KITCHEN Minoru
Photo Picture Book Author / Photographer
Founder of Texas Booksellers

Born in Fort Worth, Texas to an American father and Japanese mother, I moved to Japan at age three when my dad got transferred for work. After my parents divorced, I stayed in Japan with my mom, and I’ve been based there ever since. At 18, I dreamed of becoming a rakugo performer, but that didn’t work out. I then applied to several childcare training schools and was rejected by all of them. Not a surprise, considering I spent most of high school immersed in rakugo, films, and mahjong. By senior year, I was hardly attending class. After high school, I took a gap year and was later accepted into Hosei University, where I studied Human Environment Studies and community development. That’s also when I discovered photography and became completely absorbed in it. Around that time, I adopted the name KITCHEN Minoru. After graduating, I started working for a real estate company and earned my real estate license. A year later, the renowned photographer Takashi Kijima praised my work, which encouraged me to quit my job and pursue photography professionally. My time in the corporate world lasted only a year, but it was a formative one, full of challenges and growth. When I told Kijima I had left my job, he scolded me—“Are you an idiot? Why’d you leave?”—but I kept going and began working as a photographer in 2005. Since then, I’ve learned from countless editors, writers, designers, and veteran photographers. Today, I focus primarily on photographing people and food for books, magazines, web media, and advertising. In 2010, I began launching my own creative projects to share the surprising and fascinating things I encounter. Using the skills I’ve developed, I’ve turned those ideas into books, exhibitions, and other forms of expression. In 2019, I sat down for a conversation with rakugo master Shunpūtei Ichinosuke and compiled his insights into the book Shi Iwaku (Shogakukan). We held exhibitions and talk events, and I even appeared on his radio show—though I was so nervous, I barely remember what I said. I also spent five years documenting the tuna supply chain, which resulted in the picture book Maguro Relay (Fukuinkan Shoten), later exhibited at the Ginrin Library in Toyosu Market. In 2021, I released Taisetsu na Gyūnyū (Precious Milk), which marked the beginning of my full-time work as a photo picture book author. That same year, I began working in video production and launched the YouTube channel Nabe no Naka. In 2024, I founded my independent publishing label, Texas Booksellers, expanding my activities to include publishing, design, website development, event planning, and more. Also, I really love sweet potatoes, and I’m a certified One-Star Tamari Expert (Certification No. g019148).

Books and Publications
Photo Picture Books
Yama no Ki, Todoke! — Texas Booksellers (2025)
Before the Airplane Flies — Texas Booksellers (2024)
Precious Eggs — Texas Booksellers
Taisetsu na Tamago — Texas Booksellers
Precious Milk — Hakusensha
Asagao and Haru‑kun — PHP Institute
Maguro Relay — Fukuinkan Shoten

Photo Books and Other Works
The Egg Farm — Texas Booksellers
The Dairy Farm — Texas Booksellers
Kitchen Minoru’s Photo Class — Chikuma Shobo
People Along the Tama River — Mill Books
Film Camera Textbook — Raichosha
Sea — Texas Booksellers

Collaborative and Co-authored Projects
The Kombu Book — Fukuinkan Shoten
Deep Sea Fish: Catch, Eat, Explore — Fukuinkan Shoten
Shi Iwaku — with Shunpūtei Ichinosuke — Shogakukan
Ichinoichi no Ichi — with Shunpūtei Ichinosuke — Shogakukan
Memorable Okinawa Restaurants — Seibundo Shinkosha
Meoto Pandora — New Foil

Original Projects
Kossetsu‑kun — story by Shunpūtei Ichinosuke, illustrations by Naomi Tokuchi — Texas Booksellers