Host for the event was Robert Yellin, owner of the Yakimono Gallery, seen here giving instructions from on high (photo J. Dougill)

Sunday, May 19, WiK had the great pleasure of welcoming the prolific Allen S. Weiss back again on one of his annual visits to Kyoto. Covid had prevented him from coming for two years, so it was good to hear he would be revisiting. He has confessed that he never joins clubs or societies, but would make one exception by joining Writers in Kyoto. He has not only presented on several occasions, but has contributed a lot to our website. On previous visits he has talked about his Teddy Bear and publication of his Kyoto-centrerd book, The Grain of the Clay, which focusses on ceramics. This time Allen talked about his forthcoming book Illusory Dwellings: (Stone Bridge Press) which is due out in the autumn. The subtitle Aesthetic Meditations in Kyoto tells of the content.

There could hardly have been a better setting than Robert Yellin’s Yakimono Gallery’s collection of ceramics. (photo by Yellin)
A cosy setting surrounded by exquisite ceramics (photo Yellin)
The presenter checking his notes (photo by Larry)

Long-term member Allen Weiss has a particular interest in the aesthetics of Kyoto, a city which he considers his second home. A lecturer and researcher for New York University/Tisch School of the Arts, he counts amongst his specialities aesthetic and performance theory; experimental performance; landscape architecture; gastronomy; and sound art. He has written several books touching on Kyoto, and his new publication is inspired by the city. For an account of a previous talk for WiK, please see here and for more about his books click here or here. To learn more about Robert Yellin’s gallery, see here.

The prolific Allen S. Weiss