Gelatin silver print Edition: 15/15

A & D & E & F & G: 40×26.7 cm. 15 3/4×10 1/2 in., B & C & H: 26.7×40 cm. 10 1/2×15 3/4 in.

Signed in English and numbered on the reverse of each piece
EXHIBITED (different edition)
19 Dec 2009 – 1 Mar 2010, Merry-Go-Round – Twinkling and Twilight, Contemporary Art Museum Kumamoto, Kumamoto
Jun – Oct 2010, Japan from prehistory to present, Japan Galleries, British Museum, London
25 Jan – 12 Jul 2020, Yasumasa Morimura: Ego Obscura, Tokyo 2020, Hara Museum, Tokyo

PROVENANCE
ShugoArts, Tokyo
Acquired directly by present important private Asian collector from the above

Reversing Gender Power: Homage to a Literary Master
Yasumasa Morimura's Iconic Classic

Born in Osaka in 1951, Yasumasa Morimura graduated from Kyoto City University of Arts in 1978 and became renowned for his masquerade photography. He often transforms himself into significant historical and cultural figures from both East and West, creating bold reinterpretations through parody, appropriation, and reinvention. His works are collected by 85 major global institutions, including the British Museum, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Tokyo Museum of Contemporary Art and more. Currently, Hong Kong's M+ is hosting a major joint exhibition featuring Morimura and renowned American photographer Cindy Sherman. Beyond Ordeal by Roses (a set of eight pieces), created in 2006, innovatively reinterprets Yukio Mishima's photo book BA ・ RA ・ KEI Ordeal by Roses. Different editions of this series have been collected by Kyoto's Museum of Photography and were showcased at the British Museum, where The Sound of the Waves Whispers in My Ear became part of its collection.

Masquerade Photography and the Intertextuality of Japanese Literature

"I still want to return to the world where Asanuma and Mishima lived. Without respect for the past and reverence for the souls departed, there can be no future."
—— Yasumasa Morimura

Yukio Mishima, a prominent figure in 20th-century Japanese culture, committed seppuku after a failed coup speech in 1970. Morimura, who not only admires Mishima's literary works but also reveres his martyrdom, uses Mishima's Ordeal by Roses as a key text for his artistic recreation.

In this serise, The Black Lizard is Lodged in My Brain, The Black Lizard is Lodged in My Eyes, and The Black Lizard Lives! are titled after Mishima's script and film The Black Lizard, in which Mishima played the role of a specimen collection of a female thief. Morimura's interpretation of these works reflects a reversal of gender power dynamics. Blossoming at the Temple of the Golden Pavilion, inspired by Mishima's novel The Temple of the Golden Pavilion, sees Morimura replace the blank spaces in Ordeal by Roses with Japanese garden backdrops and diamond necklaces, highlighting the paradox between Japan's religious culture and capitalism. Yoroboshi's Dream / The Scream references Mishima's Noh play Yoroboshi, while Yoroboshi's Dream / The Flowering reimagines the foreground with roses. A Dialogue with Sotoba Komachi, inspired by a photograph of Mishima with an actress, takes its title from a Noh play about a tragic love story. Still, in Morimura's rendition, the female character is replaced by a strong male athlete, disrupting the traditional female-centred tragedy. The Sound of the Waves Whispers in My Ear, referencing Mishima's romantic novel The Sound of Waves, reinterprets the title to shift away from tragedy, embracing warmth and hope.

Through self-transformation and engagement with past icons, Morimura expresses deep homage to the Japanese cultural nationalism embodied by Mishima, while intentionally subverting masculine energy. His works weave contemporary gender reflections, creating a profound and thought-provoking reinterpretation of "beyond" in form and meaning.

Price estimate:
HKD 80,000 – 120,000
USD 10,300 – 15,400