Making books is fun. The first step in making books is to read good books, and then, to be able to laugh. Finding good books is the shortcut to making good books. Of course, this isn’t merely limited to books—it’s the same with cooking too. While there might not be a physical limit in how much you can consume, like with cooking, we do have deadlines. That is why it’s important to keep reading to a sensible limit as you engage with the difficult labors of book making.

Unfortunately, when looking for good materials, there are many times when I’ve been unable to find slightly older artist’s books or art books in larger bookstores or the library. In addition, there are those books which seem to refuse to be constrained by a shelf—unbound books with pages out of order which were made without the help of a printing company, or extremely indie publications without an ISBN. Old books like these can be nigh impossible to track down. However, when I wish to draw some hints from these kinds of books, I head to Atelier in Hatsudai.

Atelier deals in second-hand design books, photography collections, artist’s books, art books, and architectural books. They are chiefly an online bookstore, but you can also reserve a slot to visit and occasionally they have open days during the weekend. As soon as you walk into Atelier, located in a room in an apartment building, there is a large window at the end of the room with shelves of books lining each side. I feel fulfilled just seeing the diverse collection of spines on the shelves. A contradictory thought comes to mind: I’ll be sure to find a good book here, but with such amazing books already in the world, is there any need to create new books?

One of Daido Moriyama’s titles is “The Past is Always New, the Future is Always Nostalgic” and these words echo when I look at Atelier’s homepage. Joseph Brodsky wrote, “Tomorrow is just less attractive than yesterday.” Junzo Shono spoke of how he wished to write novels that moved people, stating, “Living is truly a nostalgic thing!” I wonder if people who are involved with books have a tendency to idolize the past. Perhaps, to them, a deadline is something that will never come.

ATELIER
Room 503, Yoyogi Murata Mansion, 4-2-28 Yoyogi, Shibuya
*By reservation only