Reviews
"In this beautifully illustrated book, Patricia Graham extracts the overarching visual characteristics of Japanese design sensibilities and shows how deeply they are rooted in their cultural, spiritual, and social backgrounds--something none of the existing textbooks of Japanese art history do satisfactorily." --Mikiko Hirayama, Associate Professor and Director of Museum Studies, Art History/School of Art, College of Design, Art, Architecture & Planning, University of Cincinnati, "This splendid book stimulates the mind and delights the eye in equal measure. It will engross the art historian as well as the art lover. Graham's elegantly concise exploration of some key aesthetic principles, social contexts, and modern interpreters of Japanese design recalls many of the works beautifully illustrated here." --Kendall H. Brown, Professor of Asian Art, School of Art, California State University, Long Beach, "In this unprecedented work, the underlying aesthetic and cultural roots that are essential for an understanding of Japanese design are explained engagingly and accessibly by Graham...A must-read for designers, artists, connoisseurs and scholars of Japanese art and culture, and many others." --Andreas Marks, Head of the Department of Japanese and Korean Art and Director of the Clark Center at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, "Graham's book gives a thoughtful account of Japanese art and design, its cultural context in Japan and its proponents abroad. Her discussion of design terminology, including the origins as well as the uses and misuses through the decades of terms like wabi sabi and shibui is essential reading for anyone interested in Japanese art." --Janice Katz, Roger L. Weston Associate Curator of Japanese Art, Art Institute of Chicago, This splendid book stimulates the mind and delights the eye in equal measure. It will engross the art historian as well as the art lover. Graham's elegantly concise exploration of some key aesthetic principles, social contexts, and modern interpreters of Japanese design recalls many of the works beautifully illustrated here. --Kendall H. Brown, Professor of Asian Art, School of Art, California State University, Long Beach, "Graham has crafted a compact, jewel-like resource for all who seek to understand the sources, evolution, impact, and value of Japanese aesthetics and design principles in our modern world." --Jan Schall, Ph.D., Sanders Sosland Curator, Modern Art, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, In this unprecedented work, the underlying aesthetic and cultural roots that are essential for an understanding of Japanese design are explained engagingly and accessibly by Graham...A must-read for designers, artists, connoisseurs and scholars of Japanese art and culture, and many others. --Andreas Marks, Head of the Department of Japanese and Korean Art and Director of the Clark Center at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, This well-formatted and illustrated handbook with clear explanations of modern concepts of Japanese design, their cultural sources, along with biographies of Euro-American promoters of the Japan idea, will provide a welcome guide for students and travelers. Christine Guth, Royal College of Art and Victoria and Albert Museum, London, This book is a must read for anyone who likes Japan and its arts! Even a long-term collector like myself finds new delights in its illustrations and text. It is a winner! Don't miss the chance to acquire it as I know you will truly enjoy it. --Bill Clark, Japanese art collector and founder of the Clark Center for Japanese Art, Hanford, California, This handsome, authoritative, and highly engaging book is essential reading for anyone interested in the culture of Japan. --Sylvan Barnet, author of A Short Guide to Writing About Art, "This handsome, authoritative, and highly engaging book is essential reading for anyone interested in the culture of Japan." --Sylvan Barnet, author of A Short Guide to Writing About Art, Graham's book gives a thoughtful account of Japanese art and design, its cultural context in Japan and its proponents abroad. Her discussion of design terminology, including the origins as well as the uses and misuses through the decades of terms like wabi sabi and shibui is essential reading for anyone interested in Japanese art. --Janice Katz, Roger L. Weston Associate Curator of Japanese Art, Art Institute of Chicago, Graham has crafted a compact, jewel-like resource for all who seek to understand the sources, evolution, impact, and value of Japanese aesthetics and design principles in our modern world. --Jan Schall, Ph.D., Sanders Sosland Curator, Modern Art, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, "This book is a must read for anyone who likes Japan and its arts! Even a long-term collector like myself finds new delights in its illustrations and text. It is a winner! Don't miss the chance to acquire it as I know you will truly enjoy it." --Bill Clark, Japanese art collector and founder of the Clark Center for Japanese Art, Hanford, California, "This well-formatted and illustrated handbook with clear explanations of modern concepts of Japanese design, their cultural sources, along with biographies of Euro-American promoters of the Japan idea, will provide a welcome guide for students and travelers." Christine Guth, Royal College of Art and Victoria and Albert Museum, London, In this beautifully illustrated book, Patricia Graham extracts the overarching visual characteristics of Japanese design sensibilities and shows how deeply they are rooted in their cultural, spiritual, and social backgrounds--something none of the existing textbooks of Japanese art history do satisfactorily. --Mikiko Hirayama, Associate Professor and Director of Museum Studies, Art History/School of Art, College of Design, Art, Architecture & Planning, University of Cincinnati