Nobuyoshi Araki b. 1940
Nobuyoshi Araki （荒木经惟）
b. 1940
_____________________
JAPANESE PHOTOGRAPHER
Untitled
polaroid in colour, with certificate of authenticity issued by Tokyo Norton Gallery
signed
Executed in 2019.
10.7 by 8.7 cm. 4¼ by 3⅜ in.
Untitled
polaroid in colour, with certificate of authenticity issued by Tokyo Norton Gallery
signed
Executed in 2019.
10.7 by 8.7 cm. 4¼ by 3⅜ in.
Sans titre, 2018
unique object containing 2 polaroids
signed in ink on verso
this work is sold matted and framed
print/tirage: 10,5 x 8,5 cm; 4 1/8 x 3 3/8 in.
Untitled (67 Shooting Back)
RP-Pro crystal print, with certificate of authenticity issued by Taka Ishii Gallery
signed in English on the reverse
Image taken in 2007, printed in 2017.
image: 63.5 by 53 cm. 25 by 20⅞ in.
signed in English (on the reverse)
gelatin silver print
34 x 41.7 cm. (13 2/5 x 16 2/5 in.)
Executed in 2017
Untitled #3 (from IMSHU series)
polaroid paper collage
signed
Executed in 2016.
10.5 by 17.5 cm. 4⅛ by 6⅞ in.
Untitled
polaroid in colour, with certificate of authenticity issued by Tokyo Norton Gallery
signed
Executed in 2015.
10.7 by 8.7 cm. 4¼ by 3⅜ in.
Koki No Shashin: Dita Von Teese
Pola Eros; and, Flower, 2010-2012 (Two Works)
Two polaroids. Each signed in black ink on the verso. Matted and framed.
Each image: 8 x 7.7cm (3⅛ x 3in);
archival pigment print with hand-applied acrylic paint
signed in white ink (recto)
image/sheet: 12 x 8 in. (30.5 x 20.4 cm.)
archival pigment print with hand-applied acrylic paint
signed and dated in ink (recto)
image/sheet: 12 x 8 in. (30.5 x 20.4 cm.)
signed 'nobuyoshi ArAKI' (on the reverse)
RP direct print
41.7 x 34.2 cm. (16 2/5 x 13 1/2 in.)
Executed in 2010
unique Polaroid print
signed in ink (margin, verso) with accompanying Certificate of Authenticity
image: 7.6 x 7.6cm. (3 x 3in.)
KINBAKU, 2009
Untitled (bound woman in kimono), 2008
Untitled (Bondage)
c-print
150 x 120 cm ; 59 1/16 x 47 1/4 in.
Executed in 2008.
UNTITLED (KINBAKU), 2008
silver print, printed later
signed in pencil on the reverse
matted and framed
image: 30 x 23 5/8 in. ; 76,3 x 60 cm
sheet: 32 1/42 x 26 1/2 in. ; 82,6 6 x 67 cm
dye-bleach print
signed in ink on verso
23¼ x 18¼in. (59 x 46.4cm.)
signed 'Nobuyoshi Araki' (on a paper label affixed to the reverse)
Cibachrome print
52¾ x 38½in. (133 x 108cm.)
Executed circa 2007
Cibachrome print
signed in ink (verso)
image: 51 x 40 in. (129.5 x 101.6 cm.)
dye-bleach print
signed in ink (on the verso)
37½ x 29½in. (95 x 75cm.)
signed 'Nobuyoshi ARAKI' (on a label affixed to the reverse)
gelatin silver print mounted on aluminium
39½ x 48¾in. (100.2 x 124cm.)
Executed circa 2007
signed 'Nabuyoshi Araki' (on a paper label affixed to the reverse)
Cibachrome print
50½ x 41¼in. (128 x 104.7cm.)
Executed circa 2007
Paris, Les Éditions du Solstice, 2007.
In-4 (340 x 240 mm). Cartonnage souple recouvert de soie ivoire à la japonaise, chemise et étui de la même soie par l'atelier Houdart à Paris.
LE JAPON INTIME D'ARAKI.
EXEMPLAIRE EN PARFAIT ÉTAT.
Ouvrage réalisé par Xavier Barral sous la direction de Jean-Claude Meyer, avec le concours d'Aimery Langlois-Meurinne et Jean de Kervasdoué.
Deux pages de titre (une en japonais, l'autre en français) et 24 photographies de Nobuyoshi Araki, dont 17 en noir et 7 en couleurs, imprimées sur papier Inuit origin blanc glacier 160 gr des papeteries Arjo Wiggins.
"Le Moi, la Vie, la Mort et le Sexe, toutes les images que je prends sont concernées par ces sujets [...] Les photos en couleur expriment la vie, tandis que les photos en noir et blanc suggèrent la mort [...] À travers mes photographies, notamment celles du bondage, je cherche à faire ressortir un sentiment. Mais ce n'est pas facile [...] Ma photo n'a rien à voir avec la société économique japonaise [...] Mais je ne peux nier que c'est peut-être l'époque qui me pousse à prendre ces images. On peut aussi voir mon travail comme le journal intime du Japon" écrit-il dans la préface.
“自我、生命、死亡和性，我拍摄的所有图像都与这些主题有关[...]彩色照片表达了生命，而黑白照片暗示了死亡[...]通过我的照片，特别是那些束缚的照片，我试图带出一种感觉。但这并不容易[...]我的照片与日本经济社会无关[...]但我不能否认，现在可能是促使我拍摄这些图像的时候了。我们也可以把我的作品看成日本的日记，”他在序言中写道。
deux polaroïds couleur
chacun signé à l'encre (verso)
chaque image: 8 x 7.8 cm. (3 1/8 x 3 1/8 in.)
chaque feuille: 10.8 x 9.8 cm. (4 ¼ x 3 7/8 in.)(2)
Signed Nobuyoshi ARAKI (on a label affixed to the reverse)
Cibachrome print mounted on aluminium, printed circa 2007
101.5 x 206.8cm., 101.5 x 207.2cm. and 101.5 x 206.8cm. (3)
cibachrome
signé à l'encre (verso)
image: 61 x 93 cm. (24 x 36 5/8 in.)
signed 'Nobuyoshi ARAKI' (on a label affixed to the reverse)
gelatin silver print mounted on aluminium
48¾ x 39½in. (124 x 100.2cm.)
Executed circa 2007
signed 'Nobuyoshi ARAKI' (on a label affixed to the reverse)
gelatin silver print mounted on aluminium
49 x 39½in. (124.5 x 100.2cm.)
