Masahisa fukase biography sampler
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Kill the Pig - Masahisa Fukase
In Masahisa Fukase’s first solo exhibition Kill the Pig was held in Tokyo. The exhibition consisted of two series of photographs: one titled ‘Kill the Pig’ and another series titled ‘Naked’.
The series ‘Kill the Pig’ featured photographs set in a slaughterhouse in Shibaura, Tokyo. Huge numbers of ravens also congregated there, drawn by the odour of raw meat, as the air resounded eerily with their cries. The series featured photographs in black and white and in colour. The colour shots were mostly reserved for the scenes showing blood and death.
The other series exhibited was ‘Naked’, showing Fukase himself and his partner at the time, Yukiyo Kawakami, in various poses.
There was one photograph in the exhibition that seemed very different from the rest, which was of a dead baby. This work was high-contrast and composed of two prints, one a positive, the other a negatieve, two black and wh
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Ravens by Fukase is consistently proclaimed as one of the most important photo books in the history of the medium. That is pretty big words, but I must say that after reading the book, I tend to agree.
Fukase&#;s life was certainly not an easy one and his studies of the ravens is all about solitude and feeling alone. So do not expect this book to be an easy read &#; it is as brutal and dark as it gets, and yet there is also a stunning beautiful side to these images. It is probably this stark contrast that makes this book so extraordinary. And of course the life of Fukase, which is the backdrop for the images presented in Ravens.
Not everyone agrees that this is one of the most important photography books ever. Maybe it is because the book is more appreciated if you know a little about the life of Fukase? That Japanese mythology sees Ravens as omens of impending doom? That Fukase for many years photographed nothing but his wife? That his last 20 years was spent in a coma after
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josef chladek
Blind embossed clothbound hardback in a silkscreen printed carton slipcase. With the original afterword bygd Akira Hasegawa [] and a new text bygd Tomo Kosuga [both bilingual].
"Ravens is one of the defining bodies of work in the history of photography and a high point in the photo book genre. This accumulation of accolades, and the passing of time, have obscured much of the fascinating detail which explains the artist’s pre-occupation with this motif throughout his work. It was not simply a reflection of the existential angst and anhedonia he suffered throughout his life but manifested in artistic self-identification with the raven and ultimately spiralled into a solitary existence and artistic practice on the edge of madness. And all this before an untimely accident in , a fall down the stairs of his favourite bar, resulted in him spending the final twenty years before his death with his consciousness suspended and in medical isolation. Fukase became the sing