Main entry:

Bharne, Vinayak, author.

Title & Author:

Zen spaces and neon places : reflections on Japanese architecture and urbanism / Vinayak Bharne.

Publication:

[San Francisco, California] : Applied Research and Design Publishing, an imprint of ORO Editions, [2014]
©2014

Description:

xix, 272 pages : illustrations (chiefly color), maps ; 24 cm

Notes:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 264-266) and index.
Between Ise and Katsura : the forgotten traditions of Japanese architecture -- Behind the culture of wood -- A view from the Zen shoin -- The Mondrian in the Japanese room -- Space-time and Japanese architecture -- Deliberate dusk : darkness and the experience of Japanese architectural space -- Kyoto : a view from Rome -- The Japanese street in space and time -- The Western genome in Japanese architecture -- Manifesting democracy : publicness and public space in post-war Japan -- Rereading Tokyo.

Summary:

"Moving across Japanese history in time and space--from its ancient Shinto beginnings to its largest recorded earthquake, and from the spiritual calm of Ise and Ryoanji to the psychedelic consumerism of Shinjuku and Ginza--Zen Spaces in Neon Places is the first book to catch all of the dimensions and sensations of the Japanese built environment: its architecture and urbanism; its historic buildings and cities; its digital streetscapes and mega-structures; its hyper-speed trains and theme parks; and its concurrent cultures of kinky love hotels and contemplative tea ceremonies. Zen Spaces also looks back at the vital defining moments in the culture's recent history--the reforestation policy of the Tokugawa, the entry of European influences, the insinuation of Western democracy, the expansion and collapse of the economic bubble--and the transformative effects they have had on the Japanese built world. Combining two decades of author Vinayak Bharne's scholarship, fieldwork, and personal experience, this landmark volume evokes the bewildering and contradictory built world of Japan, and weaves together its delicate and raw intellectual textures into a unique reading experience.
Moving across Japanese history in time and space--from its ancient Shinto beginnings to its largest recorded earthquake, and from the spiritual calm of Ise and Ryoanji to the psychedelic consumerism of Shinjuku and Ginza--Zen Spaces in Neon Places captures the multifarious architectural and urban sensations of the Japanese built environment--its historic buildings and post-industrial cities; its monastic gardens and digital streetscapes; its hyperspeed trains and theme parks; and its concurrent propensities for kinky love hotels and contemplative tea ceremonies. Zen Spaces also looks back at the vital defining moments in the culture's history--the reforestation policy of the Tokugawa, the entry of European influences, the insinuation of Western democracy, the rise and collapse of the economic bubble--and their transformative effects in shaping the Japanese urban landscape we see today. Combining two decades of author Vinayak Bharne's scholarship, fieldwork, and personal experience, this landmark volume reveals how Japan's negotiation, shifts and mutations, and affirms why Japan remains an important reference point for our times.

ISBN:

9781941806067 (pbk.)
1941806066 (pbk.)

Subject:

Architecture, Japanese.
City planning Japan.
Architecture
Architecture japonaise.
City planning.
Japan.

Holdings:

Location: Library main 290762
Call No.: BIB 233925
Status: Available