Each bookstore acts as a concierge, recommending "the book you should read now" to FASHION HEADLINE readers. Today, we'll be introducing books selected by Shelf (3-7-4 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo), a Harajuku bookshop that specializes in foreign books.

■ "The Narcissistic City" by Homma Takashi

The cityscapes of Japan and America captured through urban architecture. Homma Takashi, who describes this series as "photographing the city through the city," used a "hand-held camera obscura," which could be said to be the origin of photography, to turn an entire room into a camera obscura.

This primitive photography technique captures a group of shadows lurking in the city that differ from the natural landscape. The image of the city, with its unique overlapping light and shadows reflected, is reminiscent of the passage from Greek myth in which Narcissus was captivated by the beauty of his own reflection in the water, and is filled with a self-intoxicating image that emerges precisely because it lacks the clarity of a regular camera.

[Book Information]
"The Narcissistic City"
Author: Homma Takashi
Publisher: MACK
Language: English
Hardcover / 112 pages / 240x310mm
Published: 2016
Price: 9,000 yen