Executed circa 2007
Cibachrome print
signed in ink (verso)
image: 40.9 x 32.1cm.
FLOWER, YAMORINSKI AND BONDAGED WOMAN
RP-Pro crystal print, with certificate of authenticity issued by Taka Ishii Gallery
signed in English on the reverse
Image taken in 2006, printed in 2017.
image: 58.5 by 46.5 cm. 23 by 18¼ in.
'KAORI', 2006
Cibachrome print. Signed in black felt pen on the verso. Mounted and framed.
Image 39 x 49 cm (15⅜x 19¼in.);
tirage Cibachrome
signé au crayon (verso)
image : 61 x 77 cm. (24 x 30 3/8 in.)
Shiki In Me 02, 2006
Unique collage of nine silver prints with hand-applied paint, mounted onto aluminium.
With a gallery label bearing information about the work in facsimile affixed to the back of the frame. Framed.
Print seen: 166 x 135cm (65⅓ x 53¼in);
Shiki In Me 17
a unique work comprised of 9 gelatin silver prints with hand-applied paint, mural-sized, mounted to aluminium, with 9 facsimiles of the photographer's annotations on the reverse, framed, 2006
overall: 136.9 by 167.6 cm (53 7/8 by 66 in.)
'Shiki In Me 04', 2006
Unique collage of nine silver prints with hand-applied paint, mounted onto aluminium.
With a gallery label bearing information about the work in facsimile affixed to the back of the frame. Framed.
Print seen 166 x 135cm (65 1/3 x 53 1/4 in.)
Untitled Polaroid, 2005-07
Untitled Polaroids, 2005-07
'SHIKI-IN', (COLOR EROS), 2005
Unique work. Silver print with multicolored acrylic paint handwork.
With a gallery label bearing information about the work in facsimile affixed to the back of the frame.
Matted and framed.
34.5 x 42.5 cm (13½ x 16¾in.)
'SHIKI-IN', (COLOR EROS), 2005
Two unique works. Two silver prints with multicolored acrylic paint handwork.
Each signed on the verso. Each with gallery label bearing information about the work in facsimile affixed to frame verso. Matted and framed.
Each 34.5 x 42.5 cm (13½x 16¾in.)
signed 'nobuyoshi ARAKI' (on the reverse)
gelatin silver print
image: 36¼ x 28½in. (92.5 x 72.5cm.)
sheet: 31 x 39¼in. (79 x 99.5cm.)
Executed in 2005
'Untitled', 2004
chromogenic print
signed in ink (verso); credited, titled, and dated in ink on gallery label affixed (frame backing board)
image: 23 x 18 1/2 in. (58.5 47 cm.)
From the series Polanographs, 2003 - 2004
From the series Polanographs, 2003 - 2004
Senza titolo (Carnevale di Venezia)
gelatin silver print
signed in pencil (verso)
image: 19 x 15 in. (48.2 x 38 cm.)
gelatin silver print, hand-coloured with acrylic paint and ink
signed in ink (verso)
image: 14 5/8 x 22 in. (37.2 x 56 cm.)
'Komari from L'Amant D'Août', 2002-2007
signed 'nobuyoshi ArAKI' (on the reverse)
RP Direct print mounted on aluminum
126 x 100 cm. (49 5/8 x 39 3/8 in.)
Photo shot in 2002;
Untitled, 2002
HANA JINSEI, 2002
TOKYO STILL LIFE, 2001/2020
firmata 'Nobuyoshi Araki' (sul retro)
stampa fotografica
57.9 x 44.6 (fotografia)
60.5 x 50.4 cm. (foglio)
Realizzata nel 2001-08
SHINO, 2000
Diary (Woman on Chaise)
Cibachrome print with applied acrylic
signed in marker (verso)
image/sheet: 18 x 22 in. (45.7 x 55.8 cm.)
MYTHOLOGY, 2001
UNTITLED (10 WORKS), CA. 2000S
Ten polaroids in colour. Each signed in black felt pen on the recto.
Each 10.8 x 8.8 cm (4 ½ x 3 3/8 in.)
Red flowers, 2000
Nude & Flowers, 2000
Untitled nude, 2000
Untitled nude, 2000
gelatin silver print, printed 2008
signed in pencil (verso); credited, titled and dated on affixed gallery label (frame backing board)
overall framed: 52 1/4 x 43 x 1 5/8 in. (132.7 x 109.2 x 4.1 cm.)
ferrotyped gelatin silver print
initialed in ink (verso)
image: 10 3/4 x 15 3/4 in. (27.9 x 40.1 cm.)
tirage cibachrome
signé à l'encre (verso)
image 75.5 x 59.5 cm. (29 ¾ x 23 3/8 in.)
Sans titre (Flower), années 2000image : 40 x 60 cm. (15 3⁄4 x 23 5⁄8 in.)
feuille : 50.7 x 61 cm. (20 x 24 in.)
SELECTED IMAGES FROM POLA EROS
a group of 200 Polaroid SX-70 prints, 31 signed in ink on the reverse, 1999-2000 (200)
Each 3 by 3 in. (7.6 by 7.6 cm.)
Blind Love, 1999-2007 51¾ x 39 7/8in. (131.9 x 101.8cm.)
Mythology I, II, III, Blind Love, Untitled and Untitled (Polaroid): Six Works
'A's paradise', 1999
Cibachrome print flush-mounted on aluminium.
Signed on a label affixed to the back of the frame. Framed.
Image 47.5 x 60.3 cm (18 3/8 x 23 3/4)
'Kaori', vers 1999
tirage cibachrome
signé à l'encre (verso)
image:39.3 x 59 cm. (15 ½ x 23 ¼ in.)
firmata 'Nobuyoshi Araki' (sul retro)
fotografia in bianco e nero
38.8 x 57.9 cm. (immagine)
50.5 x 60.5 cm. (foglio)
Realizzata nel 1998-2008
Untitled
'Grand Diary of a Photo Maniac', 1998
Silver print, printed later. Signed in pencil on the reverse. Matted and framed.
Image 38.7 x 58.2 cm (15 1/4 x 23 in.)
UNTITLED
oversized gelatin silver print
signed in pencil (verso)
image: 28 ½ x 36 ½ in. (72.4 x 92.7 cm.)
signed 'ARAKI' (on the reverse)
polaroid
image: 3⅛ x 3⅛in. (7.8 x 7.8cm.)
sheet: 4⅜ x 3½in. (11 x 9cm.)
