Araki by Araki

by Nobuyoshi Araki (Contributor)

Decades’ worth of images have been distilled down to 568 pages of photographs in this ultimate retrospective collection of Nobuyoshi Araki's work, selected by the artist himself. First published as a limited edition and now available as a standard TASCHEN edition, the curation delves deep into Araki's best-known Tokyo street scenes; faces and foods; colorful, sensual flowers; female genitalia; and the Japanese art of kinbaku, or bondage. As girls lay bound but defiant and glistening petals assume suggestive shapes, Araki plays constantly with patterns of subjugation and emancipation, death and desire and with the slippage between serene image and shock. Describing his bondage photographs as ‘a collaboration between the subject and the photographer’, Araki seeks to come closer to his female subjects through photography, emphasizing the role of spoken conversation between himself and the model. In his native Japan, he has attained cult status for many women who feel liberated by his readiness to photograph the expression of their desire.

Genres: Photography, Art, Japan, Nonfiction, Coffee Table Books, Erotica, Art Design

565 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2014

About the author

Nobuyoshi Araki is a Japanese photographer and contemporary artist. He is also known by the nickname Arākī.

Araki studied photography during his college years and then went to work at the advertising agency Dentsu, where he met his future wife, the essayist Yōko Araki. After they were married, Araki published a book of pictures of his wife taken during their honeymoon titled Sentimental Journey. She later died in 1990. Pictures taken during her last days were published in a book titled Winter Journey.

Having published over 350 books (and still more every year) Araki is considered one of the most prolific artists alive or dead in Japan and around the world. Many of his photographs are erotic; some have been called pornographic. Some of his most popular photography books are Sentimental Journey, Tokyo Lucky Hole, and Shino. He also contributed photography to the Sunrise anime series Brain Powerd.

The Icelandic musician Björk is an admirer of Araki's work, and served as one of his models. At her request he photographed the cover and inner sleeve pages of her 1997 remix album, Telegram.

Araki's life and work were the subject of Travis Klose's 2005 documentary film Arakimentari.

Reviews

[Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Captivating and bizarre in equal measure, this Araki compendium is a wild ride. Undeniably beautiful, the photographs pull you in and draw your gaze as much by their atmosphere and composition as by their decidedly adult leanings.

He definitely has a talent and an unmatched eye for the perfect angle, the most vibrant color palettes, and the most sensuous and provocative subject matter. The introductory interview with the man painted a quaint and endearingly bizarre picture of the man, and the rest of the book settled in nicely on top of it.

Very unique and eye-catching (for several reasons).

[فرهاد ذکاوت · Rating 3 out of 5]

آراکی به نسبت عکاسان معاصر چندان کارهای متفاوتی انجام نداد جز یک پروژه که برای خودش تعریف کرد و در کنار کنجکاوی و تعامل فرهنگی کشورهای اروپایی و آمریکا با شرق دور برای شناخت بهترشون، یکی از اشخاصی بود که مورد توجه قرار گرفت. بعضی کارهاش خوب هستند و بقیه معمولی.

پروژه‌ای که آراکی رو در سطح بین المللی بیتر به شهرت رسوند از اواخر شصت عکاسی از محله کارگران جنسی بود و آنهم کمی متفاوت از دیگران که از دو دهه پیش کارهای شیک و تر تمیز انجام می‌دادند و ژورنالهایی چون پلی بوی و پنت هاوس و غیره چاپ می‌کردند. با وسواس و امکانات امروز که حتی آماتورها هم میتوانند با قیمت مناسبی تهیه کنند،‌ شاید کارهاش بی‌کیفیت و غیرحرفه‌ای به نظر بیان، دو مساله زمان (عکاسی) و نوع نگرش عکاس این مساله رو میتونه رد کنه.

