Japanese Architecture Bibliography




Introduction

This is not intended to be a complete bibliography of every book on Japanese architecture available in English, but is fairly complete, and includes all the major works which are available.

Descriptive comments are included with some of the books, mostly those which struck the compiler as the best ones.



Japanese Architecture in General


Modern Buildings

Teiji Itoh, Yukio Futagawa, (translated Richard L. Gage), "The
  Classic Tradition In Japanese Architecture: Modern Versions
  Of The Sukiya Style", Weatherhill, New York, 1972
	A fantastic book with many useful plans and drawings.
Shinji Koike, Ryuichi Hamaguchi, (translated Motoko Fuhishiro),
  "Japan's New Architecture",
  Shokokusha, Tokyo, 1956
Shinji Koike, "Contemporary Architecture of Japan",
  Tokyo, 1954
J. M. Richards, "An Architectural Journey in Japan",
  Architectural, London, 1963
Kiyosi Seike, Charles S. Terry, Akio Kawasumi, "Contemporary
  Japanese Houses: Volume I"
  Kodansha, Tokyo, 1968
	Some interesting houses, but not as high quality a book as
	the Itoh/Futugawa book.

Japanse-Style Building Accents

Sadao Hibi, "Japanese Detail: Architecture",
  Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 1989
Koji Itao, "A Japanese Touch for your Home",
  Kodansha, New York, 1982
Jean Mahoney, Peggy Landers Rao, Toshiaki Sakuma, "At Home with
  Japanese Design: Accents, Structure and Spirit",
  Shufunotomo, Tokyo, 1990
Saburo Yamagata, "The Japanese Home Stylebook",
  Stone Bridge Press, Berkeley, 1992

Houses and Gardens

Michio Fujioka and Kazunori Tsunenari, "Japanese Residences and
  Gardens: A Tradition of Integration",
  Kodansha International, New York, 1982
	A thin, large-format books with some good illustrations.
Ota Hirotaro, "Traditional Japanese Architecture and Gardens",
  Kokusai Bunka Shinkokai, Tokyo, 1972
Edward S. Morse, "Japanese Homes and Their Surroundings",
  Dover, New York, 1961
Minoru Ooka, Osamu Mori, "Pageant of Japanese Art: Volume 6 -
  Architecture and Gardens", Toto Shuppan, Tokyo, 1957
Minoru Ooka, Osamu Mori, "Pageant of Japanese Art: Volume VI -
  Architecture and Gardens", Toto Bunka, Tokyo, 1952
Tetsuro Yoshida, "The Japanese House and Garden",
  Frederick A. Praeger, New York, 1955

Overall Surveys

William Alex, "Japanese Architecture",
  George Braziller, New York, 1963
Werner Blaser, "Struktur and Gestalt in Japan (Structure and Form in
  Japan)", Artemis, Zurich, 1963
  Verlag Fur Architektur, 1963
Norman F. Carver, "Form and Space of Japanese Architecture",
  Shokokusha, Tokyo, 1955
	A good book with a few plans.
Arthur Drexler, "The Architecture of Japan",
  Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1955
Heinrich Engel, "The Japanese House: A Tradition for Contemporary
  Architecture", Tuttle, Rutland, 1964
	A very good book with a quite a few plans and drawings,
	including drawings of Japanese wood joints.
Heino Engel, "Measure and Construction of the Japanese House",
  Tuttle, Rutland, 1985
	A major book with many detailed plans and drawings.
Jiro Harada, "Lessons of Japanese Architecture",
  Dover, New York, 1985
Tomoya Masuda, Yukio Futugawa, "Living Architecture: Japanese",
  Grosset and Dunlap, New York, 1970
Robert Treat Paine, Alexander C. Soper, "Art and Architecture of
  Japan", Penguin, Harmondsworth, 1974
Atsushi Ueda, "The Inner Harmony of the Japanese House",
  Kodansha, New York, 1990


Classic Japanese Architecture


Older Houses and Buildings

Yukio Futugawa, Teiji Itoh, (translated Paul Konya), "The Roots of
  Japanese Architecture",
  Harper and Row, New York, 1963
	A stunning work with many good illustrations.
Yukio Futugawa, Teiji Itoh, "The Essential Japanese House:
  Craftsmanship, Function, and Style in Town and Country",
  Weatherill, Tokyo, 1967
	A stunning and voluminous work with many good
	illustrations.
Fumio Hashimoto, (translated H. Mack Morton), "Architecture
  in the Shoin Style: Japanese Feudal Residences",
  Kodansha, New York, 1981
Teiji Itoh, (translated Richard L. Gage), "Traditional Domestic
  Architecture of Japan", Weatherill, New York, 1972
Teiji Itoh, Yukio Futagawa, "The Elegant Japanese House: Traditional
  Sukiya Architecture", Weatherhill, New York, 1969
	A stunning work with many plans and drawings as well as
	illustrations; much detail on Katsura.
Harumichi Kitao, "Shoin Architecture In Detailed Illustrations",
  Shokokusha, Tokyo, 1956
Bruno Taut, "Fundamentals of Japanese Architecture",
  Kokusai Bunka Shinkokai, Tokyo, 1936
	A small and obscure work that nevertheless started the modern
	re-appraisal of Katsura.
Bruno Taut, "Houses and People of Japan",
  Sanseido, Tokyo, 1958

Farm-Houses

Teiji Itoh, Yukio Futagawa, "Traditional Japanese Houses",
  Rizzoli, New Work, 1980
	A stunning work with many good illustrations.
Norman F. Carver, "Japanese Folkhouses",
  Documan Press, Kalamazoo, 1984
	A very good book with much good information, including
	some plans.
Chuji Kawashima, (translated by Lynne E. Riggs), "Minka:
  Traditional Houses of Rural Japan",
  Kodansha, New York, 1986
	A fine book with much good information, including many
	plans and drawings.