Executed in 1998
SHIJYO TOKYO, MARKT DER GEFÜHLE, 1998
TOKYO NOSTALGIA, 1998
Flower Rondeau
FLOWER RONDEAU, 1997
book:
Akiko Miki, Yoshiko Isshiki and Tomoko Sato (eds), Nobuyoshi Araki: Self, Life, Death, Phaidon Press Limited, London, 2005.
signed and numbered '78/100' in ink (colophon)
overall: 12 1/2 x 9 x 3 in. (31.7 x 22.8 x 7.7 cm.)
gelatin silver print:
signed and numbered '78/100' in pencil (verso)
image: 14 7/8 x 18 1/2 in. (37.6 x 47 cm.)
Untitled [Two Works], 1997
Tokyo nostalgia
FLOWER RONDEAU, 1997
Untitled
signed on the reverse
Cibachrome print, flush-mounted on board
Executed in 1997-98
cm 48x60; inches 18.89 by 23.62
UNTITLED (TOKYO NOVELLE )
tirage argentique
signé au crayon (verso)
image : 75 x 60 cm. (29 ½ x 23 5/8 in.)
FLOWER RONDEAU, 1997
FLOWER RONDEAU, 1997Paper size: 109.8x 159.6 cm
'Kakyoku', 1997
tirage cibachrome, monté sur aluminium
signé à l'encre sur une étiquette de la galerie (dos du cadre)
image/feuille/montage: 61 x 76.2 cm. (24 x 30 in.)
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0001] , 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0203] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK9002] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK9001] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0132] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0005] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0098] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0087] 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0477] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0051] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0096] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0002] , 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0497] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0171] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0034] , 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0028] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0038] 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0035] , 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0057] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0008] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK2219] , 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0140] , 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0743] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0055] ，1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0046] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0083] ，1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0162] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0016] ， 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0095] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0183] ，1997
Hong Kong Kiss [0768] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0125] ，1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0069] ，1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0013] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0421] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0085] ，1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0136] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0163] ，1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0175] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0216] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0127] ,1997
FROM: "TOKYO COMEDY"
signed on the reverse
silver print
54.5 by 44.5 cm. 21½ by 17½ in.
Executed in 1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0148] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0119] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0176] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0090] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0211] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0012] ,1997
Hong Kong Kiss [HK0155] ,1997
each signed 'nobuyoshi ARAKI' (on the reverse)
gelatin silver prints
each: 59 x 39¼ in. (150 x 100 cm.)
Executed in 1997.
4 tirages Cibachrome
2 signés au feutre (verso)
image (environ) : 58.5 x 47 cm. (23 x 18 ½ in.)
feuille (environ) : 61 x 51 cm. (24 x 20 in.)(4)
tirage cibachrome
signé à l'encre (verso)
image: 46.5 x 59 cm. (18 ¼ x 23 ¼ in.)
tirage cibachrome
signé à l'encre (verso)
image: 60 x 47.5 cm. (23 5/8 x 16 in.)
TOKYO COMEDY
gelatin silver print
signed in pencil (verso)
image: 22 ¾ x 18 in. (57.6 x 45.6 cm.)
Orchid in a glass, 1996
signed 'Nobuyoshi ARAKI' (on the reverse)
c-print
20 x 235⁄8in. (50.8 x 60cm.)
Executed in 1996
FLOWER RONDEAU, 1996
TOKYO NOVELLE
gelatin silver print, with certificate of authenticity
signed in English on the reverse
Executed in 1995/2017.
sheet: 60 by 50 cm. 23⅝ by 19⅝ in.
image: 57.7 by 46.6 cm. 22½ by 18⅜ in.
Gelatin silver print
signed in pencil (verso)
image: 125.4 x 101.6cm.
black and white photograph
image: 16 x 12 5/8in. (40.5 x 32cm.)
sheet: 16 7/8 x 14in. (43 x 35.4cm.)
Executed in 1995
UNTITLED (TOKYO NOVELLE), 1995
silver print, printed later
signed in pencil on the reverse
matted and framed
image: 17 3/4 x 22 1/2 in. ; 45 x 57 cm
sheet: 19 3/4 x 23 3/4 in. ; 50,1 x 60,7 cm
'Untitled', c. 1995
signed 'nobuyoshi ARAKI' (on the reverse)
RP direct print
54¼ x 41¼in. (137.8 x 104.8cm.)
Executed in 1994
Marvellous Tales of Black Ink ，1994
signed 'ARAKI' (on the reverse)
gelatin silver print
image: 9 7/8 x 9 7/8in. (24.5 x 24.5cm.)
sheet: 10¾ x 10¾in. (27 x 27cm.)
Executed in 1994
Untitled, circa 1994
tirage argentique
signé au crayon (verso)
image : 101.5 x 153 cm. (40 x 60 ¼ in.)
signed 'ARAKI' (on the reverse)
gelatin silver print
image: 9 7/8 x 9 7/8in. (24.5 x 24.5cm.)
sheet: 10¾ x 10¾in. (27 x 27cm.)
Executed in 1994
Untitled, circa 1994
signed 'ARAKI' (on the reverse)
gelatin silver print
image: 9 ⅝ x 9 ⅝in. (24.5 x 24.5cm.)
'Grand Diary of a Photo Maniac', 1994
YAKUSA, 1994
Cibachrome print, printed later, flush-mounted onto aluminium.
Signed in black felt pen on the verso. Framed.
60.5 x 91 cm (23¾x 35¾in.)
Yakusa ， 1994
mural-sized gelatin silver print, signed in pencil on the reverse, printed later
image: 100.6 by 123.5 cm (39⅝ by 48⅝ in.)
signed 'Nobuyoshi Araki' (on the reverse)
c-print
25¾ x 39 3/8in. (66 x 100cm.)
Executed in 1994
'UNTITLED', 1994
Silver print. Signed in black ink on a label affixed to the back of the frame.
Matted and framed.
Image 99 x 148.5 cm (39 x 58½ in.)
'Bondage', c. 1994
tirage Cibachrome
signé à l'encre (verso)
image : 33.7 x 87.5 cm. (13 ¼ x 34 ½ in.)
Marvellous Tales of Black Ink ,1994
UNTITLED
time-stamped ''94 7 28' in the negative, signed in pencil on the reverse, framed, 1994
38⅞ by 58⅛ in. (98.7 by 147.6 cm.)
