There is always a book for everyone’s taste. That was also the case in late 19th-century Japan, as I attested during my work on digitising part of the Victoria and Albert Museum’s (V&A) 19th-century Japanese books collection. Taking place between February 10 and 14, this programme was a joint project between the V&A’s Asia department and the Sainsbury Institute for the Study of Japanese Arts and Cultures (SISJAC). Under the guidance of Dr Ryoko Matsuba, Lecturer of Japanese Digital Arts and Humanities in the Institute until recently, I participated as one of the project assistants. The other assistant was Charlotte Mang, with whom I had the pleasure of participating in last October’s digitisation project at Chiddingstone Castle as well.
The project involved the digital photography of many of the illustrated books from the V&A repository. The high-quality images, from cover to undercover of each book, were then appropriately numbered and ordered and will serve as a valuable, digital version as part of the museum’s collection. I also must mention the unique ARC cradle system. It allowed for the convenient, albeit safe, handling of each object, which was ideal for manipulating the most fragile documents with ease while capturing as much of their text and details as possible.
As much as the cradle facilitated a smooth workflow, the task of digitising the varied collection of Japanese books posed many challenges. The difference in the books’ sizes requires a different angle from which the photography should be taken, from a lower or higher height. Fortunately, the system we used for camera settings allowed for quick adaptability to any book we encountered. Mounted on a copy stand, the camera’s height could be easily adjusted using a clamp. Combined with the fixed lighting setting, which could be used for most objects, it allowed for a relatively fast photographing process.
However, these setup lighting conditions would not always be ideal for showcasing the details of all books. One of the most visually striking books we had to photograph was a textile design book, which included a wide variety of coloured textile patterns for kimonos destined for Kyoto’s old aristocracy. Seen in person, one would be impressed by the delicateness of the patterns, which were embossed into colour rectangles and realistically imitated the effect they would have had when seen in the actual clothes. However, with the usual lighting and camera setup, these delicate patterns would be imperceptible in the photographs. But there is a solution: rendering them visible through raking light, which involves turning off the lights on one side of the table to create a shade that highlights the embossed effects. This minor but significant adjustment to the lighting demonstrates our commitment to adapting our setting to produce images of the highest quality, which are not only legible and clear but also capable of showcasing the craftsmanship behind many of these books.
Dr Matsuba and I took turns to photograph the different books at our work station. The biggest challenge for me was managing the balance between speed and quality: putting too much effort into photographing a book might prevent you from using that time to work with other objects. Conversely, a hurried approach increases the risk of blurry images and employing more time than expected for their subsequent retakes. Dr Matsuba’s guidance and advice helped me immensely to achieve the ideal balance in my workflow. While we were taking photographs, my colleague Charlotte carefully organised the obtained images into their corresponding folders and assigned an accession number to each of them. She also double-checked the photographs to detect any image that should be retaken. The success of this project would not have been possible without a steady work rhythm and constant communication among team members.
No matter the challenge, being able to see the creativity and inventiveness put into many of the books from the collection was always rewarding. I was impressed by how detailed and comprehensive the illustrated guidebooks for many locations, still popular today, were, such as Ise Shrine and Mount Takao, which serve as a reminder of how popular travel already was within 19th-century Japan. I was equally charmed by the many comedic books featuring caricatures that varied from adorable animals to bizarre depictions of city life. And, of course, some of the aforementioned textile books were remarkable not only for the meticulousness of the patterns but also for the high quality of the pigments employed in them, which remain vibrant to this day.
This project has not only further honed my skills in digitisation and the handling of art objects but also strengthened my conviction that the proper archival and dissemination of high-quality craftsmanship examples from the past are more necessary than ever. The images we have obtained serve as a testament to the intricacy in the craft of bookmaking and to the creative methods past artisans, visual artists and bookmakers employed to make books attractive in both content and presentation. This will be of interest to both researchers in the art history of Japan and any potential viewer of these photographs, who will no doubt be as charmed as I was by its most creatively ingenious examples. As such, I hope that more books from the fantastic collection at the V&A will continue to be photographed soon, and that I will have the opportunity to participate in many exciting projects like this in the years to come.
Thanks to Masami Yamada and the rest of the staff from the V&A Asia Department for their assistance while navigating the museum and handling the objects, and to Dr Ryoko Matsuba and Charlotte for being excellent an supervisor and colleague, respectively.
You can read about past digitisation workshops that have taken place at the V&A here and here.
Jaime Marcos de Hevia
(MA History of Art and Archaeology of East Asia, SOAS).