shashasha

“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 1992, 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 singular raven frozen by his camera and immortalized on the cover of his most famous book.”
― Tomo Kosuga from his essay “Cries of Solitude”

Consistently proclaimed as one of the most important photobooks in the history of the medium, Ravens by Japanese photographer Masahisa Fukase was first published in 1986 and the two subsequent editions were both short print runs that sold out immediately. This new edition edition contains a new text by Tomo Kosuga positioning the body of work in Fukase’s work and life, illustrated with numerous recently discovered photographs and drawings. Fukase’s haunting series of work was made between 1975 and 1986 in the aftermath of a divorce and was apparently triggered by a mournful train journey to his hometown. The coastal landscapes of Hokkaido serve as the backdrop for his profoundly dark and impressionistic photographs of ominous flocks of crows. The work has been interpreted as an ominous allegory for postwar Japan.

《鴉》為日本攝影家・深瀨昌久的作品集。在攝影這項媒介的歷史中，攝影家深瀨昌久的《鴉》，可謂為最重要的作品之一，於各個時代皆被賦予極高評價。《鴉》於1986年初版發行後，經過二度復刻再版，皆在限定發行部數的情況下，迅速售罄。此次的復刻版，不僅承繼了初版時的版面編排與設計，亦新收錄了致力於保存深瀨昌久作品、普及活動團體的「深瀬昌久archive」創辦人TOMO KOSUGA之撰文。近年來，TOMO KOSUGA發現了大量深瀨未發表的寫真與繪記，並引用這些資料來解析深瀨昌久於創作、生活領域中，尚未為人所知的一面與其關聯性。而這本深深刻畫於人們記憶中的名系列，則是深瀨與妻子洋子離異後，於1976年至1986年內，與悲傷共處的返鄉之旅期間拍攝的作品。以北海道的海岸景色為背景，漂浮著深瀨式寂寥思緒、深幽氣息的鴉群攝影作品皆收錄其中。

深瀨昌久的作品《鴉》，從初版攝影集發刊至今已30餘年，既可屬作攝影史上代表性的權威作品之一，更甚可以說，《鴉》於攝影集的範疇中，能獲得最高評價的殊榮。然而，有件事情因為無數掌聲與讚美，以及時光的流逝而被覆蓋、受人忽視與遺忘，那就是可以解釋深瀨為何對拍攝烏鴉這項主題抱持這般執著之耐人尋味的事實片段。烏鴉這個主題，不僅可說是深瀨生涯中所承受的苦惱與寂寥之反映，被框架於藝術之名底下，烏鴉與自身形象重疊的蒼涼也同樣被放大，最終陷落於瘋狂滿溢的藝術表現手法中。1992年，深瀨從酒吧的樓梯上摔倒，遺留下來的後遺症，讓他的腦部受創，意識就此於模糊中徘徊，從醫學角度來看，往後20年形成了被孤立的狀態。深瀨彷彿成為了被自己手中相機捕捉下的其中一匹被囚禁的烏鴉，也讓他像是宿生於最具代表性的攝影集封面中，成為不朽的存在。- TOMO KOSUGA（摘自文章「孤獨的吶喊」）