WEEKLY DISCUSSION 2.0 #12 - Eikoh Hosoe

[Norma Desmond]

<p>This week's photo:</p>

<p><a href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/81/9a/f1/819af1cb31cbd3e8889b6aedfe6c052e.jpg">Eikoh Hosoe, from series <em>Man and Woman</em>, Man and Woman #20, 1960.</a></p>

<p>Hosoe was originally criticized, in the height of the Japanese post-WWII era, for his lack of photographic "realism." In the <em>Man and Woman</em> series, he was influenced by Butoh dance and used dancers as models. Butoh was a then current style known for controlled motion, grotesque poses, and taboo subjects. He explored not so much the character of his individual human subjects, not so much their spiritual side. He was emphasizing the physical as well. In this series, he seems to be dramatizing the male-female relationship <em>per se</em>.</p>

<p>These photos are grainy and high-contrast. His raw style is conveyed by his technical approach as well as the expressions, gestures, and body language of his models. I think it's as much about his take on the subjects as it is about the subjects themselves. He often distorts perceptions of bodies, as he does in the photo I chose by seeming to sever the head of the woman. He's taking on a more western existentialist psychological dimension, one that seems bound to alienation. The graininess and severity of contrast seems well suited to this darker side of mental life.</p>

<p>The man's ribs are a visual staccato, alternating with deep black crevices. There is an echo of the woman's disembodied head in the man's headless body, his arm holding her head as a possession, her raccoon eyes hauntingly (almost astonished) staring ahead. In more traditional photos, clear and focused eyes tell the story. Here, eyes barely seen and heavily in shadow (a <a href="http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Z___WkSKz1U/maxresdefault.jpg">DIFFERENT SCAN</a> of this print shows her more shadowed eye still barely visible) are incredibly expressive. They don't seem the window into HER soul. They seem a window into WOMAN'S soul/s . . . almost forcing me into my own.</p>

<p>The tonality is stark, with hardly any gradation between the areas of light and dark, favoring a sudden yet not implausible transition. Her head is framed by black shadow, hardening his hold on her. Though I don't see much of her eyes, hidden to such a degree in shadow, I feel like I am seeing them completely.</p>

<p>If last week's over-the-top LaChapelle is shiny and kitschy, Hosoe's extreme style is raspy and rough, and every bit art, IMO. If LaChapelle shows glitz and glamour and his style can feel superficial, Hosoe gets under the skin and seems deep to me. Each is theatrical (and non-candid) in a very different way.</p>

<p>Hosoe's refusal of polish doesn't act as an excuse for poor craftsmanship. It <em>is</em> his craftsmanship.</p>

<p>[Most of the first several of <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=hosoe+man+and+woman+series&client=safari&rls=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0CC0QsARqFQoTCILZlI2y5cgCFcU8Hgod0b8B8g&biw=1440&bih=802">THESE PHOTOS</a> are from the <em>Man and Woman</em> series. I couldn't find a good link that just shows the photos from that series.]</p>

[Norma Desmond]

<p>To clarify, I'm suggesting not that he's fully adopting a western existentialist bent in his work, but that he can be seen as merging an east and west artistic/psychological approach. Visually and aesthetically, he's certainly steeped in Japanese tradition.</p>

[aplumpton]

<p>Good research Fred. Amazingly inventive work, aided by the choice of contrast and intended refusal of a balanced greyscale distribution (blown highlights, impenetrable blacks). The f64 group would choose to not look at this stuff I think. The disembodied head of the woman completely possessed by the man was probably provocative in his era but would be more so today. Its shock value one must go beyond as the photographer (tellingly, also a cinematographer) is referring I think to more than just that, to some values in regard to man-woman relationships (quite adventurous views in Japan of that time). This is photography at its best, even if one doesn't care for his treatment of the subject matter, which is well worth the viewing and thought. It is more direct than that of LaChapelle and I think in that way more adventurous. And as psychological as the Work of woodman. They make an interesting trio for discussion.</p>

[AJHingel]

<p>A great thanks Fred for your choice of photographers for the Weekly Discussions. I'm impressed !</p>

<p>Eikö HOSOE is clearly a great choice, representing Japanese photography after the War deeply imbedded in Japanese history and culture and heavily marked by destruction of Japan (Hiroshima and Nagasaki) and especially by the fire bombings of Tokyo which laid in ruins greater parts of the city. One of his central memories as a child was his return to the ruined city after two years in the North with his mother searching for his father, who had survived. </p>

<p>Hosoe's photography has marked my eye since I first saw it, because of the stark grainy contrast and deep, deep black he uses especially in his nude photos as in the Man and Woman series Fred has chosen. He could have chosen other of his well known photo series as the Mishima series (Killed by Roses) which highlights his theatric composed nude scenes with strong homosexual references. Using nude scenes had a unique effect in Japan (the sixties), a country where "nudity" didn't exist. Hosoe was destroying ancient Japan and rebuilding a new Japan with his photos. </p>

 

[dhbebb]

<p>As ever, thanks to Fred for the invitation to consider the work of someone I'd never heard of.<br>

