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Harris, Mark Edward : The Way Of The Japanese Bath: Photographs By Mark Edward Harris

Shashin Press, Los Angeles, CA, 2003

ISBN 0972784101

First Edition / First Printing. Fine in No Dust Jacket, As Issued. 125 pages. Collection of photographs with accompanying text on subject. One of the most beautiful photography books of our time. The First Hardcover Edition. Precedes and should not be confused with the Second and Third Reissued Editions. Published in a small and limited first print run as a hardcover original only that sold out upon publication. The First Edition is now scarce. An austerely elegant production by Mark Edward Harris and Scott Rivera: Oversize-volume format. Black cloth boards with black titles embossed on the cover and spine and photographic reproduction pasted on the recessed center, as issued. Photographs and text by Mark Edward Harris. Matching cloth and hard board slipcase with white Japanese clasps at the end. Printed on pristine-white coated stock paper in China to the highest standards. Without DJ, as issued. Published on the occasion of the exhibition of the same name held at the Apex Gallery Los Angeles from February 21 through March 29, 2003. The exhibition travelled on to other venues. Presents Mark Edward Harris' "The Way of The Japanese Bath". One of the most enchanting and unusual photographic records of our time. "A beautifully composed walk through the ancient custom of the Japanese hot-spring bath. Harris gives us all the details of this time-honored ritual, showing us the various locations, describing the ritual and the quality of the water, which is thought to have medicinal purposes. Other photographs reveal the convivial nature of the baths, which serve as an equivalent to a social club, where one can relax, reflect, and interact. Shot in elegant black-and-white through the shadows and haze of the steam coming off the water, Harris' photographs treat his subject with deep respect" (Publisher's blurb). The book is suffused with a warmth and sensuality that are palpable. One feels transported to another world where one leaves this world behind. A shower, whether private or communal, is merely about rinsing oneself (of grime, exhaustion, dead skin). A bath, especially as the Japanese practice it, is a slow and contemplative cleansing of body and soul, about immersion and renewal. An absolute "must-have" title for Mark Edward Harris collectors. This copy is very prominently and beautifully signed in black ink-pen by Mark Edward Harris. It is signed directly on the page itself, not on a tipped-in page. Laid-in is a copy of the Souvenir Invitation for the Exhibition Opening during which his signature was obtained. This title is a contemporary photography classic. As far as we know, this is the only such signed copy of the First Hardcover Edition/First Printing available online and is in especially fine condition: Clean, crisp, and bright, a pristine beauty. Please note: Precedes and should NOT be confused with the Second and Third Reissued Editions. A rare signed copy thus. Lavishly illustrated with tritone plates. One of the most brilliant American photographers of our time. A fine collectible copy. . ISBN 0972784101.

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