Untitled
Nude, 1993
Erotos
UNTITLED (FROM THE SERIES EROTOS), 1993
silver print
signed on verso
label of the gallery on the back of the frame
22 ½ x 17 ¾ in. ; 58 x 45 cm
Erotos
EROTOS, 1993
signed ‘ARAKI’ (on the reverse)
gelatin silver print
image: 127⁄8 x 127⁄8in. (32.6 x 32.6cm)
sheet: 14 x 14in. (35.5 x 35.5)
Executed in 1993
the complete series of 101 gelatin silver prints
each with date stamp (in the negative); each signed in pencil (on the verso); signed and dated in ink on accompanying Taka Ishii Gallery letterhead; contained in two 4to. customized boxes
image: each 7 3/8 x 11¼ (18.8 x 28.6cm.) or the reverse
sheet: each 10 x 12in. (25.4 x 30.5cm.)
signed ‘Nobuyoshi ARAKI’ (on the reverse)
gelatin silver print
image: 105⁄8 x 153⁄4in. (27 x 40.1cm.)
sheet: 14 x 17in. (35.6 x 43.1cm.)
Executed in 1992
Untitled, Japan', 1992
Colourscapes , 1991/2007
Untitled (from Colourscapes)
accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity by Taka Ishii Gallery
Cibachrome print, flush-mounted
91.2 by 72.7 cm. 35⅞ by 28⅝ in.
framed: 95 by 76.2 cm. 37⅜ by 30 in.
Executed in 1991
‘Colourscapes’, 1991
BONDAGE
signed on the reverse
silver print
Executed in 1991.
75 x 59,5 cm; 29 1/2 x 23 1/2 in. (image）
Cibachrome print
singed in ink (verso)
image: 15 1/8 x 22 7/8 in. (38.5 x 58 cm.)
gelatin silver print
image 52 x 40 in. (133 x 102 cm.)
9 gelatin silver prints, each signed in pencil on the reverse, 5 framed, 1979-97
images approximately 10 by 13 in. (25.4 by 33 cm.)
'Untitled, (Hotel Rooms)', 1993 - 1994
GRAND DIARY OF A PHOTO MANIAC, 1993/2018
Erotos
UNTITLED (FROM THE SERIES EROTOS), 1992
Silver print, hinge-mounted onto aluminium. Signed in pencil on the verso. Framed.
image: 125 x 93.2cm.; 49 ¼x 36 3/4in
'Untitled' (Watermelon on Rooftop), from the series Colourscapes, 1991
gelatin silver print, printed 2020
signed in pencil (verso); credited, titled, dated and numbered on affixed gallery label (frame backing board)
image: 21 1/2 x 33 5/8 in.
rom Close to Range [Diptych]
tirage argentique
signé au crayon (verso)
image: 101 x 75.5 cm. (39 ¾ x 29 ¾ in.)
tirage Cibachrome
signé à l'encre (verso)
image: 59.5 x 89.5 cm. (23 3/8 x 35 ¼ in.)
cibachrome print
signed in ink (verso)
image/sheet: 18 5/8 x 23 3/8 in. (47.3 x 59.4 cm.)
signé au crayon (verso)
tirage argentique
image : 126 x 102 cm. (49 5/8 x 40 1/8 in.)
Untitled
gelatin silver print, signed in ink on the reverse, 1986
image: 9½ by 13⅛ in. (49.5 by 33.3 cm.)
Tokyo Self Diary , 1986
Tokyo Self Diary ,1986
Sexual Desire, 1986
Gelatin silver print
signed in pencil (verso)
image/sheet: 133.4 x 102.9cm.
tirage argentique
signé au feutre (image); daté au crayon (verso)
image : 32.5 x 26 cm. (12 ¾ x 10 ¼ in.)
gelatin silver print
various numbers and annotations in pencil (verso)
image: 10 1/2 x 12 3/4 in. (27.3 x 32.4 cm.)
Kinbaku, 1980-2000
Chromogenic print, printed 2013, flush-mounted onto aluminium.
Signed on a label affixed to the back of the frame. Framed.
Image: 96 x 77cm (36¾ x 30⅜in);
Kinbaku (bondage), 1980s
Blind love, 1980s
signed 'araki' (on the reverse)
gelatin silver print
19¼ x 23¼in. (49 x 59cm.)
Executed in 1979
KINBAKU, 1980-2000
gelatin silver print
singed in pencil (verso)
image: 98.7 x 125.6cm. (39 ⅞ x 49 ¼in.)
Kinbaku (bondage), 1979Kinbaku, 1979 signed in pencil (reverse of the print and backing board)
19¼ x 23¼in. (49 x 59cm.)
gelatin silver print
signed and dated in pencil (on the verso)
image: 11 1/2 x 16in. (29 x 40.5cm.)
Dead Reality
(Los Angeles: Little Big Man Books and San Anselmo: Smith Andersen North, 2015, an edition of 50), the complete portfolio of 18 photogravures, each in a Japanese-bound mat as issued, 1974-77, printed in 2015; together with the letterpress title/colophon, signed in pencil and with edition number '8' in ink. Folio, blue leather case with stamped credit and title in Japanese and English, and with original paper wrapper with flaps and ties
images: 6¾ by 10 in. (17 by 25.5 cm.)
portfolio: 10⅞ by 15¾ by 3⅜ in. (27.6 by 40 by 8.5 cm.)
Selected Images
2 gelatin silver prints, comprising Untitled (C-61-16) and Untitled (C-66-29), each signed and titled in pencil on the reserve, tipped to a mount, framed, a Andrew Roth Inc. label on the reverse, 1973
each image: each 13⅝ by 20½ in. (34.7 by 52.1 cm.)
Hana Kinbaku - 73
coloured photograph
signed on label affixed to the reverse
Executed in 2008, this work is unique
127.1 by 81 cm. 50 by 31⅞ in.
gelatin silver print
signed and annotated in pencil (verso)
image: 14 x 20 5/8 in. (35.5 x 52.3 cm.)
gelatin silver print, printed 2012
signed in pencil (verso); credited, titled and dated on affixed gallery label (frame backing board)
image: 111⁄4 x 71⁄2 in. (28.5 x 19 cm.)
'Untitled (Seated Bound Nude) from Akt-Tokyo', 1971-1991
FROM THE SERIES SEXTEEN
'Satchin and his brother Mabo', 1963
Cibachrome print
signed in ink (verso)
image: 17 ⅛ x 21 ½ in. (43.5 x 54.5 cm.)
