Mahiru no machi / Afternoon Street (SIGNED)

Shuji Kawamata
Mahiru no machi / Afternoon Street (SIGNED)

Photographs: Shuji Kawamata

Publisher: Kasahari ronin sha (Self published)

112 pages

Year: 1981

Comments: Hardcover under dust jacket, 27,5 x 21,7 cm. First edition, 1981. Black & white photographs. In very good condition! Signed, stamped and dated by Shuji Kawamata.

KAWAMATA Shuji is a journalist who studied at Wako University in Tokyo, where TAKI Koji, a member of Provoke, taught. KAWAMATA's research interests are in sociology, with a particular focus on the harmful effects of certain drugs, public nuisance and so on. His major work is ‘Thalidomide’ This involved research into the side effects on newborn babies caused by this drug, which was used in the 50s and 60s. This anti-nausea drug for pregnant women was responsible for serious congenital deformities.

He was also involved in the creation and promotion of Provoke, thanks to his close relationship with Taki Koji. This enabled him to produce some very radical self-publications in the 1970s, such as Pursuits or As If She Were a Little Girl. In this book, which is more classical in form, we can nevertheless feel the reminiscence of the Provoke movement in her street portraits and trembling urban landscapes