Alex Kerr

La arquitectura japonesa tradicional es tan rica y extraordinaria que resulta difícil de superar. No obstante, los diseñadores y arquitectos japoneses contemporáneos no ceden en su empeño de buscar nuevas formulas arquitectonicas, siempre con el pasado como fuente de inspiracion. Ya se trate de una vivienda tradicional en perfecto estado de conservacion o de un estudio vanguardista, las mejores casas de Japon comparten una pasion por el diseño ingenioso de los espacios y por materiales calidos como la madera, el ladrillo y el bambu. Desde una casa de campo con tejado de paja, residencia de un monje zen, hasta la experimental casa 4x4 de Tadao Ando, pasando por el refugio conceptual de Shigeru Ban y un hermoso homenaje al bambu en forma de vivienda, este libro propone un recorrido por el paisaje multifacetico de los hogares del Japon actual. Enriquecido con 170 fotografias nuevas e ineditas, esta edicion se completa con una lista de direcciones por si desea realizar un viaje a Japon y alojarse en las residencias y hoteles mas fascinantes. Asimismo, incluye un glosario de terminos como tatami, shoji y noren que le ayudara a familiarizarse con los elementos clave de la singular estetica japonesa de minimalismo oriental.

A mediados de la década de los sesenta, Alex Kerr llegó por vez primera a Japón de la mano de su padre, un oficial de la armada norteamericana. En su retina quedó fijada la imagen de un país bello que, sobre todo en sus zonas rurales, transmitía una sensación de magia e irrealidad, como si un pedazo de historia se hubiera congelado en el apogeo de su hechizo. En sus visitas posteriores, la obsesión de Kerr por Japón fue aumentando, y desde 1977 reside en el país, donde ha desarrollado un trabajo concienzudo de recuperación y conservación del viejo Japón. "Japón perdido" fue escrito originalmente en 1993 en japonés y el propio Kerr lo revisó en inglés en 2015: una mezcla entre memoria personal, ensayo sobre la cultura japonesa y guía de viajes.

Originally written in Japanese, this book offers an insight into Japanese landscape, culture, history and future.

Another Kyoto is an insiders meditation on the hidden wonders of Japans most enigmatic city. Drawing on decades living in Kyoto, and on lore gleaned from artists, Zen monks and Shinto priests, Alex Kerr illuminates the simplest things - a temple gate, a wall, a sliding door - in a new way. A rich book of intimate proportions ... In Kyoto, facts and meaning are often hidden in plain sight. Kerrs gift is to make us stop and cast our eyes upward to a temple plaque, or to squint into the gloom of an abbots chamber Japan TimesKerr and Sokol have performed a minor miracle by presenting that which is present in Kyoto as that which we have yet to see. I know that I will never pass a wall, or tread a floor, or sit on tatami the same way again Kyoto Journal

Alexs Wellington, a twin-engine bomber, was shot down over Germany in 1941. At first hospitalised with hopes of repatriation, he unexpectedly found himself a prisoner in a German POW camp. Throughout those trying four years he was held captive, Alex kept a secret diary. This book reproduces his diary entries in a fascinating account of all aspects of life in a wartime prison. He describes being part of the infamous Long March during which he and his comrades were strafed by Allied aircraft; 60 POWs were killed and 100 wounded. Alex escaped the march with a mate, passing through the front lines between the British and German forces to commandeer a German mayors car and drive back to Brussels to take the next aircraft to freedom. Alexs charm and optimistic outlook will buoy the reader throughout, and the camaraderie between he and his captive comrades is always entertaining. This is an authentic World War II adventure from being shot out of the sky, to incarceration and the ultimate triumph of escape and the end of the war.

An enchanting and fascinating insight into Japanese landscape, culture, history and future. Originally written in Japanese, this passionate, vividly personal book draws on the authors experiences in Japan over thirty years. Alex Kerr brings to life the ritualized world of Kabuki, retraces his initiation into Tokyos boardrooms during the heady Bubble Years, and tells the story of the hidden valley that became his home.But the book is not just a love letter. Haunted throughout by nostalgia for the Japan of old, Kerrs book is part paean to that great country and culture, part epitaph in the face of contemporary Japans environmental and cultural destruction.Winner of Japans 1994 Shincho Gakugei Literature Prize.Alex Kerr is an American writer, antiques collector and Japanologist. Lost Japan is his most famous work. He was the first foreigner to be awarded the Shincho Gakugei Literature Prize for the best work of non-fiction published in Japan.

From the author of Another Kyoto and Lost Japan, a rich, personal exploration of the culture and history of Bangkok, and an essential guide for anyone visiting the cityAlex Kerr has spent over thirty years of his life living in Bangkok. As with his bestselling books on Japan, this evocative personal meditation explores the citys secret corners. Here is the huge, traffic-choked metropolis of concrete high-rises, slums and sky trains; but also a place of peace and grace. Looking afresh at everything from ceramics to Thai dance, flower patterns to old houses, Kerr reveals one of Asias most kaleidoscopically complex cities. Another Bangkok will delight both those who think they know the city well and those visiting for the first time.