'Tokyo Comedy'
Silver print flush-mounted onto aluminium.
Signed on a label affixed to the back of the frame. Framed.
Image 65.5 x 96.5 cm (30 x 38 in）
Untitled (Nude)
gelatin silver print, signed in pencil on the reverse, framed, date unknown
image: 60.5 by 51 cm (23⅞ by 20 in.)
UNTITLED
tirage argentique
signé au crayon au dos
étiquette de la galerie au dos du cadre
monté sous passe-partout et encadré
silver print
signed in pencil on verso
label of the gallery on the back of the frame
matted and framed
17 ¾ x 22 ½ in. ; 45 x 57 cm
Untitled, n.d.
Untitled
Kakyoku Series
gelatin silver print
signed in pencil (verso)
image: 13 x 16 in. (33 x 40.6 cm.)
signed 'Nabuyoshi Araki' (on a paper label affixed to the reverse)
Cibachrome print
48 7/8 x 39¾in. (124 x 101cm.)
signed 'Nobuyoshi Araki' (on the reverse)
cibachrome print
35 x 47.5 cm.
signed 'Nobuyoshi Araki' (on the reverse)
cibachrome print
30 x 39 cm.
Untitled (two works)
signed 'Nobuyoshi Araki' (on a paper label attached to the reverse)
Cibachrome print
63 x 38½in. (160 x 108cm.)
signed 'Nobuyoshi Araki' (on the reverse)
cibachrome print
45 x 58 cm.
TOKIO COMEDY 014 
PARADISE 01
PARADISE 03
PARADISE 06
PARADISE 09
TOKIO COMEDY 015
Interview by Dan Abbe
Portraits by Tom Fraud
NOBUYOSHI ARAKI: What kind of questions will you be asking? There’s nothing really to ask, is there? Because my photos are pretty chatty. I'm not joking! They're just the same as talking to me. If I was going to put it in a cool-sounding way, it’s like they translate my subjects as they really are. So, there's really nothing to talk about!
NOBUYOSHI ARAKI：你会问什么样的问题？真的没什么好问的，是吗？因为我的照片很健谈。我不是在开玩笑！他们就像跟我说话一样。如果我要用一种听起来很酷的方式来表达它，就像他们把我的主题翻译成真实的样子。所以，真的没什么可说的！
DAN ABBE: [Do you] look at the internet much?
DAN ABBE：[你]经常看互联网吗？
ARAKI: No, I don’t have it. I don’t even own a mobile phone. Nothing like that. I don’t like being shot with a digital camera, especially a really good one. It's too good, you know? I feel like digital cameras miss what’s most important, emotion and wetness. These things get lost in digital photography. And before you know it, you get used to that. I’m not talking about shades or shadows being lost, or anything like that. But I almost feel as if digital photography takes away the shadow of the person taking the photo. That’s why I don’t use digital cameras.
ARAKI：不，我没有。我甚至没有手机。没有那样的。我不喜欢用数码相机拍摄，尤其是一台非常好的数码相机。太好了，你知道吗？我觉得数码相机错过了最重要的东西，情感和潮湿。这些东西在数码摄影中丢失了。在你意识到之前，你就习惯了。我不是在说阴影或阴影丢失，或类似的东西。但我几乎觉得数码摄影带走了拍照者的影子。这就是为什么我不使用数码相机。
I’d like to ask you about your recent exhibit at the Toyota Municipal Museum of Art, "Ojo Shashu: Photography for the Afterlife." How do you think it went, either in terms of the content, or the reaction from the audience?
我想问你关于你最近在丰田市立艺术博物馆展出的“Ojo Shashu：来世摄影”。无论是在内容方面，还是在观众的反应方面，你认为进展如何？
The museum tried to make it seem like I was dead. For me, putting something together always means pulling it apart. For this exhibit, it worked, though. I mean, the museum is designed well, as a place to show photographs. When I first started, I thought that photographs should be shown in books, not in museums. At that time, I thought that museums were like graveyards, at least for photography, you know. This exhibit was good. Presenting my works in an exhibit like that instead of through a photo book, I feel like I was able to express myself even better. It’s like climbing Mount Fuji—it’s usually better to see the sunrise from the 8th station, but for this exhibit we went straight to the top.
博物馆试图让它看起来像是我死了。对我来说，把某物放在一起总是意味着把它拆开。不过，对于这个展览来说，它奏效了。我的意思是，博物馆设计得很好，是一个展示照片的地方。当我刚开始的时候，我认为照片应该在书里展示，而不是在博物馆里。当时，我认为博物馆就像墓地，至少对于摄影来说，你知道。这个展览很好。在这样的展览中展示我的作品，而不是通过相册，我觉得我能够更好地表达自己。这就像爬富士山一样——通常从第8站看日出更好，但为了这个展览，我们直接去了山顶。
Did you try out anything in particular with the presentation of your work?
在展示你的作品时，你尝试过什么特别的东西吗？
I try to switch things up to make it look as rough around the edges as possible. You know those people who pay really careful attention to the way their works are exhibited? Like, some photographers focus on the layout too much. That’s wrong. It should just be slapped together. I didn’t even put the photos up myself. I entrusted all that to people who understand me well—I just said, "do it however you want." It was a success. I’ve always acted on the principle of pulling everything apart and always presenting something new.
我试着把东西换掉，让它在边缘看起来尽可能粗糙。你知道那些非常仔细地关注他们作品展示方式的人吗？比如，一些摄影师过于关注布局。那是错的。它应该被拍在一起。我自己甚至没有把照片放上去。我把所有这些都托付给那些非常理解我的人——我只是说，“随心所欲。”这是一次成功。我总是按照拆分一切的原则行事，总是呈现一些新的东西。
The next exhibition I’m doing is called Ai No Tabi [Love Journey] in Niigata Prefecture. (pointing out a photo in the catalog) This one is of my balcony when I was living in Gotokuji. This is the western sky. Heaven, in other words. Around March 11, 2011, my apartment building was demolished, so I moved to Umegaoka, a neighborhood close by. I did up the rooftop and began shooting the eastern sky from there. That’s where the sun rises, you know, reborn. In this sense, I take photographs in the same way that I live my life.
