Allen S. Weiss is the author and editor of over forty books in the fields of performance theory, landscape architecture, gastronomy, sound art, experimental theater, and ceramics. He has written extensively on Japanese culture, including Zen Landscapes: Perspectives on Japanese Gardens and Ceramics (Reaktion Books) and The Grain of the Clay: Reflections on Ceramics and the Art of Collecting (Reaktion Books), as well as Le goût de Kyoto (Mercure de France) and Guide anachronique de Kyoto (Éditions Arléa). He has been the recipient of Fulbright, Japan Society, and Étant donné grants, and is Distinguished Teacher in the departments of Performance Studies and Cinema Studies in the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University.