Hara Yoshiichi : Ladies' Record

Hara Yoshiichi, known for his self-published "Stripper Encyclopedia" in 1982, has made a turning point with this work, in which he confronts the reality of the human body and humanity more deeply.
When Hara learned that photographer E.J. Bellocq had taken photographs of prostitutes in New Orleans in the 1910s, he was so inspired by them that he began taking photographs with a 4x5 inch camera borrowed from a friend.

He could never forget the first photograph he took with a large-format camera, of an avant-garde dancer. He then photographed a pink salon hostess and a dancer - the first three photographs he took of them he stuck to the wall of his darkroom and looked at them over and over again. This was the starting point for this book, "Ladies' Records."

Since then, Hara's nude portraits of a variety of women, including strippers, hostesses, models, landladies, and musicians, are imprinted with his earnest gaze as he continued to seek "real bodies."

The binding was done by Sugiura Kohei and Suzuki Hitoshi.

[Title] Hara Yoshiichi Collection: Ladies' Record
[Publisher] Banseisha
[Publication date] November 8, 1983 (first edition)
[Number of pages] Unpaginated
[Size] Approx. 218*303*13mm, 780g
[Format] Hardcover
[Language] Japanese
[Title Reading] Harayoshiichi Collection Shukujoroku
[Authors/Editors] Yoshiichi Hara/Author, Kohei Sugiura + Hitoshi Suzuki/Binding
[Print] Gospel Printing/Printing (Yoshito Namura/Printer)
[ISBN] 0036-8301296999
[Condition] Used [ 6 ] Above average to average (top cover slightly wrinkled)
[Accessories] Magazine Two "Cool Guy" clippings (April 1984 issue)
[Featured books]
[Related Exhibitions]

Yoshiichi Hara (1948-2020)

Born in Tokyo in 1948.
Dropped out of Chiyoda Photography College.
He began producing photographs in the 1970s and held his first solo exhibition, "Tohoku Afterimages," in 1973. In 1978, he self-published the photo book "Wind-Pouring Flowers" through his own publishing company, Derusha.

He attracted attention with his works that focused on strip club dancers and women working in the sex industry, and won the 17th Juntaiyo Award for My Gypsy Rose (1980), a work that combined photographs and text.
He published a collection of portraits taken with a 4x5 large format camera, "Ladies' Record" (1984), and a comprehensive work, "Mandala Encyclopedia" (1988).
Since the 2000s, he has changed his style, producing intense snapshots that float on the border between dream and reality, such as "Darkness of the Present," "While There is Light," and "Insects of the Everlasting World," which have been highly praised.
In 2012, he received the 24th Photography Society Award, and in 2015, he received the Photographic Society of Japan Artist Award.
Passed away in 2020 at the age of 72.

< Related Figures >