Flying solo: Ravens by photographer Masahisa Fukase

Ravens, Japanese photographer Masahisa Fukase's dark and doomy chronicle of loneliness, was recently named best photobook of the past 25 years. We take a look inside
  
  


Ravens: Ravens by Masahisha Fukase
Kanazawa (1978)

After the breakup of his marriage, Fukase began a 10-year obsession with photographing ravens. Widely seen as a symbol of dark and dangerous times, they seem to mirror his mournful mood
Photograph: Masahisa Fukase
Photograph: guardian.co.uk
Ravens: Ravens by Masahisha Fukase
Koen-dori, Shibuya (1982)

After the split, Fukase suffered from bouts of depression and heavy drinking. 'I work and photograph while hoping to stop everything,' he once said
Photograph: Masahisa Fukase
Photograph: guardian.co.uk
Ravens: Ravens by Masahisha Fukase
Erimo Cape (1976)

In 1992, five years after the photobook was published, Fukase fell down a flight of stairs. He has been in a coma ever since
Photograph: Masahisa Fukase
Photograph: guardian.co.uk
Ravens: Ravens by Masahisha Fukase
Koen-dori, Shibuya (1982)

Fukase's former wife, now remarried, visits him in hospital twice a month. 'He remains part of my identity – that's why I still visit him,' she says
Photograph: Masahisa Fukase
Photograph: guardian.co.uk
 

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