monica maffioli – japanese dream

A luminous reverie of photographic history and cultural nuance.

Drawing on the early photographic work of Felice Beato in 19th-century Japan, Japanese Dream brings together exquisitely hand-colored portraits of geishas, samurai, sumo wrestlers, and landscapes from a rapidly modernizing country. Maffioli curates these visual fragments to highlight the aesthetic and symbolic power of photography in Japan’s transition from Edo to modernity.

The book evokes the refined visual codes of the Yokohama School and traditional woodblock prints, presented in a monumental hardcover format that elevates the work to a museum-quality object. With lush reproductions and thoughtful sequencing, Japanese Dream offers a rare glimpse into the dreamlike, performative world captured by the camera lens in an era of transformation.

Object: Book

Author: Monica Maffioli

Title: Japanese Dream

Publisher: Hatje Cantz

Year: 2012

Edition: First Edition

Language: English / German

Binding: Hardcover

Pages: 132

Dimensions: 33.7 × 48.8 cm

Condition: Very Good

ISBN: 978-3-7757-3437-0