Shibari

I was fortunate enough this evening to work with a model and rope master who is highly skilled in the Japanese art of Shibari. The ability to tie rope in such a way that it creates artistic images such as this is fantastic and one that I would love to learn at some stage. He also has a desire to take photographs, however, the gap I see between his rope tying skills and mine, he feels is equivalent in our photographic skills - I do think though that I have found a fellow artist who I can work with in the future.

For those unfamiliar with the art of Shibari, I have copied a short history;

In the 1700?s Japan was under the Tokugawa Government, four kinds of punishment were common. These were as follows: pressing parts of the prisoner?s body with a heavy rock, the whip, rope restriction and suspension with ropes. Rope was used to create poor circulation, immobility, and humiliating positions for prisoners. Different types of binding and different colors of rope were used to identify the kind of crime the prisoner had committed and the social class he belonged to. It was physically painful and I would assume mentally brutal.

During World War II, the Japanese came into contact with Germans and learned the concepts of the West and legacy of the Marquis de Sade. These were added to the ancient art, its symbol of power, hemp ropes, and the artistic concept of beauty and the art form that we know today as: Shibari came into being. The Shibari art form increased to the point that special theatres were created for it!

As we look at the world today we see Japanese bondage (Kinbaku/Shibari) used as an image for art.