A heat mode-applicable image-formation material having high sensitivity and excellent image-forming property, and a novel infrared absorber which can be suitably used in this material. The present invention relates to a substrate carrying thereon an image-formation layer which contains an infrared absorption agent. The agent has at least one surface orientation group in the molecule, and solubility of the image-formation layer in an alkaline aqueous solution is changed by action of radiation in the near-infrared range. Preferable as the infrared absorbing agent is an infrared absorber comprising, in a molecule thereof, a fluorine-containing substituent which have at least 5 fluorine atoms, or a polymethine chain of at least 5 carbon atoms and an alkyl group of at least 8 carbon atoms, said alkyl group being connected to the polymethine chain via any of nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur.