Geisha: Beyond the Painted Smile

Rating:
Summary: Geisha: Many Points of View
Review: This is another coffee-table-crusher book on the subject of geisha; this particular work was put out by the Peabody Essex Museum to accompany an exhibit there. It is composed of a blend of elements, but they flow together fairly seamlessly.

There are a number of contributing authors, including the show's curator Andrew Maske as well as familiar names such as Liza Dably, Arthur Golden and Lesley Downer; they address different aspects of the geisha world, such as why geisha even exist, how western stereotypes and misunderstandings developed, the aspects of geisha exoticism and style and more.

There are numerous photographs (from very early to modern, in black and white, color and tinted sepia). The photos are not only of geisha, then and now, but they also focus on kimono (sometimes accompanied with a picture of the geisha to whom it belonged clad in it), hair ornaments and accessories, even something as small as a netsuke kimono toggle. Like the details of a finely carved netsuke, the details of this book make it clear that someone took great care with the construction and preparation of this piece.

The book also holds the most extensive amassment of woodcut pictures that I've seen in one place on this subject, and the captions are very descriptive and useful (I suppose they correspond with the explanatory cards that one would see beside an art piece on the wall of a museum).

There is also a section featuring photos from Yoko Yamamoto, whose artistic yet modern photographic sensibility lends a unique flavor to the collection. Having spent two decades in Tokyo's Kagurazaka district, she has the privelege of intimacy with her subjects that the average photographer does not; coupled with her artistry, her photographs are very meaningful for this collection.

Even if you go into this book knowing a lot about this subject, the text will still enlighten you. The blend of experiences and viewpoints of the multiple contributors adds depth, and again the research that has gone in for the sake of the exhibit is evident.

I wish I could have seen this exhibit, but lacking that, I can enjoy this beautiful book. If you take an interest in the subject, I believe you will enjoy it as well.