similar compositions. Photography, for Fukase, is
not merely an expressive medium of choice, but
also an unbreakable tie back to his father and his
family business. Quiet and composed postures and
expressions of family portraits contrast dramati-
cally with hisRavensseries. InFamily, his camera
calmly captures his family members who continue
to belong to his world. IfRavensis a meditation on
the past he tries to forget and his struggle with
forgetting,Familyserves as a reminder of the past
that is present and remains. This series came to an
end when his father died in 1987, and Fukase used
the photograph of his father at the funeral as the
last image. In the same year, he selected and exhib-
ited a seriesMemories of my Father, which was
shown in Tokyo and Israel. His relationship with
photography changed through this project, and
Fukase began including his own body in photo-
graphs around this time.
In 1990, Fukase published and exhibited the first
section of Shikei (private scenes) series, which
include his travel shots from various places as well
as self-portraits in a bath tub using an underwater
camera. In these images, Fukase composes the
image by including a part of his body, pictorially
asserting his existence. In a number of images en-
titled ‘‘bukubuku,’’ which mimics the sound of air
bubbles from underwater, Fukase stares directly at
the camera, confronting his enmity of photography
from childhood as if to enact his final revenge
drama. The tension between Fukase’s reliance on
and vengeance toward photography seems to be an
unmediated confrontation for the first time in these
images. Before he could further explore his new
relationship to his photography, an unexpected fall
prevented Fukase from continuing this dialogue.
MakiFukuokaBiography
Born in Bifuka-cho, Hokkaido, 25 February 1934. Attended
Nihon University Department of Fine Art, 1952–1956.
Worked as a photographer for advertisement and pub-
lishing companies 1956–1968; Freelance photographer
1968–1992. Ina Nobuo Award 1976. Ina Nobuo Special
Award 1992; The 8th Higashikawa Special Prize 1992.
Fell from stairs near his favorite bar, and stopped photo-
graphing 20 June 1992.
Individual Exhibitions
1960 Seiyujo no Sora(Sky over an Oil Refinary) Konishi-
soku Gallery; Tokyo, Japan
1961 Buta wo Korose!(A Slaughterhouse); Ginza Gallery;
Tokyo, Japan
1976 Tori; Ginza Nikon Salon and traveled to Shinjuku
Nikon Salon; Tokyo and Nikon Salon; Osaka, Japan
1978 Yoˆko; Nikon Salon; Tokyo, Japan
1979 Karasu 1979; Ginza Nikon Salon; Tokyo and traveled
to Shinjuku Nikon Salon; Tokyo and Nikon Salon,
Osaka, Japan
1981 Karasu Tokyo hen; Ginza Nikon Salon; Tokyo and
traveled to Nikon Salon; Osaka, Japan
1982 Karasu Shuˆshoˆ: Ginza Nikon Salon; Tokyo, Japan
1983 Arukume 1(Walking Eyes/Part 1); Ginza Nikon Salon;
Tokyo, Japan
Arukume 2(Walking Eyes/Part2); Shinjuku Nikon
Salon; Tokyo, Japan
1985 Irohanihoheto(ABC...); Ginza Nikon Salon; Tokyo, Japan
Karasu kei(Ravens Scene); Polaroid Gallery; Tokyo,
Japan
1987 Ravens; Zait Photo Salon; Tokyo, Japan
Chichi no Kioku(Memories of Father); Ginza Nikon
Salon; Tokyo, Japan
1990 Shikei Tabi no Tayori(Private Scenes—Letters from
Journeys); Ginza Nikon Salon; Tokyo, Japan
1992 Shikei ‘92(Private Scenes); Ginza Nikon Salon, Tokyo, Japan
The Solitude of Ravens; Stephen Wirtz Gallery; San
Francisco, California, and Robert Mann Gallery; New
York, New YorkGroup Exhibitions
1974 New Japanese Photography; Museum of Modern Art,
New York, New York
1975 Fifteen Photographers; Museum of Modern Art,
Tokyo, Japan
1976 Juninin no Shashinka ni yoru Jisen Sakuhinten; Shi-
seidoˆ The Ginza, Tokyo, New York
Neue Fotografie aus Japan; Graz Municipal Museum
of Art, Graz, Austria
1979 Japan: A Self-Portrait; International Center of Photo-
graphy; New York, New York, and traveling
Japanese Photography and its Origin, Callaria d’Arte
Moderna; Bologna and traveled to Palozzo Reale;
Milan, Palais des Beaux-Arts; Brussels, and the Institute
of Contemporary Arts; London
1984 Six Contemporary Photographers; Seibu Art Forum;
Tokyo, Japan
1985 Black Sun: The Eyes of Four; Oxford Museum of Mo-
dern Art, Oxford, England, and traveled to The Phila-
delphia Museum of Art; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Paris, New York, Tokyo; Tsukuba Museum of Photo-
graphy, Tsukuba, Japan
1988 Revenge of Memories; Forum Stadtpark; Graz, Austria
1989 Juichinin no 1965–75(1965–75 by Eleven Photographers);
Yamaguchi Prefectural Museum; Yamaguchi, Japan
1989 Photography Now; Victoria and Albert Museum; Lon-
don, England
1990 New Documents ‘90; Toyama Prefectural Museum of
Modern Art; Toyama
1996 By Night; Foundation Cartier pour L’Art Contempor-
ain; ParisSelected Works
Shibaura, 1963
Kudan Kyokai, 1964
Hakodate, 1975 (from the series ‘‘The Solitude of Ravens’’)
Kanazawa, 1977 (from the series ‘‘The Solitude of Ravens’’)
London, 1989FUKASE, MASAHISA