Product Description

Photographer Kyoichi Tsuzuki rode his scooter all over Tokyo snapping shots of how urban Japanese really live. He reveals the real Tokyo style: micro-apartments, mini and modular everything crammed into a space where every inch counts.'

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #64145 in Books
• Published on: 1999-08-26
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 440 pages

Customer Reviews

As the books says - forget minimalism
This is a great book if you want an insight into how the millions of residents of Tokyo balance their desire to own things whilst living in the tiny boxes that most of them do.

The author was allowed access to many homes and the pictures are great. Don't expect zen minimalism here or any any great design ideas - this is real life at its most honest and sometimes grottiest. If you've spent any time in Japan you may well be able to relate to what you see - and if you're planning a move there this makes quite a good picture book to look at before you take the plunge - just don't expect anything more.

By the way, I think the other review refers to the wrong book - I think it reviews 'Fruits' by Shoich Aoki.

This is Tokyo
Yeah, this is a good one. I travelled to Tokyo last September 2003 and so I have cravings of all things related to. This book makes me smile.

We'd all love one of those tv homes that are all co-ordinated and perfect. But the reality and the need for practicality in daily life at home demands a much different approach.

This is just a great little colourful book that shows us what the home of an average Tokyo-ite is like. A bit dated now though, maybe ten years old ? But just skim through it and it is fantastic. Not a design guide with tips on zen layouts - this is wabi-sabi - showing you the beauty of life as it honestly is in Tokyo.

antidote
I bought this about 4 years ago and everytime I flip through this it raises a smile. It really is a chronicle of clutter in peoples lives and how the stuff piles up, and since this is Tokyo where space is at a premium- even more so. True, as noted by other reviewers, the computers and phones are a give away as to when these photos were taken ( ? early nineties maybe or earlier). But there something comforting about it was well- not the impossible designer pads but cramped spaces of ordinary folk who love their vinyl and books and stereos and clothes and guitars and gizmos.