image by
Nobuyoshi Araki
The structure of Tokyo Lucky Hole is easy to grasp:
an overview,
showing Tokyo,
then a street view,
a dressed women surrounded by passersby,
finally a long series of absolutely artless,
ordinary pornographic images.
More interesting than these images is for me my reaction to them:
a part curiosity,
a part fascination,
and a feeling like being punched into the stomach.
Some images I don’t want to see.
(But I am happy being able to see them.)
Something is revolting in me against these photographs.
I don’t know,
why the sexual act is supposed to be a private one,
I don’t know why our genitals usually are supposed to be hidden.
I don´t know why society has put up these rules,
and why some matters are declared to be obscene,
and others not.
Images of brutality, death and destruction are not obscene.
Its not obscene to throw bombs and its not obscene
to send soldiers to war.
The term obscenity obviously is reserved to all actions connected with sexuality.
The typical “Tokyo Lucky Hole” photographs you won’t see here.
The typical “Tokyo Lucky Hole” photograph is exactly as all the other pornographic images you can find.
Arakis work here is basically pornographic.
No inhibitions,
absolutely no pretense.
An obsession presented to the public.
An obscenity (in Latin obscenus, meaning “foul, repulsive, detestable”), is that which offends the prevalent sexual morality of the time, is a profanity, or is otherwise taboo, indecent, abhorrent, or disgusting, or is especially inauspicious; ill-omened.
