这本书描述和定义了什么是“日本风”。本书在日本的艺术和建筑设计上探索出她独特的成就，同时提供了深入分析到日本的文化，她视觉上世界和人类的。

“日式风”是一种很容易让人辨别的：一朵被装束好的漂亮鲜花，一个优雅的书法或一个简单的岩石花园。但依然有一些东西是很难被定义的。

这本书给读者就是工具一样让人完全了解日本艺术和文化。就像Gian·Carlo·Calza说：要想了解和欣赏日本文化的路径是缓慢而漫长，为了在这旅程上培养正确的情感,读者必须获得必要的方法。出于这种考虑，作者揭示和分享了他的日本文化的知识和经验，定义日本风格的精髓。

Calza的开创性和深刻的文字描述和伴随着150彩色图像的各种各样的例子来说明日本艺术和文化。

Japan Style, written by one of the world's most respected scholars of Japanese art and culture, defines what 'Japan style' is. It explores specific achievements in Japanese art and architecture, but also offers an in-depth analysis of the whole of Japanese culture, its vision of the world and of humankind. 'Japan style' is something recognizable to everyone: a beautifully arranged flower, an elegant piece of calligraphy or a simple rock garden, but it is also something that is very difficult to define.

The book is divided into three main sections. In the first one ('Irregular Beauty'), the author delineates the different aspects of Japanese culture and draws interesting connections between art, architecture, religion, philosophy and mythology. For example, he explains the aesthetics of the tea ceremony and its relationship to Zen philosophy as well as other subjects such as the function of the void in mythology, Buddhism and the arts.

The second part of the book ('A Feeling of Nature') follows a chronological path from ancient times to the present explaining more specifically how to interpret the different forms of Japanese art (literature, painting, sculpture, etc.).

The third part of the book ('Art Masters') contains short monographs on Japanese masters in the history of Japanese art and culture: Zeami Moto, the creator of No theatre; Hokusai, the master of woodblock printing; Yasunai Kawabata and Mishima Yukio, the writers; and the graphic designer, Tanaka Ikko.

Calza's groundbreaking and insightful text is accompanied by 150 colour images of a great variety of examples from Japanese art and culture.   

Gian Carlo Calza is Professor of East Asian Art History and Director of the International Hokusai Research Centre at the University of Venice. A distinguished authority of Japanese art, he has published many books and articles on several artists, including Phaidon's monograph on Hokusai (2003), as well as Phaidon's Ukiyo-e (2005) and Japan Style (2007).

"images are carefully chosen and beautifully juxtaposed" —IDFX

"This poetic book analyses complexities of Japanese style. Instead of straightforward case studies on well-known examples, it tackles underlying aspects of culture with references to Buddhism, mythology, Zen philosophy, architecture and the visual arts. Beautifully illustrated, and far more than just Ando, tea ceremonies and Noh theatre. " —Building Design