REVIEW: Masahisa Fukase

‘The Solitude of Ravens’, by the late Japanese photographer Masahisa Fukase, is an expressive metaphor of almost unmitigated dark. Shot between 1975 and 1982, ‘Ravens’ stands as a requiem for Fukase’s marriage to Yōko Wanibe. It is bookended by his two other most significant projects, both of which are also currently on show in London (as part of the group exhibition ‘Performing for the Camera’ at Tate Modern). ‘From Window’ (1974), a series of ‘straight’ photographs of Yōko, speaks eloquently of the highs and lows of their marriage and its break-up. By contrast 1991’s ‘Bukubuku’ (Bubbling) is a heavily claustrophobic, often surreal, set of self-portraits, which Fukase made in the bath after learning his ex-wife was to remarry. While all three bodies of work successfully convey Fukase’s feelings towards Yōko, it is ‘Ravens’, on display at Michael Hoppen Gallery, which is his masterpiece.