Nagoya and beyond.

After a busy and rewarding two days of work shops in Osaka and the visit to Himeji Castle it was on to Nagoya.


Thinking of the castle, one of the vast number of weapon slits.


The Hotel was good, with a train station over the road. I could not resist taking this image, very re-assuring when waiting for the train to take us to the work shop venue.



Some of the students hard at work. It always surprises me, the amount of passion and fun the students work with. For the main the students have no experience of making books, however the work they produce is always good, they have a respect for the materials and the tools, they take copious notes with charming and informative diagrams.

After a very pleasant day we were invited to join the organisers and assistants for an evening meal. The perfect ending to a wonderful day.
The following day was a transit day. Shinkansen to Tokyo for the final two work shops. Time for some more culture.

The Tokugawa Art Museum. The museum was first opened in 1935 to exhibit the family treasures of the inheritance of the 19th Owari Tokugawa Marquis Yoshichika. The items had passed through the generations of the Tokugawa family, elements of which the Shogun was chosen during the Edo period (1603-1867)
The museum houses an incredible array of artifacts, arms and armour, clothes, house hold goods to name only a few areas of interest. The nine exhibition rooms include a Daimyo's Tea Room, formal chambers and a Noh Theater.
One area of particular note, the museum also exhibits elements of the family library, boasting books from China, Korea and Japan, with subjects as diverse as manner and modes of conduct to warfare and the study of the heavens. Unfortunately I was not allowed to take any images, you will just have to make do with a few from the catalogue (a very reasonable Y750)


Not only was my interest focused on the books, the illustrations, the print, colour and construction but also the furniture or the boxes associated with them.