Kicks Japan
Manami Okazaki & Geoffrey Johnson
- Page Count: 176
- Size: 7.5 x 9.25 inches
- Format: Paperback
- Publication Date: July 2011
- Price: $30
- ISBN: 978-1-935613-20-6
Sneakers are a global, multimillion-dollar industry propelled by never-ending new kicks and their rabid collectors. Kicks Japan, by Manami “Maki” Okazaki and Geoff Johnson, is the first English-language book to document and celebrate the thriving Japanese sneaker subculture. In a country with many top sneaker designers and knowledgeable, obsessive consumers, it’s no surprise that in Japan, sneaker culture gets pushed to the extremes of style, design, and innovation.
With seductive photographs on nearly every page, Kicks Japan is essential for sneaker connoisseurs, Japanophiles, and anyone who wants to learn more about street culture. Kicks Japan features designers, storeowners, and collectors, as well as the underground’s scene’s freshest musicians, artists, designers, skaters, and DJs. Including interviews with the masterminds behind MADFOOT!, Onitsuka Tiger, Mita Sneakers, RYUZ, Undefeated Japan, Zozotown, and Skit, Kicks Japan gives an inside look at all aspects of the sneaker industry and the people that keep kicks alive today—the up-and-coming names, the established legends, the tastemakers, and the people who are wearing their kicks on the street.
Manami Okazaki is a journalist and street culture expert based in Tokyo whose writing has appeared in the Japan Times, CNN Traveller, Maxim, Acclaim, and many other publications. Her first book, Tattoo in Japan, was published in 2009. Geoff Johnson, born in Australia, has been living in Tokyo and shooting Japanese subcultures for two decades. His photographs have appeared in TIME, the Wall Street Journal, Harper’s Bazaar Japan, Esquire Magazine Japan, and The Economist. His work includes portraiture of icons like Jim Jarmusch, Dennis Hopper, Quentin Tarantino, and Tim Burton.
For even more kicks, check out the Kicks Japan website.
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Other Japan-themed books you might like:
Matchibako: Japanese Matchbook Art of the ’20s and ’30s – Crazy Wacky Theme Restaurants: Tokyo – Face Food: The Visual Creativity of Japanese Bento Boxes – Face Food Recipes – Vending Machines: Coined Consumerism – Drainspotting: Japanese Manhole Covers – Fuzz & Fur – Idle Idol
