Tokyo: A Certain Style

221 Pages·1997·189.49 MB·English

by  Kyoichi Tsuzuki

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Here isthe realTokyo,wherelifeisfast,rentsarehigh,andspaceis
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tight. Tokyo: ACertainStyledocumentsthemyriadways thaturbandwellers Oo
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respondtothespacecrunch.Fourhundredcolorphotostakeyouinside
A
hehabitationsofartists,students,youngprofessionals,andfamilies.Here 1)
isadizzying,one-of-a-kind portraitofmodernJapaneselife—andtheperfect
coffeetablebookforpeoplewith reallysmallapartment
Thinkyourliving quarters are cramped?
Onelookatthetiny,clutteredapartmentsin Tokyo:
ACertainStylewill makeyouthinkagain.Writer-
photographerKyoichiTsuzukivisitedahundredapart-
ments,condos,andhouses,documentingwhathe
sawin morethan400colorphotosthatshowthereal
Tokyostyle—afarcryfromtheserenegardens,
shojiscreens,andZenminimalism usuallyassociated
withJapanesedwellings.
In thisTokyo;.necessitiessuchasbeds,bath-
rooms,-and.kitchensvieforspacewithelectronic
gadgets,musical instruments,clothes,books,
records,andkitschycollectibles.Candidphotos
vividlycapturethedizzying“cockpiteffect”ofliving
in.aSnug.spacecrammed-floortoceilingwithstuff.
Andit’snotjustbohemiantypesandstudents
who-mustfittheirlivesandworkintotightquarters,
butprofessionalsandfamilieswithchildren,too.In
descriptivecaptions,theinhabitantsdiscussthe
ingeniouswaysthey’veadaptedtheirhomeenviron- CoverdesignbyShawnHazen
mentstosuittheirdiverselifestyles.
Proofthatyoucanstilllivelargeinasmall

apartment, Tokyo:ACertainStylewillbeasourceof www.chroniclebooks.com
inspirationtourbandwellerseverywhere.
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CONTENTS:
Introduction
Introduction 17 Word hasitthatTokyo isthe hardestcity in theworldto
live in. $10 cups ofcoffee, $100 perhead dinners,
Beauty in Chaos 22
$100,000 persquare meterland prices. . . . Butforus
Japanese, thestoriesyou hearhaveno morerealitythan
The Fancy Fetish 88
the notion ofcoming homefrom worktofindthewife in
Artsy Pads 138 a kimono bowingattheentrywaywiththesubtle pine-
woodwhistling ofateaceremonykettleinthebackground.
TheTraditionalTouch 186 Thisvision isalreadylittlemorethan ascenefrom some
classicJapanese movie, orsomeJapanophile’sdream.
Monomaniacs 226
Neitherhasanythingto dowiththeway mostofus actu-
allylive here.
Kiddie Kingdoms 282
Let metell you: ourlifestylesarea lot moreordinary. We
Inertial Living 306
live in cozywood-frameapartmentsormini-condos
Hermitages 350 / crammedtothegillswiththings. Formica-topped kotatsu
heater-tables plunked down on throw rugs. Western
Afterword 431 furnituresitting rightontopofthetatami mats.It’swhat
wefind comfortable. Cramped quarters?You could say
that. To a European orAmerican, agood manyofthe
rooms mustlooklikesomething outoftheslums. Butyou
should seesomeofthestuffwe keep in thosedumps.
Real expensive luxuryitems.
FortheWestern sensibilitythatsays ifyou’re rich you’d
wantto moveawayfrom everyoneelseand build anice
big house, somewhereyou canlive “in style,”the idea
thatwewould choosetolive inthese “rabbit hutches”like
wedo probablyseemskind ofstrange. Maybeeven comi-
cal. But let metellyou:this lifestyleain’t halfbad. Sure,
forthesameamountofmoney, wecould rent much larger