The Map:Kikuji Kawada

First edition thus, first printing (originally published by Bijutsu Shuppan-sha, Tokyo, 6 August, 1965). Limited edition of 500 hand-numbered copies (on the first page of the laid-in booklet), signed (in kanji) in black marker recto the rear free endpaper by Kawada. Hardcover. Fine black cloth, with title stamped in black on front cover and spine, with photographically illustrated paper-covered and matching black cloth covered slipcase, no dust jacket as issued. Photographs and text by Kikuji Kawada.. Includes a 16-page softbound booklet laid-in (9 x 6 inches), with text by Kawada (in English and Japanese, translated by Kevin L. Dunn) and a list of plates. 100 pp., including 46 2-page gatefolds, with 85 black and white photographs, beautifully printed full-bleed (most across each 2- panel or 4-panel spread) by Mitsumura Printing, Japan. The printing is as close to the gravures of the original edition as is now possible! Most of the gatefolds reproduce a plate that is effectively «cut» into 2 images as the pages unfold left and right to reveal the «inner» plate(s) reproduced as either 2 images over 2 panels on each side, or across the 4 panels. 9 x 6 inches. EDITION NOTE: Other than the numbering and signing, there is no difference between the Nazraeli and Japanese editions of the book. CONDITION: New in publisher’s shrink-wrap (signed by Kawada before shrink-wrapped). Out of print (sold out shortly after publication). Very scarce. Chizu is one of the most exceptional and important photography books published in the history of the medium. Since receiving this masterfully printed facsimile, I have spent hours with the book attempting to describe its power and effect. Having failed to do justice to such a uniquely multi-layered and profoundly moving work of art, I leave you with a brief excerpt from the carefully written description in The Photobook: A History, Volume 1, by Martin Parr and Gerry Badger: «No photobook has been more successful in combining graphic design with complex photographic narrative… [as its] various layers inside [are] peeled away like archeological strata, the whole process of viewing the book becomes one of uncovering and contemplating the ramifications of recent Japanese history — especially the country’s tangled relationship with the United States… Kawada’s photographs are a masterly amalgam of abstraction and realism, of the specific and the ineffable, woven into a tapestry that makes the act of reading them a process of re-creation in itself. In the central metaphor of the map, in the idea of the map as a series of interlocking trace marks, Kawada has conjured a brilliant simile for the photograph itself: scientific record, memory trace, cultural repository, puzzle and guide.» From the publisher: «Originally published on August 6, 1965 — the twentieth anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima — The Map («Chizu») by Kikuji Kawada is a true icon in the history of photographic publishing. Its status as the «ultimate photobook-as-object,» coupled with its scarcity, combined to make it one of the most famous and sought-after photographic publications in existence. The Map combines powerful graphic design with a masterful photographic narrative exploring recent Japanese history — its imperialistic past, western-influenced popular culture, and brutally violent clash with the United States. The photographs, many visible only with the opening of the multiple [double-page] gatefolds, capture on high-contrast film scenes of places and objects seared with the memory of horrific wartime events, from the atomic-bomb dome in Hiroshima to a trampled Japanese flag. Nazraeli Press, in association with Getsuyosha (Tokyo), is proud to announce a facsimile reprint of this historic book. This edition is limited to only 500 copies for distribution in the United States and Europe. Each copy is hand-numbered and signed by the artist, who also oversaw production of the project.»