Yokainoshima: Island of Monsters

Photographer Charles Fr%C3%A9ger (Wilder Mann: The Image of the Savage) provides an imaginative, fresh look at Japanese folk and festival costumes that celebrate the changing seasons. Inspired by yokai, "the untranslatable spirits, monsters, or specters," Fr%C3%A9ger documents the extraordinary diversity of traditional masks and costumes employed by rural and agricultural communities to commemorate rites of fertility and rebirth, setting them against simple backgrounds of fields, beaches, forests, and mountains. Fr%C3%A9ger's images brim with whimsy, humor, and vitality, honoring tradition with a delicate purity. His photographs pop with vivid color and texture, combining exquisite detail and graceful composition, in a unique blending of documentation and portraiture. Essays by three specialists in Japanese culture, folk customs, and anthropology provide thoughtful insight into Fr%C3%A9ger's work by giving background on yokai and folk customs and placing the costumes in historical context. A reference guide by Akihiro Hatanaka, filled with gorgeous illustrations by Doris Freigofas and Daniel Dolz, provides in-depth descriptions of the characters and groups in conjunction with the festivals and rituals they honor and represent. Fr%C3%A9ger's engaging images offer a unique take on Japanese folk culture. (Aug.)