Storehouses (Kura)

Teiji Itoh, Kiyoshi Takai, (adapted Charles S. Terry), "Kura:
  Design and Tradition of the Japanese Storehouse",
  Madrona, Seattle, 1980
Teiji Itoh, Kiyoshi Takai, (adapted Charles S. Terry), "Kura: Design
  and Tradition of the Japanese Storehouse",
  Kodansha, New York, 1973

Teahouses (Cha-shitsu)

Werner Blaser, "Japanese Temples and Tea-Houses",
  F. W. Dodge, New York, 1956
Nahiko Emori, Sau Asahitani, "Chashitsu (Rooms for Tea-Ceremony)",
  Asahi Shimbunsha, Tokyo, 1949
Helen C. Gunsaulus, "Japanese Temples and Houses",
  Field Museum, Chicago, 1924
Harumichi Kitao, "Sukiya Shosai-Zu: Detailed Illustrations of Tea
  Ceremony Huts", Tokyo, 1953

Temples

S. Azby Brown, "The Genius of Japanese Carpentry: An Account of
  a Temple's Construction", Kodansha, New York, 1989
William H. Coaldrake, "The Way of the Carpenter",
  Weatherhill, New York, 1990
Toshio Fukuyama, (translated Ronald K. Jones), "Heian Temples:
  Byodo-in and Chuson-ji",
  Weatherhill, New York, 1976
J. Edward Kidder Jr., "Japanese Temples: Sculpture, Paintings,
  Gardens and Architecture", Harry Abrams, Amsterdam
	A massive book with many illustrations.
Takeshi Kobayashi, (translated Richard L. Gage), "Nara Buddist Art:
  Todai-ji", Weatherhill, New York, 1975
Seiichi Mizuno, "Asuka Buddhist Art: Horyu-ji",
  Weatherhill, New York, 1974
Minoru Ooka, (translated Dennis Lishka), "Temples of Nara
  and Their Art",  Weatherhill, New York, 1973
Donald Richie, Alexandre Georges, "The Temples of Kyoto",
  Tuttle, Rutland, 1995
Kenzo Tange, Noburo Kawazoe, Yoshio Watanabe, "Ise: Prototype of
  Japanese Architecture", MIT Press, Cambridge, 1965
	A very fine book, the definitive work on this important
	temple.
Yasutada Watanabe, "Shinto Art: Ise and Izumo Shrines",
  Weatherhill, New York, 1974

Palaces and Imperial Country Villas

"The Kyoto Imperial Palace and Imperial Villas",
  Konishiroku Photo
"Imperial Palace",
  Japan Times, Tokyo, 1971
Michio Fujioka, Shigeo Okamoto, (translated Bruce A. Coats), "Kyoto
  Country Retreats: The Shugakuin and Katsura Palaces",
  Kodansha, New York, 1983
	A thin, large-format books with some good illustrations.
Gaijiro Fujishima, "Katsura Rikyu: Katsura Detached Palace",
  Suiko Shoin, Kyoto, 1950
Walter Gropius, Kenzo Tange, Yasuhiro Ishimoto, "Katsura:
  Tradition and Creation in Japanese Architecture",
  Yale University Press, New Haven, 1960
	A reasonably good work.
Sutemi Horiguchi, Jiro Harada, Tatsuzo Sato, "The Katsura Imperial
  Villa", Mainichi Press, Tokyo, 1952
Tadashi Ishikawa, Jiro Murata, Y. Taniguchi, K. Inokuma, T. Irie,
  "Kyoto Imperial Palace",
  Tanko-shinsha, Kyoto, 19??
Tadashi Ishikawa, "Imperial Villas of Kyoto: The Katsura and
  Shugaku-in", Kodansha, Tokyo, 1970
Teiji Itoh, Masao Arai, Taisuke Ogawa, "Katsura: A Quintessential
  Representative of the Sukiya Style of Architecture",
  Shinkenchiku-Sha, Tokyo, 1983
	A very fine book, with fantastic drawings (many isometric)
	and much detail on the recent restoration, including details
	of the internal structure revealed in the process.
Osamu Mori, "Photo Collection: Katsura Imperial Villa",
  Mainichi Newspapers, Tokyo, 1970
Akira Naito, Takeshi Nishikawa, (translated Charles S. Terry),
  "Katsura: A Princely Retreat",
  Kodansha, New York, 1977
	A very fine book, the definitive work on this perhaps most
	important of all Japanese buildings.
Tayzaw Niwa, "The Stepping-Stones in Katsura Detached Palace",
  Shokokusha, Tokyo
	Definitely a specialist work!
Naomi Okawa, Chuji Hirayama, (translated Alan Woodhull, Akito
  Miyamoto), "Edo Architecture: Katsura and Nikko",
  Weatherhill, New York, 1975
Gisei Takakuwa, Toyo Okamoto, "Katsura Rikyu: Detached Palace",
  Suiko Shoin, Kyoto, 1950
Yoshiro Taniguchi, Jiro Harada, Tatsuzo Sato, "The Shugakuin Imperial
  Villa", Mainichi, Tokyo, 1956

Castles and Fortified Buildings

Kiyoshi Hirai, (translated Hiroaki Sato, Jeannine Ciliotta),
  "Feudal Architecture of Japan",
  Weatherhill, New York, 1973
Motoo Hinago, "Japanese Castles",
  Kodansha, New York, 1986




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