how to cram it into very small apartments. Also, the photography is utilitarian, not "see how magical this space is." So, if you are looking for a "House Beautiful" type book, this isn't it. This is the how-NOT-to book, if anything. But if you're intrigued by the things that other people collect, enjoy, and live with, this is a book to add to YOUR stuff.
Rating:
Summary: Possessions, setting = something other than "living space."
Review: If there was ever an opposite to minimalism, some of the photographs in this book are perfect illustrations of it. Every page is an exploration of someone's life, as outlined by the room(s) they live in. And all of those someones are citizens living in Tokyo. Rooms range from those plastered wall to wall with bookshelves (where two professors live), to laundy lines hanging above a bed functioning almost as a curtained canopy, to one or two pieces of furniture on a hardwood-floor with an electric guitar and two windows into a green courtyard. The book is divided into sections based on style (ranging from cluttered to semi-thought-out design to traditional bamboo-mat japanese decor) with small captions for each photograph. There are also facts and photographs about some of the buildings -- how close they are to food/shopping areas, whether there's a communal bathroom, etc. The book is small (I venture to say "pocket-size" even -- it's about as tall as the length of my hand from palm to finger), but the photographs stretch from corner to corner with no borders and no especially obstructive text. This is a great book for people interested in how possessions can define character, how place and setting and clutter can equate to some greater good, what all this means besides just "living space." I find myself thumbing through it frequently, a little overwhelmed, but always fascinated.
Rating:
Summary: Possessions, setting = something other than "living space."
Review: If there was ever an opposite to minimalism, some of the photographs in this book are perfect illustrations of it. Every page is an exploration of someone's life, as outlined by the room(s) they live in. And all of those someones are citizens living in Tokyo. Rooms range from those plastered wall to wall with bookshelves (where two professors live), to laundy lines hanging above a bed functioning almost as a curtained canopy, to one or two pieces of furniture on a hardwood-floor with an electric guitar and two windows into a green courtyard. The book is divided into sections based on style (ranging from cluttered to semi-thought-out design to traditional bamboo-mat japanese decor) with small captions for each photograph. There are also facts and photographs about some of the buildings -- how close they are to food/shopping areas, whether there's a communal bathroom, etc. The book is small (I venture to say "pocket-size" even -- it's about as tall as the length of my hand from palm to finger), but the photographs stretch from corner to corner with no borders and no especially obstructive text. This is a great book for people interested in how possessions can define character, how place and setting and clutter can equate to some greater good, what all this means besides just "living space." I find myself thumbing through it frequently, a little overwhelmed, but always fascinated.
Rating:
Summary: A peek into real Japanese life
Review: If you are interested in how most Japanese live, in their daily, ordinary lives, then pick this book up. It does not illustrate the "traditional" Japanses houses with Zen gardens and tatami mats everywhere, nor does it illustrate the "Ikea-ized" futuristic apartments of rich folks in Tokyo. Instead it shows how the other half (or make that 85%) of Japanese live: in a word, cramped. This book showcases real, average apartments and houses. Most of these dwellings are (relatively) tiny and crammed floor to cieling with STUFF. This book is interesting in that it shows how a person can literally cram their life into one or two tiny rooms and make it livable. For those interested in REAL Japanese daily culture, this book is a gold mine.
|
