Geeta Mehta

This book celebrates the exquisite beauty of more than 20 quintessential Japanese gardens, big and small, urban and rural, traditional and contemporary.Each Japanese garden seeks to invoke and imitate nature, and this expert author-and-photographer team excels at capturing, and explaining for the reader, the essential elements and techniques that distinguish Japanese gardens from those in other countries.The featured gardens range from large feudal-period, temple, private and countryside gardens to mountain flower, tea and miniature bonsai gardens. More than 300 specially commissioned photographs and plan drawingsCovers all types and sizes of Japanese gardensSpecial ideas, elements and techniques to learn from are highlighted in pictures and wordsThe magic of these gardens, where the efforts of nature, man and time complement each other to form a harmonious whole, are captured in stunning photographs and engaging text that brims with fascinating detail.

Featuring dozens of high-quality photographs, schematic designs and insightful commentary this Japanese architecture book is a must-have for architects or collectors.The past five years are widely considered to have been the most innovative period in contemporary Japanese design history. The projects featured in New Japan Architecture were completed during this extraordinarily fertile time. Featuring breathtaking images of modern Japan, this volume presents forty-eight extraordinary projects by forty-two of the world's leading architects, including: Hitoshi Abe Ward Kishi Tadao Ando Chiba Manabu Architects Toyo Ito Kengo Kuma Kazuyo SejimaThis architecture book features a wide range of buildings, some exhibiting the ultimate ideal of the white Zen cube, while others exemplify the search for the new wow factor in iconic design. In many, cutting-edge modernity is counterbalanced by a concern for sustainability—an issue that has motivated many architects to rethink and reintroduce concepts drawn from traditional Japanese architecture. Projects big and small, private and public, residential and commercial are included. Insightful text by two leading experts in the field of Japanese architecture highlights the remarkable aspects of each building and places these developments within the wider context of world architecture. Offering an essential overview of current trends, New Japan Architecture points the way to modern architecture's future.

Japanese homes speak to the soul and provide a contemplative environment from which to experience the world.Japan Style offers rare glimpses into twenty exquisite traditional homes in Japan. The lavish photographs in this volume demonstrate how Japanese design achieves a timeless tranquility using a few very simple, natural elements.Wood is the preferred building material since it is considered a "living" material; the country's Shinto and Zen Buddhist roots have inculcated a deep respect for nature. The houses in this book are a wonderful reminder that there are alternatives to "big is beautiful"—and that neither timelessness nor modernity has to be about using cold steel, glass and concrete.The wabi-sabi ideal, translated loosely by Frank Lloyd Wright as a "rusticity and simplicity that borders on loneliness," is considered the epitome of sophistication in Japanese interior design. The houses in this book invite us to rethink the wisdom of our hurried modern lifestyle and return to a simpler, slower life.The quintessential Japanese aesthetic can be seen in a 100-year-old minka farmhouse, an old merchant's machiya townhouse in Kyoto, a sprawling country Samurai villa, and in a modern seaside cottage. This book offers insights for architects and homeowners alike by providing inspiring and surprising alternatives, relevant to the design of homes anywhere in the world today.