Synopsis
Japan is alive with much more than tradition. Cities reverberate with the whirl of crisscrossing trains, pulsating neon, and hurry-scurrying crowds. High-tech skyscrapers rise from the rice paddies. Rural festivals unleash a torrent of raw energy in an otherwise tranquil countryside. And ancient volcanoes-after snoozing for centuries-awaken with a thunderous roar to remind the islands' inhabitants of the mighty forces of nature.
Beneath all the frenetic forward motion of present-day Japan lies a foundation built on over a millennium of recorded history and a vast legacy of artistic and cultural traditions. The Japanese often pause to reflect on their past-for there lies the key to their national identity, so often obscured in today's confusing web of satellites and semiconductors.
The contemporary color schemes, time-honored traditions, and dynamic natural beauty of Japan come to life in this lavishly illustrated book. Geisha and robots, Fuji and fine arts, shrines and skyscrapers-they're all here. An illuminating foreword by Mike Mansfield, former U.S. senator and ambassador to Japan, precedes a gallery of over 140 color photographs that highlight the nature, modern life, traditional arts, and contemporary culture of Japan. Accompanying the collage of photos are essays by author-poet Dorothy Britton, journalist Frederick Hiroshi Katayama, art historian Martha J. McClintock, and architect Azby Brown, who offer incisive perspectives on the country, its arts, and its people.
Through word and picture, this one volume brings together the contrasting faces of Japan. From the legendary cherry blossoms of Yoshinoyama to the colorful kitsch of urban architecture, Japan: A Living Portrait captures the eclectic synthesis of things past, present, and future that makes this island nation so endlessly fascinating.
About the Author
MICHAEL J. MANSFIELD was born in New York City in 1903. A Democratic congressman for the state of Montana, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1942 and then to the Senate in 1952, where he served as majority leader from 1961 to 1977. He was appointed as the U.S. ambassador to Japan in 1977. During his eleven-year tenure, he dealt successfully with a number of economic and political issues between the United States and Japan, describing the relationship as "the most important bilateral relationship in the world, bar none."
DOROTHY BRITTON is a Japan-born English author, composer, and poet. She has traveled throughout Japan, and has written extensively about the country. Her works include National Parks of Japan, The Japanese Crane: Bird of Happiness, Twenty Folk Songs of Japan, and many translations. She is a keen conservationist.
AZBY BROWN is an American architect and Associate Professor of architectural design at the Kanazawa Institute of Technology. His books The Genius of Japanese Carpentry and Small Spaces were published by Kodansha International. He has resided in Japan since 1985.
FREDERICK HIROSHI KATAYAMA has traveled throughout Asia as a business reporter for NHK News. A former Tokyo correspondent for Fortune magazine, he won a citation of excellence from the Overseas Press Club of America. He holds a masters degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
MARTHA J. McCLINTOCK received her Ph.D. in the History of Japanese Art from the University of Michigan. She lives in Tokyo, where she pursues and publishes her research on Meiji-period literati painters. She is also a translator of art-related essays and art exhibition catalogs.
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