Anawashi is a person with a recognized proficiency in the historic erotic art ofJapanese bondage.[a] The wordnawashi is used inSM circles to mean "rope artist".[1]
Other terms used in Japan for rope artists within SM culture arekinbakushi andbakushi, with "bakushi" being more typical.
In early 2007 a documentary movie entitledBakushi produced by Naoya Narita and directed byRyūichi Hiroki was released. In it, Hiroki interviews three Japanese ropemasters (bakushi), Chimuo Nureki, Haruki Yukimura, andGo Arisue, along with three of their models, Hiromi Saotome, Sumire, and Taeko Uzuki.
Two famous nawashi are the late Osada Eikichi (2001) and Akechi Denki (2005). Other notable Japanese bakushi are Naka Akira, Haruki Yukimura, Hajime Kinoko,Randa Mai,Go Arisue, Chimuo Nureki and Chiba Eizoh. One notable female bakushi is Benio Takara.
The art of kinbaku has become more well known in the West since the mid-1990s, with a number of notable non-Japanese practitioners shaping their rope art in Japanese inspired forms.