<br /> My approach to any photographic work is to ask myself what the work is communicating to me in visual terms and consider theorising or declarations of intent later if at all.<br>

<br /> I have to say I gain no impression whatsoever of a coherent statement on man/woman relationships. Of the couple of dozen images I have viewed in the last few minutes, the one I regard as most fully realised is this one:<br>

<br />https://www.pinterest.com/pin/34410384626832104/<br>

<br /> I am by no means (I hope) indulging in a negative knee-jerk reaction to grain, extreme contrast and unsharpness, but I would contend that if a photographer's work exhibits these characteristics, there needs to be a good reason - specifically I need to have a feeling that the pictures look the way they do because of the photographer's deliberate intent and not simply because of incompetence or laziness. I don't have that here - the image cited above works for me, most others are just sloppy. I would cite the South African photographer Sam Haskins as someone who succeeded in making the grain/high-contrast look work throughout a substantial body of work ("Cowboy Kate And Other Stories"). Hosoe's subjects are not people, they are totally objectified, particularly the women - maybe as a Japanese he just can't help doing this. <br>

As regards "building a new Japan", is this what Anders means?<br>

<br /> https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=japanese+youth+culture&es_sm=93&biw=1600&bih=799&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0CCsQsARqFQoTCILz6OSb5sgCFUycGgodz_YKQw<br>

<br /> These pictures say "new Japan" to me - Hosoe's seem emblematic of the murky sadism of the past.</p>

[aplumpton]

<p>(On extreme contrast and unsharpness) "... if a photographer's work exhibits these characteristics, there needs to be a good reason."</p>

<p>Perhaps, but if you substitute the word "artist" for "photographer" in this statement, would the same reasoning hold?</p>

<p>I tend to think that Hosoe is more concerned with the effect than with photographic competence based upon the usual criteria of what may be qualified as best technique. Whether or not the effect is artistically convincing is another question. He appears to me to succeed in some of the images.</p>

<p>An interesting experiment that I have tried in the past is to photocopy some quite well exposed and printed black and white images and also enlarging details of them via subsequent recopies. The results are far from the more perfect greyscale original, but they sometimes display greater interest in spite of their technical deficiencies.</p>

[Norma Desmond]

<p>[Caution: Links may not be safe for work . . . for some bizarre reason. Too bad they're not violent. Then there'd be no question!]</p>

<p>I think Hosoe, and certainly I, would agree with David that his subjects are objectified. These are not character or personality studies. I think he falls within a tradition of using people and bodies as objects. Interestingly, to me at least, is that with his objectification comes a very human and psychological expression. We can look to <a href="http://www.womencandoit.com/ghostranchpage/images/viola.jpg">EDWARD WESTON</a>, <a href="http://www.phillips.com/Xigen/lotimg/Robert-Mapplethorpe/NY040112/124">ROBERT MAPPLETHORPE</a>, and <a href="http://www.areasucia.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/BIll-Brandt_04.jpg">BILL BRANDT</a>, among many others, to get a sense of the wide tradition of objectifying humans.</p>

<p>I draw a distinction between objectification and exploitation. I'm often more offended by exploitation, and I don't think any of these photographers are engaging in it. And, to be honest, I don't rule out exploitation as a valid photographic mechanism. It all depends on what I'm looking at. I think exploitation has a sense of utilization for selfish reasons and also can imply unfairness. I think objectification is more neutral, though clearly it is used culturally often as a negative, especially when directed toward women, and so the word can have very ill-meaning connotations. I think the kind of objectification I'm talking about among these photographers is not of that sort.</p>

[Norma Desmond]

Hosoe's technique seems an expressive and fitting way to convey and underscore the alienation in the content of his

imagery.

[AJHingel]

<p>To find examples of objectification in his nude photos I think is relatively easy. He made himself that point by linking his shots of mostly male body parts like those in his series: "<a href="http://susanspiritusgallery.com/artist/eikoh-hosoe/embrace/">Embrace"</a> with his series on <a href="http://susanspiritusgallery.com/artist/eikoh-hosoe/gaudi/">Gaudi's architecture</a>. On the other hand his series with<a href="https://www.google.fr/search?q=hosoe+mishima&sa=X&biw=1440&bih=816&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&ved=0CC0Q7AlqFQoTCLiY8OX_58gCFUFaFAodRLwNwQ#tbm=isch&q=hosoe+mishima+"> Mishima</a> we have no objectification as far as I can see and understand, but an intimate collaboration between the photographer and the writer (one of Japan's most famous writers) both expressing themselves with camera.</p>

[Mark Z]

<p>This week's photo, and others in the series, have a lot of theatricality in them, as was noted earlier. I was not familiar with Butoh dance, but after watching some videos of it, its influence is obvious. Butoh dancers provide gestures and poses that could be inspirational to a photographer working with abstracts, and the sometimes harsh and raking theater lighting could provide plenty of contrast and definition. I don't yet understand Butoh, but I would love to photograph it, just for the gestures, juxtapositions, and revelation of forms.<br>

