I have the pleasure of revisiting a magnificent photobook in its new version (2006). Eikoh Hosoe's Man and Woman, first published in 1961, is a true work of art, encompassing topics such as human forms and the relationship between the two sexes.
In this new edition, nothing has changed. The paper feels the same and the Japanese ideograms have not been replaced by English words – apart from the title on the hardcover.
The front page is already a piece of art in terms of design. Indeed, we are presented with four different colours: green, red gradations, white and finally black. It does not take much time to realise that such choice was not haphazard. Considered together, all of the colours tend to represent a sort of juxtaposition: green and red are complementary colours, while black and white recall both the photographic technique used throughout the book and the idea of light versus darkness. Ultimately, all of the colour couples represent a duality that leads back to the title itself. Man and woman begins with a rather destabilising picture. The first person we encounter is a woman whose right hand handles a dead fish. Her eyes' dimension is enhanced by a thick makeup. Her eyes are so wide-open that it seems like they never closed. Little by little, this figure begins to assume the appearance of a demon. But one needs to leaf through some pages to understand that she is not alone. Another female figure appears. This time much more appealing. Her eyes are always closed, whether in the act of biting an apple (an explicit reference to Christian's concept of sin) or of imprisoning a flower between her lips. In some pictures they appear together, giving shape to a narrative full of layers of meanings. One of them could be a further duality, this time concerning the struggle between narcisitic beauty and accepting one's ugliness. On the whole, this first section appears to be a performance between two girls, one symbolising bodily pleasure through legs' intersections and the other emblemising righteousness and chastity.
The second section encompasses women as well. This time, the pictures so high-contrasty that light spots do not allow the viewer to discover facial features in the subjects. Taken as a whole, Hosoe presents us with close up portraits of unknown women.
The last, bigger section is where man appears. Here, Hosoe's interest in human forms is disclosed at its full openness: a close-up, this time displaying a kiss between a man and a woman unveils the perfectness of human's lines.
Analogously, in the picture where the two sexes' nipples touch between one another is a clear study of Hosoe's interests.
The delicacy and elegance of Hosoe's compositions are in net contrast with his visual aesthetics. This concept contributes to broadening the pool of juxtapositions he presented in the title itself.
On the whole, Hosoe's body of work is a reflection on the nature of humanity, in all its forms.