Eikoh Hosoe: Barakei Poster

Poster featuring Eikoh Hosoe's photograph titled Barakei (Ordeal by Roses) #34, 1961. 

Barakei (Ordeal by Roses) is a series of photographs by Hosoe depicting the infamous Japanese novelist Yukio Mishima. Shot primarily in Mishima’s home with his personal effects as props, the photos function fragmentarily as psychological portraits of the novelist; at the same time, they express more universal philosophical concepts, touching on madness, eternity, hubris, and death. 

The novelist’s obsession with grand mythologies and ritual death saturates Barakei, with its heavy shadows, ornate props, and dramatic Renaissance backdrops. In this image, Mishima evokes the carnal iconography of Saint Sebastian, recalling Sodoma’s depiction of the martyred saint.

Produced in conjunction the exhibition PROPS from Barakei: Eikoh Hosoe and Jason Wee organized by Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art. © Estate of Eikoh Hosoe.

Dimensions: 18” x 24”