Youzo Kurihama - Konyu
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Release year: 1973
Binding: Hardcover with dust jacket
Pages: 110 pages
Size: 12 x 8.5 x 0.55 in (30.5 x 21.6 x 1.4 cm)
Publisher: Daini Shobo
Edition: First Edition
Condition: Very good(vintage), edges are slightly yellowed by aging, light wear on the dust jacket cover as shown in the product photos. The dust jacket cover is protected with an Archival Polyester Sleeve(Mylar).
Published in 1973, Konyu (渾遊) is a rare Japanese photobook devoted to the male nude. Featuring muscular young men posing in traditional Japanese fundoshi, the book explores the form and presence of the male body through a series of carefully composed black-and-white photographs.
The photographs move between beaches, rivers, bamboo groves, and temple grounds, placing the models within both natural and traditional Japanese settings. The fundoshi becomes a central element of the images, revealing the body's shape while giving the photographs a distinctly Japanese visual character.
The book's subtitle, Poem of Fundoshi, reflects the photographer's interest in the garment as a way of expressing the male body's strength and form. In the afterword, he reflects on what he sees as a lack of attention paid to the male body and its physical beauty.
Konyu was published by Daini Shobo, the publisher behind Barazoku, one of Japan's pioneering gay magazines. Its publication offers a glimpse into the history of Japanese male nude photography and the printed material that circulated around gay culture during this period.
Behind the name Youzo Kurihama is a surprising story. Kurihama was the pen name of Chiaki Fujii (1923–1985), a painter and illustrator best known for his lyrical illustrations of young girls. Fujii had an established reputation for this very different kind of imagery, making Konyu a striking departure from the work for which he was widely known. The book was the only publication he released under the name Youzo Kurihama.
The book has a striking colour photograph on its cover, which stands apart from the black-and-white images throughout the interior. Published in 1973, this first edition is a compelling example of Japanese homoerotic photography from the era, as well as a rare glimpse into a lesser-known side of an artist whose career took an unexpected direction.
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