The street has always been one of the most significant public spaces. Particularly in Asian cities, the street – not the square – remains even today the most important location for the activities of daily life. In Tokyo, the street is not merely an area for traffic, but rather space for communication and action; a space that is both lived in and enlivened.
This book shows why a metropolitan lifestyle unfolds in areas surrounding train stations and an almost provincial quality is to be found in side streets. Along with historical and urban planning analysis of the small-scale qualities of public space, one is steered directly to the street, and Tokyo is depicted from the perspective of a pedestrian through a detailed series of images.

Available from Lars Müller Publishers

Print article