我正在做的下一个展览是新泻县的Ai No Tabi[爱情之旅]。（指出目录中的一张照片）这是我住在五德寺时的阳台。这是西部的天空。换句话说，天堂。2011年3月11日左右，我的公寓楼被拆除了，所以我搬到了附近的梅田冈。我上了屋顶，开始从那里拍摄东部的天空。那是太阳升起的地方，你知道，重生。从这个意义上说，我以与生活相同的方式拍照。
It’s not just a simple shot of the eastern sky; it’s loaded with my feeling that everything starts from there. Let me tell you something: as you can see, the sky in the east gets darker and darker. Now look closer, and it becomes a mirror, or a window of myself. Before March 11, 2011, I had to face my father’s death, my mother's death and my wife’s death. Then around March 11, my cat Chiro died. So recently, the Grim Reaper has been hovering around here. And over there is a goddess (gestures at the woman sitting next to him) so these days it's the three of us! (laughs) I got prostate cancer and did radiotherapy, which messed this up (points towards his pelvis) and made me piss blood. Then I lost sight in one of my eyes. The blood in my urine is from the radiotherapy. But I also had a circulatory problem, a blocked artery, so now I’m taking a blood-thinning agent, but it's thinning too much and making me piss blood. So here I am going through all this, and now you want to ask me these questions! (all laugh)
我正在做的下一个展览是新泻县的Ai No Tabi[爱情之旅]。（指出目录中的一张照片）这是我住在五德寺时的阳台。这是西部的天空。换句话说，天堂。2011年3月11日左右，我的公寓楼被拆除了，所以我搬到了附近的梅田冈。我上了屋顶，开始从那里拍摄东部的天空。那是太阳升起的地方，你知道，重生。从这个意义上说，我以与生活相同的方式拍照。
Your exhibit "Sagan No Koi [Love on the Left Eye]" was showing at Taka Ishii Gallery recently...
您的展览“Sagan No Koi [Love on the Left Eye]”最近在Taka Ishii画廊展出......
Yeah, I took the title from van der Elsken's "Seine Sagan No Koi [Love on the Left Bank]." It could have been Love on the Sumida River for all I care. My wife loved "Love on the Left Bank" too. I was a fan of his work when I was around 20. I guess I’m paying homage, or really just playing around. What did you think of it?
是的，我从van der Elsken的《Seine Sagan No Koi [Love on the Left Bank]》中获得了标题。就我所关心的而言，这可能是隅田河上的爱。我妻子也喜欢《左岸的爱》。我20岁左右的时候是他作品的粉丝。我想我是在表示敬意，或者真的只是在玩。你觉得它怎么样？
I thought it could be appreciated as painting, too. The show that's up there now [an exhibit by Kunié Sugiura] also combines photography and painting, so there’s a connection. Anyway, I was interested in the gaps where the light breaks through the paint a little bit.
我认为它也可以被欣赏为绘画。现在在那里的展览[Kunié Sugiura的展览]也结合了摄影和绘画，所以有联系。无论如何，我对光线稍微穿过油漆的缝隙很感兴趣。
That’s what’s great about those works. That you can kind of see them, but you also can’t. After this, I thought about painting over the left half as well, and calling it "Light and Darkness Lost." Light and Darkness is Natsume Soseki’s posthumous novel. It seems like a waste, but I painted over photographs of nudes and so on in black. Still, if I went too far, it would seem like I was trying to do some sort of trendy art, so I’m holding back. It's tough though, my genius makes me do these things! (laughs)
这就是那些作品的伟大之处。你可以看到他们，但你也看不到。在这之后，我考虑在左半部分画画，并称其为“迷失的光明和黑暗”。《光明与黑暗》是Natsume Soseki的遗作。这似乎是一种浪费，但我用黑色画了裸体照片等。尽管如此，如果我走得太远，我似乎在尝试做一些时髦的艺术，所以我忍住了。不过这很艰难，我的天才让我做这些事情！（笑）
I want to talk about your recent work. Every time you produce something new, you do it under the name Araki, which means that the bar is always set high. Yet I think you’ve been clearing it each time, and I wonder whether people don’t think: "well, it's Araki, so of course it’s going to be good." Do you think you’re taken for granted?
我想谈谈你最近的工作。每次你生产新东西时，你都会用Araki这个名字来做，这意味着标准总是很高。然而，我认为你每次都在清理它，我想知道人们是否不认为：“好吧，这是荒木，所以当然会很好。”你认为你被认为是理所当然的吗？
I mean, I’ve decided that I must do something different every time. If I don't keep transforming, I’ll just become a master. It's no good being a maestro. (laughs) I always want to work as if I’m a novice. I never want to reproduce or reshoot anything I've already done. I do always say that photography is about reproducing, for instance the reproduction of a person, or the reproduction of an era, reproduction this, reproduction that, but actually I think it's bad to keep reproducing your own work.
我的意思是，我已经决定我每次都必须做一些不同的事情。如果我不继续转变，我就会成为一名大师。做大师没有好处。（笑）我总是想像个新手一样工作。我从不想重现或重拍我已经做过的任何事情。我总是说，摄影是关于复制的，例如一个人的复制，或一个时代的复制，复制这个，复制那个，但实际上我认为继续复制你自己的作品是不好的。
I actually wanted to ask you about this word reproduction, or replication. The same subjects often appear in your work, and I wonder whether you would also consider that to be a kind of replication, too. Based on what you just said, though, I’m guessing no.
That's right. So his style is a little different, but it’s like looking head-on at a Picasso painting. (looks at the woman next to him) From a different angle, she looks Chinese, different. From the front, the back, at an angle.... What you see and what you feel is up to you. My subjects are multifaceted, and that’s what I find appealing, that they’re appealing in different ways. When I photograph a woman, I see many different sides to her.
Is the sky similar as a subject in that it's different every time?
Yes. To me, that's why it's "heavenly." There are no two skies that look the same. Later, I will exhibit “Eastern Sky” at Shiseido Gallery. I’ve been shooting the sky every morning for nearly three years, since I moved to my new apartment after March 11.
But you know, when it comes to showing these photos.... It’s not like I think the audience won’t understand, or that I would be making fun of them, but shooting photos and showing them are two different things. When you exhibit, you should have at least some entertainment.
For example, I do this thing that I call "kurumado" [this is a portmanteau of the Japanese words for “car,” kuruma, and “window,” mado] where I shoot from the inside of a taxi. Everything looks great from the window now. I used to photograph all the time, but looking makes me more tired now, because I can only see with one eye. So now, I only shoot when my taxi stops at a red light. When I stop at a red light, the shot is framed perfectly by the side window, because the photography gods are on my side.
