KANBAN: The Art of the Japanese Shop...

KANBAN: The Art of the Japanese Shop Sign by Dana Levy, Lea Sneider and Frank B. Gibney (Chronicle Books: $22.95). The carved and painted wooden and metal signs in this volume are the direct ancestors of the dazzling neon logos that light modern Tokyo’s Ginza. The more straightforward examples consist of outsized representations of specific products, from hair combs and tobacco pouches to radishes and wooden clogs, many of which display a naive charm. Other kanban exhibit a subtlety and sophistication unmatched in contemporary advertising. A sign for a tea shop features a portrait of a lovely courtesan juxtaposed with an ancient Chinese poem; the literary allusions suggest that “a beautiful woman can lead the nation to ruin, but why shouldn’t everyone enjoy the same pleasures as the great rulers?”