Osaka and Kyoto Wallpaper* City Guides
Offering something more than takoyaki and temples for Kansai tourists
UK design magazine Wallpaper* has acted as a bible for the style-conscious since it’s debut back in 1996. In 2006, to celebrate their 10th anniversary, they launched the Wallpaper* City Guide travel book series, revealing sophisticated locations off those well-trodden tourist trails–with over 80 cities covered to date, they are fast becoming the first port of call for jet-setting hipsters.
Expectedly, they are a pretty slick affair; with a smart tab system for sections, gorgeous photography and a compact size with pantone covers, they allow you to wander a city without the embarrassment of looking like, well… a tourist.
Australian writer Gordon Kanki Knight was involved in the three Japanese cities featured so far, coauthoring the Tokyo edition and authoring the Kyoto and recently published Osaka editions (with Sapporo to follow). Kansai Scene caught up with Gordon for a coffee…
An immediate impression of the Wallpaper* CGs is their clean design…
Wallpaper* is a joy to work with in that respect, with photography and design spot on. Most of the Osaka book was shot by London-based Swedish photographer Christoffer Rudquist, who has spent a lot of time in Japan. He really manages to capture the essence of a place… his shot of the Osaka pool, for example, is inspired.
How did you source the locations?
It’s a mix. Some locations were featured in Wallpaper* magazine; some are connected to things featured in the magazine. The Dojima hotel in Osaka, for example, we knew about right from the start because it has strong ties with the Claska hotel in Tokyo–a Wallpaper* favorite. As my wife is from Kobe, a lot of the content also comes from friends in and around Osaka. The rest is from simply walking the streets and doing detective work.
What type of person would you say the Osaka and Kyoto guides are aimed at?
I guess the guides are seen as a bit elitist but–especially with Osaka and Kyoto–I feel a lot of the places featured will give a better idea of what the cities are like than your Rough Guides and Lonely Planets–that take you from a backpack hostel to the Golden Temple and then to a tourist trap restaurant. We try to find places the locals keep to themselves, like the Prinz hotel in Kyoto, for example: a real part of the community with the local art students from Kyoto University of Art & Design hanging out there. Equally, at places like ETW Café in Kyoto, you’ll find locals keen to talk to you–which ultimately, gives you a chance to know the city better.
Would you say the amount of contemporary design in Kansai highlights a misconception about its “blue-collar” tag?
It’s true that there’s this image of okonomiyaki, baseball and beer, but let’s not forget some of Japan’s best creative works were done by people who started out as blue-collar. Architect Tadao Ando was a truck driver, while Nobel prize-winning author Yasunari Kawabata was a dirt-poor orphan at 15. Osakans do it rough, but that doesn’t stifle their creativity.
In the Kyoto guidebook, there’s a conspicuous focus away from temples…
Ginkakuji is my favorite temple in Kyoto, and I’d have loved to include it. Katsura Rikyu–though not a temple–would be another worthy place; Enshu Kobori is so important to Japanese architecture. At the end of the day, there’s only so much you can fit in a book. Because of Kyoto’s traditional image, people are surprised to see places such as Sachio Otani’s International Conference Center, but it’s an important place.
Any amusing experiences when writing the guides?
I usually do research undercover, but at Tarmerry café in Saiwai-cho, Osaka, which is a teashop, I was scribbling notes with a copy of Wallpaper* beside me. It turned out the owner, Kimura-san, is a massive fan of the magazine. After chatting for a bit, I thought it only fair I admit I work for them…. Anyway, Kimura-san really knows her tea, and she really wanted to share that knowledge. We drank what seemed like the entire history of tea–cup by cup. We had teas a decade old, tea made of leaves you can eat, Chinese, Japanese, English. It just kept coming. I didn’t have the heart to tell her I’m really a coffee drinker.
What do you do in your spare time, and what’s your perfect day in Kansai?
I run and also ride a bike. In Tokyo, I commute on an old fixed gear track bike I’ve owned since I was 16. If you were to spend 24-hours in a Kansai city it’s hard to beat a day in Kyoto. Breakfast at the Hyatt, then walk to Sanjusangendo–a quite amazing temple-cum archery range! Then of course, Ryoanji, to meditate at the dry rock garden and see if you can achieve an enlightened state by viewing all the rocks at one time. I’d finish up at restaurant A Womb in Sakyo Ward for modern kaiseki, then head to ETW Café for a few beers.
 Wallpaper* City Guide Osaka (Phaidon, 2009, 128pp, ¥1,029). Wallpaper City Guide Kyoto (Phaidon, 2008, 128pp, ¥1,029). Available from
www.amazon.co.jp
Text: James Coulson
Photos: Kohji Shiiki
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