Emi Anrakuji (born 1963) is a Tokyo-based legally blind Japanese photographer who makes

self-portrait A self-portrait is a representation of an artist that is drawn, painted, photographed, or sculpted by that artist. Although self-portraits have been made since the earliest times, it is not until the Early Renaissance in the mid-15th century tha ...

s. She has produced a number of books with Nazraeli Press and her work is held in the collection of the

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH), is an art museum located in the Houston Museum District of Houston, Texas. With the recent completion of an eight-year campus redevelopment project, including the opening of the Nancy and Rich Kinder Build ...

. In 2006 Anrakuji won the New Photographer Prize of the

Higashikawa Prize The has been awarded to photographers by the "Phototown" of Higashikawa, Hokkaidō, Japan since 1985. The Overseas and Domestic Photographer prizes are of 500,000 yen and the New Photographer and Special prizes are of 300,000 yen. The work of t ...

in Higashikawa, Japan.

Early life and education

Anrakuji was born in Tokyo, Japan where she also studied oil painting at Musashino Art University. Soon after graduation, she was diagnosed with a brain tumor that ultimately caused the loss of sight in one eye. The other eye has congenital

amblyopia Amblyopia, also called lazy eye, is a disorder of sight in which the brain fails to fully process input from one eye and over time favors the other eye. It results in decreased vision in an eye that typically appears normal in other aspects. Amb ...

. While recovering in bed from the tumor, she taught herself photography.

Career

Anrakuji's photography subjects are consistently herself. "Anrakuji's oeuvre includes a series of photography projects in which she zooms in on her body, never revealing her face." ''HMMT? (How Many Miles To?)'' was her first photography series. A prize associated with the series brought her to the attention of Nazraeli Press, who subsequently released three of her books: ''Anrakuji'' (2006), ''e hagaki'' (2007) and ''IPY'' (2008). Her work is frequently exhibited in solo shows at Miyako Yoshinaga Gallery in Chelsea, Manhattan.

Publications

Books by Anrakuji

*''Hmmt?''. Osaka: Warp, 2005. . *''Anrakuji''. Portland: Nazraeli, 2006. . *''e hagaki''. One Picture Book 40. Portland: Nazraeli, 2007. . Edition of 500 copies. *''IPY''. Portland: Nazraeli, 2008. . *''Misho''. Portugal: Shinto, 2017. Edited by Rui Ribeiral and Paulo Nozolino . With an essay by Anrakuji. Edition of 250 copies. *''Balloon Position''. Kyoto: Araaka Art, 2019. . Edition of 500 copies.

Books with others

*''Witness #2 (Number Two): Daido Moriyama''. Portland: Nazraeli, 2007. By

Daidō Moriyama is a Japanese photographer best known for his black-and-white street photography and association with the avant-garde photography magazine ''Provoke (magazine), Provoke''. Moriyama’s rough, unfettered photographic style makes use of sharply t ...

, Anrakuji, and Ken Kitano. .

Collections

Anrakuji's work is held in the following permanent collections: *

, TX: 1 print (as of 3 February 2022)

Awards

*2006: Winner, New Photographer Prize,

, Higashikawa, Hokkaido, Japan *2019: Shortlisted,

Paris Photo–Aperture Foundation PhotoBook Awards The Paris Photo–Aperture Foundation PhotoBook Awards is a yearly photography book award that is given jointly by Paris Photo and Aperture Foundation. It is announced at the Paris Photo fair and was established in 2012. The categories are First P ...

, for ''Balloon Position''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Anrakuji, Emi 21st-century Japanese women photographers Japanese photographers Blind artists Museum of Fine Arts, Houston Living people 1963 births Blind photographers