An erudite and charming book . . . both a primer and a paean to one of the central texts of Buddhism, known as the Heart Sutra. . . Alex Kerr delves into the Japanese soulLiterary ReviewThe material world is itself emptiness.Emptiness is itself the material world.Powerful, mystical and concise, the Heart Sutra is believed to contain the condensed essence of all Buddhist wisdom. This brief poem on emptiness has exerted immense influence throughout Asia since the seventh century and is woven into the fabric of daily life. Yet even though it rivals the teachings of Laozi and Confucius in importance, this ancient Buddhist scripture remains barely known in the West. During the many years he has spent living in Japan, Alex Kerr has been on a quest after the secrets of the Heart Sutra. Travelling from Japan, Korea, and China, to India, Mongolia, Tibet and Vietnam, this book brings together Buddhist teaching, talks with friends and mentors, and acute cultural insights to probe the universe of thought contained within this short but intense philosophical work.Marvellous ... a lifes work ... a brilliant literary form, weaving reflections of the sutra with those on Alexs own magical mystery tour Alexandra Munroe, Asian Art scholar and curator

When Isobel and Alex came home from school to find their abusive father had brutally murdered their mother, their world was thrown into chaos. Plunged into a care system that neglected them, Isobel and Alex were expected to come to nothing, and had only each other to rely on. Isobel and Alexs mother used to do everything with them. A full-time teacher, she dedicated herself to her children, partly in order to give them every possible opportunity in life, and partly to keep them out of the way of their increasingly eccentric, erratic and unpleasant father. Their father, a violent and frightening man, spent most of his time locked in his bedroom, a room the rest of the family never ventured into. He became increasingly bitter and angry at the outside world in general, and at his wife and children in particular. The local community feared his outbursts as much as Isobel and Alex did, but the neighbours saw far less of him as he became increasingly housebound. No one came to the Kerrs house to visit. When Isobel was 15 and Alex 13, they came home from school to find police everywhere. Their father had stabbed their mother between fifty and sixty times with a sharpened chisel. As far as anyone could tell the attack was unprovoked and of incredible savagery, but the children were given the minimum amount of information. No one wanted to upset them unnecessarily. Their mother had been an only child and they had never been in contact with their fathers family. There was no one else for them to turn to except each other. This is an inspiring story of a brother and sister who only had each other, and a powerful testament to what can be achieved through courage and love.

Another Kyoto is an insiders meditation on the hidden wonders of Japans most enigmatic city. Drawing on decades living in Kyoto, and on lore gleaned from artists, Zen monks and Shinto priests, Alex Kerr illuminates the simplest things - a temple gate, a wall, a sliding door - in a new way. A rich book of intimate proportions ... In Kyoto, facts and meaning are often hidden in plain sight. Kerrs gift is to make us stop and cast our eyes upward to a temple plaque, or to squint into the gloom of an abbots chamberJapan TimesKerr and Sokol have performed a minor miracle by presenting that which is present in Kyoto as that which we have yet to see. I know that I will never pass a wall, or tread a floor, or sit on tatami the same way againKyoto Journal

Kioto se ha convertido en la ciudad más turística de Japón, pero hay otro Kioto que se esconde entre los pliegues de esta ciudad milenaria, un Kioto solo accesible a quienes han pasado muchos años alli, y que algunas veces aguarda en los lugares mas visitados pero requiere una interpretacion a partir de los codigos propios del arte y la arquitectura oriental. Para descubrir ese otro Kioto, nadie mejor que Alex Kerr, que con este libro fruto de una larga serie de conversaciones con Kathy Arlyn Sokol quiso brindar un insolito y fascinante enfoque de la ciudad y sus tradiciones, inspirado por las enseñanzas de los maestros que ha encontrado en el camino: artistas, monjes zen, sacerdotes sintoistas e insignes personalidades como el comerciante de arte David Kidd.

Desde una casa de campo con tejado de paja ocupada por un monje zen y los tradicionales baños japoneses Hoshi Onsen, hasta la experimental casa 4x4 de Tadao Ando, pasando por la conceptual Shutter House de Shigeru Ban y un hermoso homenaje al bambu en forma de casa, este libro propone un recorrido por el paisaje multifacetico de las viviendas del Japon actual. Asimismo, incluye una lista de direcciones y un glosario de terminos, entre los que se encuentran, por ejemplo, akari, geta o tatami.

From the author of Another Kyoto and Lost Japan, a rich, personal exploration of the culture and history of Bangkok, and an essential guide for anyone visiting the cityAlex Kerr has spent over thirty years of his life living in Bangkok. As with his bestselling books on Japan, this evocative personal meditation explores the citys secret corners. Here is the huge, traffic-choked metropolis of concrete high-rises, slums and sky trains but also a place of peace and grace. Looking afresh at everything from ceramics to Thai dance, flower patterns to old houses, Kerr reveals one of Asias most kaleidoscopically complex cities. Another Bangkok will delight both those who think they know the city well and those visiting for the first time.

Publicado originalmente en japonés en 2020, en Japón oculto Alex Kerr nos brinda la oportunidad de acompañarle en sus viajes, mientras nos insta a plantearnos qué ciudades, pueblos y países queremos conocer y que tipo de turistas queremos ser. En ese sentido, Kerr aboga por una nueva filosofia del turismo, inedita en la literatura de viajes, que señale lugares a los que no ir y nos hable de aquellos lugares que no nos necesitan, para evitar la llamada huella turistica y priorizar esos enclaves que si pueden beneficiarse de un turismo sostenible. Pero tal y como aconseja Kerr, cuando hayamos encontrado uno de esos sitios ocultos, esta en nuestra mano compartirlo con un puñado de buenos amigos y luego guardar el secreto.