البته کارهای زیاد دیگری هم چاپ کرده و نکته جالب اینجاست از همکاران خودش در تمام ادوار در جهان بیشتر توانسته عکس چاپ کنه. لذا آراکی یک رکوردار هم هست که بخشی به شانسش هم برمیگرده. زمان و مکان مناسب و کنجکاوی فرهنگی و تجاری نسبت به ژاپن و مردمش. تقریبا چنین اتفاقی برای موراکامی در عرصه نویسندگی هم افتاد. موراکامی دقیقا در زمان مناسب کشف شد و کارهاش به زبانهای مختلف ترجمه شدند. شاید موراکامی بهترین نویسنده ژاپن نباشه ولی پرفروشترین و شناخته شده ترین هست بحال که دو سه نویسنده دیگر هم بودند که کارهایی شاید بهتر داشتند. ولی بازار هموار اینطور هست که تصاعدی کسی رو که شناخته حتی اگر فعالیتش کمتر بشه همچنان در صدر فروش نگه میداره به دلیل کارهای قبلی و نسلهای جدید که پیشخوان کتابفروشی ها و حجم مطالب و نقدهایی که در موردشون منتشر شده رو می‌بینند.

[Viktoriya · Rating 5 out of 5]

beautiful book

[N… · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite photographers of all time. I’d love a physical copy of this.

[Chris Monks · Rating 5 out of 5]

One can fall into Araki’s trap that faces, flowers, cats, city scapes, and female genitalia are all sexual entities. But we’d be wrong. Those things are all the aftermath of sex. Araki’s camera is the act of sex.

He is one of a kind and I am, personally, pleased he lets us into his world. It feels intimate at times; other times crude. But it’s the blurring where he shines.

[AestheticFanatic · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are so many words that I could use to describe the work of Nobuyoshi Araki but if there is one then it would be simply "beauty."

Araki captures an elegance in his camera, a restrained perversity as he let his models speak for themselves. Araki speaks in subtle ways in the way he binds women; the form of the woman shown bare in her perfections and imperfections; and an undercurrent in each photo that celebrates life. There is a joy in each photo that evokes that quintessential relationship between the erotic and the controlled: each shot a piece to a puzzle. Is it weird to say that I teared up at some of these photos? Araki loves women like only Araki can, truly.

[E. G.]

Nobuyoshi Araki, interviewed by Jérôme Sans

--Colorscapes
--Tokyo Story
--Love in Winter
--Flower Rondo
--Private Photography
--Kyoto White Sentiment
--Chiro
--Novel Photography
--Tokyo Comedy
--Angel's Festival
--Tokyo Love
--Naked Faces
--In Ruins
--Sensual Flowers
--Erotos
--Sexual Desire
--A's Paradise
--Tokyo Nostalgia
--The Banquet
--Shino
--A's Lovers
--Photo-Maniac Big Diary
--Color Rays
--Private Diary
--Tokyo Nude
--Tokyo Autumn

Biography
Selected Bibliography
Credits
Imprint

[Blair Hoyle]

Here in the US, Araki's published works are difficult to track down or extremely expensive, so this is a solid compilation for those who are interested in his photography. His work has been extremely influential for me, so this is a nice placeholder for the time being. His Tokyo Autumn series is my favorite.

[Michaela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful photos.

[Krutukas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw a lot of penises.

[Morel · Rating 5 out of 5]

买了写真集。看到最后埋葬爱人那块有点难过

[Wetdryvac Wetdryvac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really like a lot of the city life shots - excellent compositions and sense of place. Not so much the more posed pieces.

[Ted · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most provocative photographs are going in the sections titled In Ruins and Tokyo Autumn. Araki is a masterful photographer.

[Tibor Jánosi-Mózes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Araki alkotásai mellett nehéz elmenni úgy, hogy ne mozdulna meg valami az emberben és itt lehet profánul értelmezni a metafórát, főleg férfiak esetében. Egy óriási éleművet foglal össze ez a kötet.

[Trang · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mark me down as scared and horny

[violeta.wav · Rating 4 out of 5]

impresionante.
vendré a revisar para seguir aprendiendo.
hay algunas cosas sí que yo digo mm se nota que es un hombre,,

q ganas de hojearlo en fisico
quiero más libros de fotografia.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Araki’s photography is a fearless exploration of intimacy and eroticism, transforming themes like kinbaku into poetic expressions of vulnerability and power. His experimental approach of blending Polaroids, hand painted photographs, and collages redefines the boundaries of photography as an art form.

[Fengyu Han · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great araki photo book. Well design, well organized, sensational to read and appreciate by both Araki and non-Araki fans.

[Joshua Friesen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great photo work.