The Way of Letter

The study considers Japanese mail as a cultural system, visual documentation of the country’s history. The story is based on visually rich points in the way of writing: archival photos, maps, printed attributes, employee and transport images, and office architecture. The publication reveals the route of the letter — from creation by the sender to receipt by the addressee — and shows how the mail has become an axis of political, economic and cultural life, an important part of Japan’s identity.