Japanophiles This Way: Drainspotting and Idle Idol from Mark Batty Publisher

by Jonathon Ramsey (RSS feed)
May 8th 2010 at 6:02PM

Mark Batty Publisher has added two Japanese-subculture themed coffee table books to its collection: Drainspotting by Remo Camerota, and Idle Idol by Edward and John Harrison. The former takes a colorful look at decorative manhole covers found throughout Japan, with more than 1,700 municipalities having taken the time to adorn their manhoru with regional colors, symbols and markers.

Anyone who's taken a stroll down Tokyo streets – or spent a few hours in the Otaku area – knows of the Japanese affinity for figurines. Idle Idol is a pictorial introduction to life-sized mascots used to greet, sell, get attention, or just show off. Broken up into categories, Hero, Legend, Spokesperson, TV Star, Entertainer, Chef, Doctor, Meeter and Greeter, you'll run into everything from Hello Kitty and Astro Boy to Totoro and Colonel Sanders. Yes, that Colonel Sanders, because there is simply no place like Japan...

Gallery: Drainspotting from Mark Batty Publisher