This will be the first entry into the new Image Library. There are far too many images to discuss for ‘Stolen Dreams and the Japanese School’ to put into one post and I am reluctant to have the blog serve as a parade of undocumented images and, personally, I would like to know more about these. What follows are many of the remaining images from Passion Press’ Dream Girls and I request that readers peruse the images and provide details about the artist and which book(s) the image(s) may have been published in. Images are labeled by page number for easy reference.
Thank you for your help. -Ron
Usually in a conventional art book, the cover image is shown elsewhere in the book. That is not the case here and this is the only way we get to see it. This model appeared twice in the book and even though a reader offered the name of the model, he did not know the photographer or what publication she appeared in. The name sounded familiar so I checked and she (and two of her sisters) were shot by Takashi Kuromatsu. These specific images came from a book called Lolita Angel and Kuromatsu published under the name Takashi Saeki.
Takashi Kuromatsu – Anna Arcenis (1983) (1)
Takashi Kuromatsu – Anna Arcenis (1983) (2)
This is a very distinctive image and feels almost like an Asian counterpart to Garry Gross’ work with Brooke Shields. Certain artists tend to make consistent use of certain accessories so note the lipstick, flower and the pearls.
Dream Girls (page 13)
I was pleased to discover more of Saimon’s work. This model also worked under the name Nozomi Kurahashi in other publications. This particular image (which is cropped) appeared in a work called Ayumi Yoshizawa: Girl Photograph II.
Hiromi Saimon – Ayumi Yoshizawa (c1980)
The distinct clothing suggests an American girl here although I could not hazard a guess as to artist.
Dream Girls (page 27)
Some artists favor a natural look, others like accessories. Note the somewhat unkempt hair-style, but it is tied up with a bow.
Dream Girls (page 41)
A reader offered some scans from a book in which this girl appeared. A rough translation indicates that the model is named Hitomi Ishikawa and the photographer, Nobuo Ishikawa. If I understand the translation of the cover and title text, this production is that of a father covering his daughter’s development over a two-year period.
Nobuo Ishikawa – from パパ撮って (date unknown)
Again, note the distinctive accessories. This made it easy to recognize that this is the same model on two different pages. I have learned that these images were included in a book called My Lolita and shot by Yoshiaki Kita.
Yoshiaki Kita – from My Lolita (c1980) (1)
Yoshiaki Kita – from My Lolita (c1980) (2)
The next four images are from the same photo shoot. It took a while for me to recognize this as the girl’s attitude, lighting and poses were quite variable. I have seen other images of this girl playing with that gauzy curtain and in the shower, but that book probably also had “borrowed” images from other sources and so it does not offer much of a clue. A Norwegian reader informs me that the poster you see in some of the backgrounds means “Maria lives here” in either Danish or Norwegian. This information about the venue is helpful as this could be another photo shoot by Patrick Morin who shot Charlotte in Denmark as well during the same period.
Dream Girls (page 49)
Dream Girls (page 50)
Dream Girls (page 51)
Dream Girls (page 52)
Note some of the interior details. Perhaps the artist used this setting with other models and can be used to identify him/her.
Dream Girls (page 54)
An unconvincing wink in an attempt to make this girl seem more provocative. Some artists like Garo Aida favored some kind of half-nudity. This may be the case here as you see her torso is covered while her lower quarters are bare.
Dream Girls (page 55)
This girl also appears very familiar and it feels like an Obuchi pose, but his models are more consistently neatly-groomed.
Dream Girls (page 60)
Again, this girl seems familiar. It is possible I came across some of these images but because they weren’t attributed, I did not keep them in my collection for future reference. I’m afraid a number of images may have been lost in the days before I began work on Pigtails.
Dream Girls (page 62)
This Japanese girl appeared three times in the book. The distinctive textured white wall gave away that this was shot on the same set and a reader came forward confirming that this is the same model. I am told this model also posed under the name Mayumi Arata. One reader offered a title Network in 1500 Days for at least one of these which seems a strange title to me. Another reader has informed me that the photographer of these images is Teruo Maeba and were originally published in 1984.
