MORPHINE DOESN'T WORK IN MAY

First Edition | First Impression | Medium Format Hardcover | Near Fine Condition
Language: Japanese
Condition: Near Fine – Some minor shelf wear on the boards and band, otherwise all pages and spine are clean and intact.

Morphine Doesn't Work in May is a photobook by Nobuyoshi Araki, one of Japan’s most renowned photographers. This volume compiles photographs taken in May 2004, laid out in chronological order, with all images in vertical orientation, creating a distinctive rhythm and narrative flow.

Araki himself notes in the “Photo Explanation” appendix: “Vertical orientation is interesting. When you combine them, the meaning changes, doesn't it? That's what's interesting.” This approach, along with the clever combination of two photos side by side on double-page spreads, forms the essence of the book.

The photobook begins with a photo of his beloved cat Ciro on his home balcony, includes personal snapshots spanning from Tokyo to Kobuchizawa (Yamanashi Prefecture), work sites, bars, clubs, and travel moments, and ends with Ciro again on the balcony typical of Araki’s intimate and narrative style.

The elaborately designed box was created by Suzuki Hijiri, and the title lettering is by Minori Miyata, a poet and cancer survivor who later collaborated with Araki on Empty Words.