Showa Photography: Complete Works SERIES 4 Shoji Otake

The fourth volume in the "Showa Photography: Complete Works" series, summarizing the career of photographer Shoji Otake. Published by Asahi Shimbun in 1982, this volume covers Otake's work—from his early photographs in middle school and his time in Shanghai, to wartime and postwar records, female portraits, nudes, and portraits of musicians—organized both chronologically and by theme.

Includes sections such as "Passionate Women," "Teenage Prelude," "The Shanghai Era," "A Compilation of Wartime and Postwar Documents," "World Musicians," "Japanese Women," and "Family Nudes." Featuring an essay on Shoji Otake by Kineo Kuwabara, a conversation with the artist, an autobiography, and a chronology, the book serves as both a collection of his work and a reference guide.

In the afterword, Otake touches upon his complex feelings about looking back at the past, while framing this book as an opportunity to consolidate his life's work into a single volume. It is a book that offers a comprehensive view of his activities from his early beginnings through the 1980s.

[Title] Showa Photography: Complete Works SERIES 4 Shoji Otake
[Publisher] Asahi Shimbun
[Publication Date] June 1, 1982 (First Edition)
[Number of Pages] 159 pages
[Dimensions] approx. 242 x 298 x 16 mm / 1,085g
[Format] Softcover
[Language] Japanese
[Title Reading] Showa Shashin Zen Shigoto Series 4 Otake Shoji
[Author/Editor, etc.] Shoji Otake (Author), Teruo Okai (Editor), Ryoko Kimura (Editor), Tomosuke Kobata (Cover Design/Layout), Creative Group Groupe Palme, Koji Arase (Cooperation)
[Printing/Binding] Toppan Printing
[ISBN] 03722581240042
[Condition] Used [5] Average (Obi: wrinkled; Body: slight tanning and minor foxing on edges)
[Accessories] Obi
[Included in] -
[Related Exhibitions] -

Shoji Otake 1920–2015

Born in 1920 in Yokosuka Town (now Kakegawa City), Ogasa District, Shizuoka Prefecture. He began taking photographs in middle school and frequently won prizes in photography magazine contests, becoming known as an amateur photographer in his teens. In 1940, he entered the Toa Dobun Shoin in Shanghai, and in 1942, he was conscripted. During the war, he served in photography-related missions, including shooting for foreign propaganda magazines.

After the war, he became a contract photographer for the GHQ Information Section, handling assignments at locations such as the Ernie Pyle Theater. Later, he worked for "LIFE" magazine and the INP news agency before becoming a freelancer in 1950. That same year, he participated in the establishment of the Japan Professional Photographers Society (JPS), and in 1953, he became a founding member of the photography department of the Nika Association.

From the 1950s onward, he photographed numerous individuals, including actors, artists, and musicians. Based on a serial column featuring musicians visiting Japan, he published the photo book "World Musicians" with Asahi Shimbun in 1955. He was also widely known for his portraits of celebrities such as Marilyn Monroe, as well as for his female portraits and nude photography.

In 1992, he received the Japan Photographic Society's Lifetime Achievement Award. He passed away in 2015.

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Asahi Shimbun