2011 Lucie Honoree, Nobuyoshi Araki

Photographer Nobuyoshi Araki was born in Tokyo, Japan, in 1940. In 1964, Araki was awarded by Taiyo magazine for his photographic work “Satchin”, a series which served as the basis for his debut solo exhibition, “Satchin and his brother Mabo”, in 1965. From 1970, Araki began the self publication and distribution of a series of Xerox books and the following year published the landmark, “Sentimental Journey”, featuring intimate images of his wife Yoko from the couple’s honeymoon. From the latter part of the 1970’s onwards, Araki began the publication of then and still controversial nude photographs as well as his prolific writings. 1991’s “Sentimental journey – winter’s journey” (Shinchosha), yet another seminal book within the history of Japanese photography, documented a decisive turning point in Araki’s life and career, the illness and death of Yoko by cancer in 1990. From 1992 on, a series of domestic and international exhibitions served to familiarize a wider audience with Araki’s practice. A selection of these exhibitions includes the Vienna Secession, Vienna and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo (both 1999),　the Barbican Art Gallery, London (2005) and the Hiroshima City Museum of Contemporary Art, Hiroshima (2009). Over the course of a career spanning 45 years, Araki has published over 350 books. In 2008, Araki was awarded the Austrian Decoration of Honor for Science and Arts.