Who needs to speak Japanese? There’s a lot you can say with traditional hand gestures and body motions that are universal as well as uniquely Japanese. This whimsical look at “the language of no language” will teach you to hurl insults, flirt, agree, excuse yourself, cross the street, and even make promises—wordlessly! (And who is that stoic guy wearing a suit in all the photos?) Finally, a way to tell someone at a loud party, “Your underwear is showing,” in four easy hand motions.
Filled with elegant designs and clever tips, A Japanese Touch for Your Home offers bold and exciting ideas for remodeling your home or redecorating your apartment. The author explains the basic elements of Japanese interior design and shows you how to use them. Install tatami mats and shoji doors-cardinal elements of Japanese interior design-and see how beautifully they respond to the Western home. Change the size and shape of a room easily. Build a simple Japanese-style alcove, decorate it with something special, and then flaunt it.
Niwaki: Pruning, Training and Shaping Japanese Garden Trees
There is a lot of information out there on bonsai but I have always been more interested in the Japanese garden trees and until this book there has been very little information out there on how to care for and prune Japanese garden trees and shrubs. As far as I know the author even translated/invented the English name for them, "Niwaki" for which there previously was none.
Among our collection of a dozen or more illustrated books about Japanese architecture and design, this is by far the best. The exquisite photographs are accompanied by a thorough yet interesting explanation of the various traditional styles found in Japanese architecture. Although the emphasis is upon traditional homes, the volume also includes examples of the adaptation of these styles to elegant homes in Japan today.
Japanese Gardens is a 239 page historical visual spiritual odyssey through man's interpretation of nature in confined space. Chapter subheadings focus atmosphere: Gardens as mindscapes, Gardens as subsitutes for travel, Gardens of seclusion, Gardens of austerity, Gardens of joy. Drawings, b/w and color photos illustrate the history and evolution of Japanese garden design. The book Intimate Spaces by Joe Earle, exclusively color photographs of spiritual gardens, is a fine complement to Nitschke's book with it's comprehensive written text.
