Time to look at some of the books in my collection. I used to have many many many more art/nerd books. Three bookshelves full to be exact. I had to cut my collection down sadly, but the ones I kept are still the best. So here is an old one called Fruits, which most people know about anyway.
Fruits was established in 1994, by photographer Shoich Aoki, initially as a project to document the growing explosion in street fashion within the suburbs of Tokyo. It continues on today, spawning more volumes and a magazine that continues the documentation process and advertises "alternative" apparel stores around Japan.
My copy is super beat up because I paid for it at a second hand bookstore. Honestly this is the most interesting volume to me. It was the first venture into this kind of documentation for Aoki, and it stands as a moment in fashion time.
Also if you are interested in this book, I will tell you now, it is ALL photographs. Basically it has an introduction from the photographer (2 pages long), and then picture after picture of crazy youth looks. On the bottom right or left hand corner, some stats in small print appear. Usually including their name, stereotype, age, what brands they are wearing, what inspires their looks, and what they are currently obsessed with at the moment. Not all the youths are willing to give their information out like that, so sometimes only one or two of these stat lines appear.
At the time, this book became quite a resource for businessmen, (looking for what to sell to teens with disposable income) designers looking for trends to follow in fashion, and artists who were interested in inspiration for their works. It was noted in the Samurai Jack commentary that for the "rave" episode, that this book served as inspiration for the designs of the dancers.
The little things I love about these photographs are the scenes altogether. It's fun to note how people pose, what they say about themselves, where they are located, and when they go out. This book is a wonderful reference for artists who want to do backgrounds in street scenes. As well as obviously hairstyles, hats and shoes...of all shapes, colors, and sizes.
So if you have an artistic interest, fashion bent, or just love all things japan, I recommend this book. It's easy to find, and usually can range between 10 and 30 dollars, depending on where you buy and what shipping is. I know for a Fact Amazon and Half.com have it. And really that's all there is to it!
My next post will be about ohayocon, and a whole new slew of figures that I got from there and beyond! I'll be sure to post more book reviews in the future as well.
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