This photo book by Nobuyoshi Araki was published in the late 1970s and 1980s, during the period when he was actively working with editor Akira Suei. Published in the same year as "Fake Reportage," this book marked the launch of the "dated snapshot" methodology that would come to define Araki's work.
This book is composed of dated snapshots, one per page, arranged in chronological order starting from April 1, 1979, but then suddenly jumps to 1992 at the end. This "fake" device is the result of Araki arbitrarily changing the date setting on his camera at the time, and the discrepancy in the chronology and the mixture of fact and fiction are at the heart of this work. From female nudes, cityscapes, funeral scenes, and even a scene from Suzuki Seijun's "Zigeunerweisen," Araki's everyday life, delusions, and emotional folds emerge one after the other.
For Araki, who says, "Taking photos with dates is my life and my diary," this work marks the beginning of her "photo diary" style and is the starting point for her later extensive personal photo series. At the end of the book, Masaaki Hiraoka (critic, author, jazz critic, and cultural critic) has contributed an essay.
[Title] Nobuyoshi Araki's Fake Diary
[Publisher] Byakuya Shobo
[Date of publication] November 10, 1980 (1st printing)
[Number of pages] Unpaginated
[Size] Approx. 26.2 x 17.6 x 2.0 cm, 0.80 kg
[Format] Softcover
[Title reading] Araki no Buyoshi no Nisenikki
[Authors/Editors] Nobuyoshi Araki/Author, Hiroto Fukuda/Producer, Akira Suei/Book Design
[Printing] Japanese edition/printing and binding
[ISBN] None
[Condition] Used [ 5 ] Average (Box slightly discolored, slight damage, stains on three sides)
[Accessories] Box
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Nobuyoshi Araki
Born on May 25, 1940 in Minowa, Taito Ward, Tokyo.
In 1959, he entered the Department of Photographic Printing Engineering at Chiba University's Faculty of Engineering, graduating in 1963. After graduation, he joined Dentsu and worked as a promotional photographer. In 1964, he won the first Taiyo Award for "Satchin," demonstrating his presence as a photographer.
In 1971, he published a privately published photo book, Sentimental Journey, documenting his honeymoon with his colleague Aoki Yoko, establishing his style of "personal photography." In 1972, he left Dentsu to become a freelancer, photographing a wide variety of subjects, including nudes, cityscapes, flowers, his beloved cat Chiro, everyday life with his wife Yoko, and street snapshots. His style, which brings to the forefront fragments of everyday life and personal emotions, created a new trend in the world of photography.
Since the 1980s, he has been taking densely-spaced photographs of everyday life using medium-format cameras such as the Pentax 67, Plaubel Makina 67, and Leica. With an intimate gaze on his subjects and a sense of humour, he pursues expressions that blur the boundaries between private and public space. He has published over 500 photobooks, earning him high praise both in Japan and abroad.
His major photo books include "Sentimental Journey" (1971), "Tokyo Weather" (1977), "Photo-Mad Old Man A" (1990), "Photography Personalism" (2000), and "The Complete Works of Nobuyoshi Araki" (2008).
His awards include the Taiyo Prize, the Austrian Order of Science and Arts, the 6th Ango Prize, and the 54th Mainichi Art Award Special Prize. He continues to actively photograph today and is known worldwide as one of Japan's leading contemporary photographers.
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