Keiyudoh is a book store specializing in rare art books, with a small gallery in the back. Currently the gallery features an exhibition of calligraphy by Sueo Akiyama, a self-taught artist, whose works have received cultural awards in Poland and France recently. Keiyudoh also publishes the journal Le Carrosse d'Or.
Keiyudoh was founded by Teruo Sugimoto, a former engineer, in the fall of 1999. It has built up a network of repeat customers, largely through word of mouth. Sugimoto started off collecting Akutagawa Award winners, such as Kenji Maruyama and Akira Abe. His taste in the arts extends to Surrealism.
Some rare works command premium prices, like the study on Paul Valery, written by Paul Bonet, translated by Masahiro Kumiya, with woodblock prints by Hitoshi Karasawa -- 200,000 yen! Sugimoto's double role as bookseller and collector can be painful when he has to part with a cherished tome, but he does his best to create a pleasant, salonlike atmosphere for customers, serving tea and chatting with his clientele. They also contribute to his journal. The Vol. 1, Sep. 2000 edition includes tanka by Yoshiharu Yoda, former member of the avant-garde poetry group Vou.
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