<br />In several of Hosoe's photos I pick up more on the contrast between man and woman than on relationships between men and women. In this week's photo, I'm not seeing the possession of the woman by the man (his grip on her is not firm, and her escape would be easy) as much as the man simply framing the woman's head. There is contrast between the man's folds, veins, muscle, and bone, and the mannequin- or doll-like appearance of the woman. With the beheaded torso and the disembodied head, there is the illusion that the head could have belonged to the body that is carrying it, possibly implying that men and women possess some aspects of each other. It highlights the complementary qualities of man and woman in a yin and yang way - and the shadows and curves, along with the eye and areola, make an abstract yin-yang symbol.<br>

<br />As for the graininess and tonality of his photos, I think it adds to their abstract quality, and I don't see them as technical deficiencies. The photos are sharp and detailed, perhaps limited by grain and the lighting. I see them as crafted and proficient as Nicholas Nixon's or LaChapelle's photos.</p>

[Norma Desmond]

<blockquote>

<p>there is the illusion that the head could have belonged to the body that is carrying it, possibly implying that men and women possess some aspects of each other. It highlights the complementary qualities of man and woman in a yin and yang way</p>

</blockquote>

<p>Mark, very interesting interpretation. For me, it's a good addition of another way to see this. With these kinds of interpretations or perspectives, I generally don't adopt an either/or attitude, so I still see it as possession and just add your interpretation to the mix. I think good art like this can allow complementary and even conflicting ways of seeing and responding, and I'm often content to go back and forth among a number of varying ways of seeing it.<br>

<br>

I also hadn't considered the graininess and tonality as adding to the abstractness and that, too, is an interesting point. When I look at the work of photographers who utilize more traditional and refined technique, such as Weston, the skin tones and texture have a more human and familiar feel, so it's hard not to feel the skin as skin. Hosoe does achieve a kind of abstraction with his technique and that seems to go along with how he approaches his subject matter in this series as well as the objectification that we were talking about.</p>

[Allen Herbert]

<p>I enjoyed looking at his work creative and imaginative going to a place of distinctness. He has his own unique style and the grain tonality adds to the overall feel and atmosphere of his work...seems to me a artist who looks around corners and sees something a bit different from other folk.</p>

<p>Thanks for introducing him to me.</p>

[Norma Desmond]

Too bad Hosoe wasn't into flying drones or photographing pretty, thin, nude women wearing high heels and pretending to be lesbians. Then

he might have been getting the attention he deserves from our fellow PN photographers. ;-)

[AJHingel]

<p>If it had been he case, Fred, he would not deserve much attention ! <br>

He is indeed not an easy photographer to understand or to discuss. Personally I don't think, that he has much to tell if we choose to look at his photos by their purely psychological dimension. It would make him fairly universal and common. His force lies more in his unique treatment of Japanese visual tradition at a given time of history after the war and during the occupation. Others, mostly writers, like Mishima or Tanizaki, or and film makers, like Kobayashi, treated the same cultural up-rooting of the fifties and sixties. </p>

<p>Despite the lack of much debate, your choice of Hosoe was till a good choice as others you have made the last weeks.</p>

[donald_miller5]

<p>One of my first impressions is East Meets Dali from some of his images or maybe what if East met Dali? Given his mastery of other elements in his work I have to believe the graininess is intentional and integral. This is from a different mindset and maybe inscrutable to us or maybe just intentional so photographers like us can puzzle over it.<br /> I would think that he is more holistic in his approach and it may not be in his mindset possible to separate the "photography" from "from the "art" (as if they are different). It is just a work of art as a single element. After all, this was described as East Meets West.<br /> Fred, you are courageous in opening the door to drones. I am pacing the room trying to control myself from posting some witty statements that might not be appropriate but then again you might attract even more to participate in this thread.</p>

[aplumpton]

<p>This is one of the best features in the Photo.Net forums which seem to becoming less and less adventurous and active. I encourage Fred's effort in finding interesting photographers as examples. This requires more effort than most of us are prepared to do. Extended discussion of approaches in photography, whether of established photographers or of Photo.Net members themselves, is very low for a site principally devoted to the subject of the medium and this series helps to redress that situation.</p>

[Mark Z]

<p>Phil, your earlier mention of the use of grain and high contrast as part of expressionism, and Fukase's ravens, brought to mind the work of Billy Kenrick (http://www.billykenrick.com/). His use of the medium's inherent characteristics and limitations is inspirational. Here is an interview with him: http://www.photo.net/featured-member/2010/august/billy-kenrick-subjective-documentary-photographer</p>

[andrew_ho3]

<p>Damn, I'm a few weeks late on this thread, but I just started to study Hosoe Eikoh and especially his books "Kamaitachi" and the Mishimi. Just googled around for the type of equipment/film formats he was using, because I was curious how long he took to setup and pose his subjects, how many shots he would likely take for each scene, etc. and I found this thread.<br>

I totally love his work, and thank you for pointing me to this "man and woman" series. I'll keep track of this forum to see which other photogs come up.</p>