But anyway, when I show these photos of basically nothing to an audience, I feel like I should make it more entertaining by throwing in some nudes here and there, even though I call my work "Shi-shashin" [I-photography].
The content of these three shows in Aichi, Niigata and Tokyo are all very different.
Yeah, it’s not a “traveling exhibition,” I don't do that.
Because that would be a repetition?
Yes, yes. Otherwise it’s like, “Oh, I saw the same thing in that city too.”
Are you making three different catalogs too?
No, just one. There are going to be some photos in the Niigata section of the book that didn’t even make it into the actual exhibit. Also, I’m only using one photo from the Eastern Sky exhibit I’ll be doing at Shiseido. I took it on New Year's Day, this year.
I bet something's going to happen within this year. Like a nuclear power plant or Mount Fuji is going to blow, something like that. It won't be a reborn eastern sky anymore. I feel like the entire sky—north, south, east, west—is beginning to resemble the western sky, in other words heaven. Still, I want to live to be over eighty. That’s how my photos make me feel. They encourage me. The sky that I’m looking at right now has become a mirror.
What’s the difference between the eastern and western skies?
东方和西方的天空有什么区别？
Ah. It's very chatty, you know, the western sky. A real loudmouth. In the olden days, it was considered to be the Pure Land. It’s where the sun sets, and when it does, it’s quite dramatic. I think life’s the same way too.
The sun rises in the east, so I thought that the eastern sky was flat, because of all this backlight. But these days, it's getting more complicated. Perhaps because of El Niño, what the hell do I know!
Here's the interesting thing, though. Because I’m shooting against the light, the bumpy tops of those buildings look like graves, or gravestones. You could almost say it’s like a graveyard sky. You look at the sky, you look at the heavens, you look at the world. And see, that’s where the road is. When I see roads, I feel like they’re life itself. At every moment.
Mornings from 7 to 8 am, there’s always a girl running in high heels, click clack click. If only she’d leave the house a little earlier, then she wouldn’t have to rush, and the station is so close, too! Someone's walking their dog, and there are families and married couples. I’ve been shooting the same scenery for three years, so now there’s room to think thoughts like “I wish I saw new couples instead of the usual ones.” Or “I wish he’d get a different girlfriend.” That’s what I think about when I’m shooting. (laughs) You can see the essence of this whole year in these photos. (points to a section of the catalog)
啊。很健谈，你知道，西部的天空。真正大声说话。在古代，它被认为是净土。这是太阳落山的地方，当太阳落山时，它相当戏剧化。我认为生活也是这样。 太阳从东方升起，所以我认为东边的天空是平坦的，因为所有这些背光。但这些天，它变得越来越复杂了。也许是因为厄尔尼诺，我到底知道什么！ 不过，这是有趣的事情。因为我在灯光下射击，那些建筑物的凹凸不平的顶部看起来像坟墓或墓碑。你几乎可以说它就像墓地的天空。你看着天空，你看着天空，你看着世界。看，路就在那里。当我看到道路时，我觉得它们就是生活本身。每时每刻。 早上7点到8点，总有一个女孩穿着高跟鞋跑步，点击点击点击。如果她能早点离开家就好了，那么她就不用着急了，而且车站也很近！有人在遛狗，还有家庭和已婚夫妇。三年来，我一直在拍摄同样的风景，所以现在有空间思考“我希望我看到新的情侣，而不是通常的情侣。”或者“我希望他能有一个不同的女朋友。”这就是我拍摄时的想法。（笑）你可以在这些照片中看到这一整年的精髓。（指向目录的一部分）
So these are all photos you took from your rooftop?
That’s right. I’m making a photo book entirely of this series. It’ll be out in a month or so. But without anything else, I think it will be kind of boring for the poor saps looking at it! (laughs)
But you’re not bored of them yourself, are you.
Oh, nowadays this is all I need! It’s a bad example, but they're better than Balthus’ road. ["Le Passage du Commerce-Saint-André"]
In Japan, words like “path” [michi] or “sky” can easily take on deeper meanings. That’s why I’m using the word “road” [doro]. If you say “path,” people might take this to be spiritual or symbolic, they might think of paths with no one in sight, or a painting by Kaii Higashiyama, and this is not what I’m going for. I want to say that everyday things can tell us a lot about everything. It’s the everyday that’s alive. That's why I shoot every single day.
So every day without fail, you shoot the sky and the road from your rooftop. Is there anything else that you do every day?
People often decide this kind of thing, right? Like, "I'm going to shoot such and such a thing." If I had that kind of time, I’d rather just take photos of myself. That's why I take “I-photographs.” You have to keep on breathing, keep your heart pumping, and in my case clicking the shutter is the same thing. That's why I'm not going to go photograph a war, or something like that.
It's weird to say I’m moved, but I guess I'm most affected by things like pissing blood. When things like that happen, the first thing I think is to grab my camera. That’s what I’ve been doing for about fifty years. (laughs)
I wanted to ask you about something I read in the remembrance you wrote for Shomei Tomatsu, in which you said that he'd influenced you in terms of your thoughts about history, or politics.
Oh, I wouldn't write that. "politics" and such. I think it depends on when you were born. He was born 10 years before me, so he was hung up about the fact that we were occupied, that's why he went to Yokosuka and Okinawa. I’m personally more hung up about things like the atomic bomb. I shoot a lot in August: the 6th, the 9th, Nagasaki, and the 15th, the day the war ended. When I was working on Pseudo Diary, I messed with the camera's dating feature, so in some sense I have an obsession about this, or about the Showa Emperor. Again, this all depends on when you were born. On August 15, I would, without fail, go to the Imperial Palace and shoot. I was really into that. I have a thing for the date August 15. I would change the date of the camera to August 15, take regular photos of daily life, and some other meaning would appear. March 11 overlaps with the atomic bomb in my mind.
Right, I mean you've said that your photographs are all about yourself, but I think that March 11 has become a surprisingly big theme for you.
It's influenced me, yes—but it's more like I’ve had no choice but to be influenced. It’s probably the influence closest to me personally, strange as that may sound. But it was its own expression. Photographers, you know, aren't people who express things. It's the world that does the expressing. Time, too.
One role of photographers is to respond to such expressions through shooting. I'm not like that, though. Even now I sometimes think maybe I should have gone, but I'm the kind of photographer that squeals out, "nice!" when I shoot. As a photographer, it would've been a fantastic landscape—a boat sitting on top of a love hotel—but I wouldn't have been able to keep my mouth shut. I get like that when I hold a camera. So that's why I couldn’t go, didn't go.
