荒木經惟 Araki. 40Th Ed. Nobuyoshi Araki

由日本攝影家荒木経惟親自挑選，《Araki – 40th Anniversary Edition》將數十年的攝影精華，濃縮為 512 頁的終極回顧。這本私密的作品集最初採取限量出版，而今在 TASCHEN 出版社成立 40 週年之際，再度深入這位廣受爭議的情色攝影大師之作，以緊湊的篇幅，展現他不曾動搖的影像聲明。

東京的城市街景、特寫的面孔或食物、女性裸體以至性器、瑰麗繽紛的花朵，無不渲染出一抹性的色彩。不加遮掩的挑逗意味與慾望操演，向來是荒木影像中的議論焦點，當中包含日本的繩縛藝術（Kinbaku）捆綁起的女性姿體，他將其描述為「鏡頭對準的被攝者和攝影師的合作」。當女孩們受緊縛而又不甘示弱，一旁閃閃發光的花瓣呈現出暗示性的形狀──荒木的視角玩弄著征服和解放、死亡和情慾，滑移在看似靜謚、卻一觸即發的感官衝突之間。

「在我看來，性、愛和花都與『生命』有關。生與死亡在任何事物與行為上都能夠得到展現。重要的是，當我們面對死亡的時候，可以看到生的意義──這帶來無限與永恆的感覺；而當生命處在旺盛的時期，也應該嗅到死亡的氣息──這自然就帶出了悲戚與感傷。」

於荒木而言，性與裸露並不猥褻；「荒木拒絕接受這種觀點，他沒有把這兩種觀點分開，而是巧妙地把它們結合起來。」森山大道曾談及荒木如何改變日本社會對於裸露的意識型態。當一切慾望與想像在大庭廣眾下被揭開，肉眼所見皆是真實。

Decades' worth of images have been distilled down to 512 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 back in a new format to celebrate TASCHEN's 40th anniversary, the curation delves deep into Araki's best-known imagery: 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.

About the series

TASCHEN turns 40 this year! Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible publishing, helping bookworms around the world curate their own library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia at an unbeatable price. In 2020, we celebrate 40 years of incredible books by staying true to our company credo. The 40 series presents new editions of some of the stars of our program-now more compact, friendly in price, and still realized with the same commitment to impeccable production.