Cosmos of the Dream King Kikuji Kawada

*This book is secondhand.

A photo collection by Japanese photographer Kikuji Kawada.

Kikuji Kawada is particularly known for his legendary 1965 photo collection "Maps," featuring a unique, gatefold design by graphic designer Kohei Sugiura. The book interweaves letters and portraits of kamikaze pilots from the Pacific War with motifs such as the countless stains covering the interior walls and ceiling of Hiroshima's Atomic Bomb Dome, Lucky Strike cigarettes and Coca-Cola bottles brought in by the American occupation forces after the war, and even piles of scrap metal in a local factory, symbolizing Japan's postwar economic recovery.

This book, the 24th in the "Asahi Sonorama Photo Selection Series," features photographs that Kikuji Kawada took at the castle built by Ludwig II, the last king of the Kingdom of Bavaria, which existed in what is now Germany until 1918.

Ludwig II was a king who, amid a growing movement to unify Germany into a single nation, remained unwavering and devoted himself to the pursuit of his own ideal of beauty. Kawada captures in monochrome the castle's lavish baroque decorations, chandeliers, gigantic murals, and marble statues, revealing the incredible power of Ludwig II's uncompromising pursuit of beauty.