So many photographers have gone to Tohoku and taken photographs, but personally I'm not sure it's adding up to much.
Well, I basically don’t look at other people’s photos. It’s not that I’m cynical, but I’m interested in other things, like the silly people trying to save this lone pine tree that miraculously survived. That’s the kind of thing that I’m interested in. It's kind of a goofy or foolish thing, but it's really interesting to me.
Okay, let's talk about the sky again. You're now facing towards the east, but as far as I know Tokyo Skytree has never appeared in your work. Is that intentional?
I’m loyal to Tokyo Tower, I grew up with it. I went up Skytree for a job, but it was cloudy that day so it didn't even matter!
I’m worried that Skytree will ruin the shitamachi [Tokyo's older district] by turning it into a regular place. Of course Tokyo is always changing, but I wonder how you feel about this.
Cities are always changing, and I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing. Even if it does become all digitized, I don’t mind the idea of a digital shitamachi.
I don’t like photos that don’t have a feeling of nostalgia. Nostalgia lasts forever. Even if you can’t see it, nostalgia remains. People look down on nostalgia and sentimentality, right? Like they're not virile. Tears are good.
Everyone is losing touch with this kind of thing. Not just in photography, you know, but in the way they're relating to each other. I mean, what is this—Twitter and so on. Pick up a damn brush and write out the characters! (laughs) That’s why people get frustrated and stab one another, because their words aren’t getting through to others. That's something good about the shitamachi though. You can see siblings going to calligraphy classes together after school. Ah, I just love that, I can't contain myself. It’s so great.
(Araki looks through the catalog)
A little while ago I said "Light and Darkness Lost," making a joke out of Soseki's Light and Darkness, but I’m not necessarily inspired by literature. It’s the photos I take subconsciously that teach me the most. I took a photo of a cat’s shadow, you see? (picks out an image in the catalog) That’s because I felt that there might be more truth in its shadow. Regardless of whether that’s the right thing or not. There are some men who prefer shadows to bodies, you know. (laughs)
Something I like about your work is that it's extremely pure, but it’s not naïve. I mean, this is sort of a strange thing to say, but I have this idea that your mind is more Greek than Japanese. Before you mentioned how tears are good, right? A few years ago, when I saw your exhibit about Chiro, Sentimental Journey, Spring Journey at Rat Hole Gallery, I was so overcome with emotion that I nearly burst out into tears right there. It feels to me like you relate to things, whether animal or human, in an almost cosmic way.
With Chiro, if you look at those photographs you can see that her feelings towards me were much stronger than my feelings towards her. I did not respond enough to her love. Her love was deeper than mine. The photographs make this clear. Look at her final portrait, when she gazed at me. I just feel that my love was weak. That's why the photographs of Chiro are good. My photos have always been about my relationship with the partner in front of me.
How about the people looking at your work—what sort of "partner" are they?
I’m not so concerned about them. For me, it’s all about the subject in the photo and nothing else. That’s why, when I present my works, I feel like I need to add an element of entertainment for the audience, even if it's a lie.
(showing images of Chiro) This is when she’s so thin that they can’t even find a place to put a drip in her arm. I asked her to stand one last time for a photo, and she did. But you know what? This face, with her eyes closed, when she was dead—that was the most beautiful shot.
Here, she’s already got rigor mortis. It sets in immediately after death, you know. That’s why she’s the same shape. (shows Chiro after cremation) I told them [i.e. the crematorium staff] to keep her in this position.
Here I’ve painted onto the sky. (points at an image) I made these works for the exhibition one year after Yoko's death. It's a pity to exhibit black and white photographs on white walls, so I created a sky dedicated to her. A sunrise or sunset, a sky for her. I can’t help it, I’m naturally gifted. These are great, aren't they? (laughs)
I’m curious to ask about Setsuko Hara, who has appeared in your work a few times—
Yes indeed! That big-boned, Russian-looking woman. There's the word sonzaikan ["presence"], but I have a particular term that I use when I’m referring to a woman, nyozaikan [a portmanteau of the Japanese words for “woman,” nyo, and “presence”], and she had it. She isn’t cute or sexy at all, but I like women who are full of resentment, who have some poison in them, and I was attracted to those qualities in her.
In that sense, what do you think about the girls of AKB48?
They’re all the same... That’s what I'd call “digital.” It's okay for what it is. They’re all cute, and that's not bad, no? But there are girls from the same generation who exist in a different realm from AKB48, and I think they're amazing. The AKB girls are manufactured. I guess some people will find them interesting, though.
But they're not your liking?
Oh, some of them I like. (laughs) But they all look the same to me. I’ve shot some of them, too. In thinking about what I would want to shoot, my own mettle came out. So, you had Atsuko Maeda and Yuko Oshima. In the election, Oshima had won—
You're surprisingly familiar with this!
So I thought I’d get some sort of reaction if I made them stand side by side, and in fact there's one shot where they're almost wrapped up together. You could just feel their rivalry. That's interesting to me, to shoot two people in that kind of situation.
Let’s talk a little bit about foreign countries. What has the response to your work been abroad?
People overseas responded to my work immediately. When I showed Akt-Tokyo in Europe, the photos spoke for me, especially since I didn’t speak the language. It convinced me that photos are better than words.
Do you think that Japanese photography culture has anything to teach overseas?
Probably not, right? (laughs) Anyway, it’s not about teaching or being taught—as long as you’re ready to learn from your subjects, you’ll definitely be fine. And by the way, everything around you is fantastic.
Overseas, they try to force all this emotion into the frame, right? But it’s better to think of the frame as something from which emotions and such can escape easily.
How would you look back on your experience as a judge for the Canon New Cosmos competition? In some sense, you helped shape an era.
I've been bashing digital today, but these days, digital shots that people take of friends of friends seem to be valued pretty highly. Maybe that’s because I used to select those kinds of photos all the time at the competition, though I selected other things too.
We had guest judges sometimes, like the director of a photography museum in Paris. He told me that he understood my photos, but that he didn’t understand the photos I'd selected as a judge. You know, people like HIROMIX.
I mean, the stuff that guy selected was amazing! A reflection of the moon in a pond, that kind of thing. Come on! (all laugh) So I guess it's not surprising that, coming in as a guest judge, he couldn't understand photographs taken by young Japanese girls. Maybe that work could tell him something like, "Hey, dad, this is how photography is really done!"
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