Coffee Table Book of: Jiu Jitsu (Hardcover)

Description

Coffee Table Book of: Jiu Jitsu is a large format book of jiu jitsu, printed edge to edge in colour, one picture to a page and the widest carried across two: the heavy gi and the coloured belts with their bars, mat rooms empty from first light to late at night, the kit being made and cared for, the old gear and the long road of the art, and a few grapplers seen far off in plain dark clothing.

The kit is laid out plain: three gis stacked white, blue and black, the thick collar where it crosses at the chest, trousers with a rope drawstring, a purple belt laid straight with its black bar, the flat knot of a brown belt, a white belt beside a roll of tape for stripes, the five adult belts stacked in order, a red and black coral belt, a blue belt tied in a loop, a rash guard and shorts, a mouthguard, soft ear guards, a grappling dummy, a heap of sandals by the door, a kettlebell, a sandbag and a pair of rings.

The making and care follow cotton in the field, a bolt of heavy cloth, shears and chalk on a jacket being cut, a foam core for the collar, cones of thread, belts dyed purple, a mat cut open to its foam, mats unrolled, joined and taped at the seams, wall pads going up, a gi soaking in a basin and mats mopped late at night.

Then the places, empty at every hour and in every season: mat rooms in a warehouse at first light, a basement in spring rain, a loft at dusk, a storefront on a rainy night, a seaside room at sunrise, a mountain cabin in snow, a summer thunderstorm and a heatwave, under skylights and moonlight, a garage in falling snow, a barn at golden hour, a shelter at the edge of a tropical forest and a hall after a tournament, with a few small grapplers far off, kneeling to roll, running laps, resting along the wall, drilling, mopping the mats and walking to class at dawn.

Short notes run through the book, on the rules and customs of the mat, the gi, belts and mats and how they are made, and the history of the art: most rules allow a gi in only three colours: white, royal blue or black, most gis are cotton, spun into thick yarn and woven heavy to stand years of gripping, up to four stripes of white tape on the bar mark the steps toward the next belt, and adult belts run white, blue, purple, brown and then black.

Printed in full colour on heavy 150gsm coated paper at 216 x 279 mm (8.5 x 11 inches), as a hardcover with the art printed on the case.