"Tokyo Nostalgia", 1997
Cibachrome Print, cm 60x40
Love him or hate him, and believe me there's plenty of people in both camps, Nobuyoshi Araki is one of Japan's best known photographers. His nudes have a desperation and perversity that is genuinely unpleasant. This isn't to say that they aren't good. Eroticism or glamour isn't the intent of these images, rather they seem to be reports from hell issued by a damned soul.
Critic Monty DiPietro has written a beautiful essay of the complicated and conflicting emotions he experienced while reviewing Araki's work. I definitely recommend reading this one if you want some kind of an understanding of Araki's overall body of work.
Nobuyoshi Araki at the Hara Museum
Tokyo Nostalgia
PHOTOLOGY - Nobuyoshi Araki
Lately though Araki's work has taken a very different turn. His subject matter is now flowers and cats instead of prostitutes. Do they symbolize redemption or something different? Again, to understand Araki, I recommend visiting his offical website and finding out where he's at now.
Nobuyoshi Araki official homepage
No comments:
Post a Comment