Kuchikeru Akio Tomari

A collection of works by Kagoshima-born photographer Akio Tomari. Coining the term "Kuchikeru" to describe the state of decaying in the present progressive, Tomari captures his unique world view in this artist book dedicated entirely to glass subjects.

The glass objects assembled for this book include items that faced the possibility of disposal—such as goldfish bowls, ramune soda bottles, early-era glassware from MUJI's inception, and tiny antique medicine bottles once used for Jintan beads—as well as pieces passed down by renowned antique and vintage dealers from shops like "Daikichi" in Kyoto, "poubelle" in Nishi-Ogikubo, and "Moro" in Tochigi.

Despite glass being a material used by humanity for nearly four thousand years, a minor chip immediately labels it a hazard, sending it to the non-burnable trash or the recycling bin. This volume gazes upon these fragile glass products through the lens of the "beauty of imperfection."

Complementing the world of Kuchikeru, the book includes selected writings by Kenji Miyazawa, So Haku Iwamoto, Torahiko Terada, Soetsu Yanagi, Rainer Maria Rilke, and Takeshi Kaiko, alongside a newly written piece titled "Monotachi no Dare-Kare" (The Whos and Whats of Objects). The cover is elegantly bound utilizing medical gauze.