“I believe you can tell that this is not a trick even from the lit candle. Even with the rope attached, she continued to sway slightly. To prevent her from spinning around, a rope was pulled from behind her arms. Because of this, it took about ten minutes before the photograph was completed.”
Kawabata Tanako (川端多奈子) was one of the more important figures in the development of kinbaku in Japan. She modeled for the magazine Kitan Club and wrote reflective essays in a series called “From a Torn Journal” and was the model for the first two volumes of the books Beautifully Bound (美しき縛しめ) which were two of the earliest books focused exclusively on kinbaku (often referred to by the color of their covers, the Black Book and the Red Book). For the first volume, she was the sole model, with bondage by Minomura Kou and for the second, she was one of several models in the book with bondage by Tsujimura Takashi. Both works featured Tetsuzo Tsukamoto as the photographer.
Biography (summary of research from SM Pedia: Kawabata Tanako)
Kawabata Tanako (川端多奈子) was one of the most notable early models associated with the Japanese magazine Kitan Club (奇譚クラブ) during the early 1950s. Appearing during the magazine’s Akebono Shobō publishing era, she became one of the first recurring models as the publication transitioned from illustrated fetish material to staged bondage photography.
Born in Matsuyama in Shikoku, Tanako initially worked as an office clerk for a trading company in Osaka before becoming involved with Kitan Club. According to contemporary accounts, she first experienced bondage in May 1952, and by June 1952 she met photographer and bondage pioneer Tsujimura Takashi. Their collaboration would become historically significant. Tsujimura later recalled that his encounter with Tanako helped inspire him to begin developing more structured and deliberate forms of kinbaku photography.
Tanako had already appeared once or twice as a model for Minomura Kou before meeting Tsujimura. She reportedly had a strong masochistic disposition and was also interested in performing bondage herself. Early sessions with Tsujimura quickly escalated in intensity. In their third session together, she was photographed in an upside-down suspension in a suburban house, an image later published in Kitan Club.
By the end of 1952, Tanako had become the primary model for several sets of distributed bondage photographs sold through the magazine. Her work continued throughout 1953, including modeling for the photo collection Utsukushiki Shibari (“Beautiful Bondage”), produced by Minomura Akira and photographed by Tsukamoto Tetsuzō.
Tanako was not only a model but also an active contributor to the magazine. She wrote essays and autobiographical reflections about her experiences, including pieces such as “Wrapped in a Pink Veil (On Being Bound)” and the diary-style series “Torn Diary Pages.” In interviews and reader correspondence published in Kitan Club, she discussed her experiences with bondage photography and the emotions involved in modeling.
Her presence in the magazine extended beyond posing. In the September 1953 issue, she participated in a feature discussing the aesthetics of bound women and even served as a “rope assistant” in a gravure spread featuring other models.
Tanako’s life intersected deeply with the Kitan Club readership itself. At one point she married a reader of the magazine, although the marriage later ended in divorce.
Her impact on early Japanese bondage culture was remembered decades later. In a 1967 discussion, Tsujimura Takashi reflected on their first session together, saying:
“The greatest shock was Kawabata Tanako. The excitement I felt tying her with trembling hands is something I will never forget.”
Through her modeling, writing, and collaboration with early photographers, Kawabata Tanako became one of the formative figures in the development of postwar Japanese kinbaku imagery and culture.
To Kawabata Tanako
This page, published in Kitan Club (May 1953 issue), is significant because it provides one of the rare moments in early postwar bondage culture where a model’s own voice appears in print. The piece, titled 「川端多奈子さんへ」 (“To Kawabata Tanako”), presents a reader’s questions about bondage practices and Tanako’s responses. Rather than being depicted only as an anonymous photographic subject, Tanako is treated as a knowledgeable participant who can explain her experiences of being bound, photographed, and involved in the magazine’s productions. This exchange illustrates the participatory nature of Kitan Club, where readers, editors, photographers, and models formed a small but interactive community. For historians of early Japanese SM culture, the letter is important because it documents Tanako not just as a model but as a central figure in the magazine’s developing discourse on bondage aesthetics and experience, helping to humanize and contextualize the images that appeared in its pages.
The page titled 「川端多奈子さんへ」 (“To Kawabata Tanako”), published in the May 1953 issue of Kitan Club, prints a reader’s letter asking Tanako a series of questions about her experiences as a bondage model. The exchange is revealing because it allows her to respond directly, offering rare insight into how early participants in the magazine described their involvement.
Here are several of the questions and the gist of Tanako’s responses.
Interest in tying vs. being tied.
The reader asks whether she is more interested in tying others or being tied herself. Tanako replies that she is much more interested in being tied, suggesting that the experience of being bound is what initially drew her into the practice.
When her interest began.
Another question asks when she first became curious about bondage. Tanako answers that her interest began the previous year (1952), around the time she first experienced being tied.
Her first experience.
The reader asks about the first time she was bound and where it happened. Tanako gives only limited details but indicates that it occurred relatively recently and that the experience left a strong impression on her.
Duration of sessions.
The letter also asks how long she was typically bound during a session. Tanako responds somewhat vaguely, noting that she does not clearly remember the exact length of time.
Most enjoyable and most difficult moments.
Two questions ask about the most enjoyable and most difficult parts of the experience. Tanako explains that her feelings were complex and hard to describe, suggesting a mixture of curiosity, embarrassment, and excitement rather than simple pleasure or pain.
Photography and posing.
The reader asks who takes the photographs and how the poses are arranged. Tanako states that all of the photographs were taken by Tsukamoto Tetsuzō, and that sometimes she looks at other images or drawings for pose ideas.
Attitude toward “torment” (責め).
Finally, she is asked how she feels about being “tormented” or subjected to harsher forms of SM play. Tanako answers that she does not particularly like severe torment, but she finds the experience interesting and does not dislike participating in it.
Taken together, the exchange shows Tanako presenting herself not as a passive subject but as an active participant who is curious about bondage and willing to reflect on her experiences. For readers of Kitan Club, this type of letter helped personalize the magazine’s imagery and reinforced the sense of a shared community among contributors, models, and readers.
Additional References
Kawabata Tanako: Rope-bottom Roundtable-talk, from Kitan Club 1953 (from Kinbaku Books)
Beautifully Bound: A Presentation (from Kinbaku Books)
Kitan Club Models (from SMPedia)
Gallery from Beautifully Bound (美しき縛しめ)