Teruo Maeba – Shiori Suwano (1984) (1)
Teruo Maeba – Shiori Suwano (1984) (2)
Teruo Maeba – Shiori Suwano (1984) (3)
Even if you have only minimal information on these artists and models, please come forward and let me know. Every bit helps. You can email me at ron_at_pigtails@yahoo.com
I am unfamiliar with this genre of photography, its history and its publishing in books. Nowadays, it seems that in Anglophone countries, such photos would have people thinking abuse. Of course, in a lot of ways I guess, the times were different, and I can imagine the photos being taken without there being anything to worry about.
But how about the photographs, where you don’t know who took it, and it isn’t clear that the girl is having fun? Like the one on pages 13, 54, and 62? If someone raised concerns regarding whether one could be sure that those photos were morally OK, how would you comment on that?
Just as there was a flurry of child photographs in the Edwardian era (and published on postcards), there seems to have been a similar movement called Lolicon in Japan in the 1990s. In the area of photography, Kazuo Kenmochi is credited with being the first. Publishing information about him and those who followed is not so much a matter of the legality of the images, but with getting the known Japanese text transcribed and translated so we can present it to the readers. The ‘Dream Girls’ post was an attempt to let readers know that this area will be covered in due course and it will done in a professional manner and with an attitude of respect for both artists and models. -Ron
I may have expressed myself a bit unclearly. When I write “morally OK”, I’m talking about the difference between a photographer taking pictures of a girl with the happy consent and willingness of her and her guardians, and a girl being made/coerced to pose naked for a photograph. Without a smiling face and a name of the photographer or girl, concerns going in that direction become harder to dispel.
I did understand but did not feel the need to expound. First of all, this is simply too complex an issue to cover well in an informal commentary like this. Artists, especially commercial photographers, will probably use this argument to show they are “playing it safe” to avoid ridicule or prosecution. But real artists who are trying to express something may not have the luxury of a smiling face when covering more challenging subjects. Consent is no guarantee either since the poverty that would compel a girl to pose naked would also compel her parents because of economic gain. There is also the problem of stigma: a girl may have no problem with her participation at the time but may regret it later.
The use of the word “moral” is not the best in this context since it is largely culturally and emotionally based. There is no way to make a convincing argument if a person regards this whole matter immoral on principle. It would probably be better to justify or condemn these activities on ethical grounds. That way the discussion will not get stuck in a cul-de-sac of right and wrong but properly about the short and long-term effects of persuasion, coercion and participation in nude photography.
Some beautiful art and a worthy mission to find the standard of artistry. Thank you!
I am hopeful for the progress of Pigtails and it’s art form in the direction you hope for. It would certainly be a joy to have access to more of what has been shown thus far and if there is a way to began immediately tell how. Jerome Yekan.
Thank you for your support. Most of the time, people help by offering information that we may not have. This is fine, but the problem is information overload (I just got leads on about 100 film titles in the last couple weeks). What we really need are people reasonably competent at writing (in English) and working online (to do most of the setting up of a post). I almost always invite people to do posts on this site. This offers a balance of perspectives and spreads out the work. Secondly, I could use some help doing phone, internet and library research. I promise you will see more in this genre this summer: a more comprehensive Samantha Gates post, Shizuki Obuchi and Kazuo Kenmochi and then others as time permits.
I have seen a few Hitomi Ishikawa images on the web, this one that you post here and a couple others of her standing nude in the bath, one with her smiling at the camera, and the other shows her also standing nude holding a book and reading it, this image is a superb study. The girl Mayumi Arata poses nude here, in the 3 images you posted, as part of the first book published with her images in 1984. She was 12 years old at the time the photographs were taken of her. I have never seen a more beautiful young girl pose nude, she is simply an angel and is the most beautiful 12 year old girl I’ve ever seen. What a gift these photos of her are to the world! Thanks for the excellent article!
This post was intended as an introduction to the Japanese Lolicon phenomenon in photography. In time, we will posting most of the artists mentioned here and a few others in the same genre. It is my hope that, in time, Pigtails can serve as a standard of artistry for law enforcement agencies in Japan and elsewhere so they can better refrain from harassing legitimate purveyors of this artform.