Notes on Photographic History, Authors' Biography, and so on

VIVO: 1959.5-1961.7 Name of photographers' self agency by NARAHARA,TOMATSU, HOSOE, KAWADA, TANNO, SATO(Akira), meaning 'LIFE' in Esperanto.

BARAKEI: 1963, re-edited1971, English title for this Eikoh HOSOE's work varies from "Killed by Roses" to "Ordeal by Roses"

PROVOKE: 1968 Title of a later famous magazine(issued 1-3) by photographers and writers: NAKAHIRA, MORIYAMA, TAKANASHI, Koji TAKI, Takahiko OKADA, with an editorial slogan: A Provocative Reference for a New Language (i.e. SHISO NO TAMENO CHOHATSUTEKI SHIRYO).

100 Years of Photography 1840-1945: Exhibition held in 1968 (1st June -) by JPS. "This exhibition... was more than mere attempts at a chronological survey. In the process of preparation, it was necessary to go through a vast amount (approx. 35000) of photographs. This reviewing exercise gave rise to (the editor members including Shomei TOMATSU, Kohji TAKI, Takuma Nakahira, et al) the idea that unlike other means of expression, photographic expression is to be found amidst the massive crowd of anonymous documents rather than in the individual artist in search of a form of artistic expression. This idea was not only a historical overview. It posed the question of WHAT WAS MEANT BY THE SUBJECTIVITY OF A PHOTOGRAPHER AS A MAN OF EXPRESSION. Furthermore, it encouraged a RE-EXAMINATION OF THE ENTIRE CONVENTIONAL FRAMEWORK SURROUNDING PHOTOGRAPHY". (quote from Rei MASUDA, Photography and The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, 1953-1974 - A Reiew of Exhibitiions of the Past, pp.19-20)

Yoshihisa FUKASE: This author's common name is Masahisa. So he used this for his pen name instead of his real name, Yoshihisa. His book titles are... YUGI: printed title is "Homo Ludence". KARASU: printed title is "Ravens". His exhibition titles varied from "Crows", "Black Birds", and to "Ravens". But Japanese word KARASU usually means no ravens, but crows and pictures in the book shows he meant it. (GJ*)

CAMP: 1976-(1984) An independent gallery and editorial group of some eight young members led by Keizo KITAJIMA and consisted of former Daido MORIYAMA Seminar students at Workshop SHASHIN GAKKO. Though not as an original member, Kohji ONAKA also belonged to CAMP 1982 - 1984.

Kiyoji OHTSUJI: Belonging to groups called Experimental Workshop or Graphics Group, OHTSUJI worked as a experimental avant-garde photographer, talented writer, and influential educator at major post-war photo schools in Japan. Among his ex-students Shigeo GOCHO was included.

FROG (1989-1991): An independent gallery in Yotsuya, Tokyo 1989 - 1991, whose name came from 'Film ROund Gallery'.

Early Pictorialism: Exhibition composed by Ryuichi KANEKO in 1992 titled FUKEI ENO MANAZASHI (The Pictorial Landscape in Japanese Photography ) included following photographers mostly belonged to amateur photo clubs: KUROKAWA Suizan, HIDAKA Chotaro, OHASHI Matsutaro, MASUKO Aitaro, KOJIMA Yusen, OGAWA Gesshu, KOBAYASHI Yuji, HOBO Goro, SAKAI Tokio, FUKUMORI Hakuyo, AMEMIYA Goroku, UMESAKA Ori, OKUBO Koroku, NISHIGORI Koji, FUKUHARA Shinzo, FUKUHARA Roso, KUMAZAWA Maroni, NISHIYAMA Kiyoshi, SHIMAMURA Hoko, MINAMI Minoru, FUCHIKAWA Hakuyo, KOJIMA Heihachiro, TAKAYAMA Masataka, ADACHI Shotaro, TAKADA Minayoshi, YASUMOTO Koyo, YAMAMOTO Makihiko, SHIOTANI Teiko, KOSEKI Shotaro, HAGIWARA Roshu, and SAKURAI Eiichi.

ASHIYA CAMERA CLUB 1930-1942: Influencial members were Iwata NAKAYAMA, Kichinosuke BENITANI, Seiji KOURAI, Kenichiro YAMAKAWA, Juzo MATSUBARA, Kanbee HANAYA, et al. (Exhibition Catalogue: Ashiya Camera Club 1930-1942, Ashiya City Museum of Art and History, 1998)

SPIEGEL Photographers Association, Osaka (1953.02-): A professional/amateur-mixed photographers' society of artistic photography trend established in February 1953 in KANSAI (Osaka, Kyoto, and Kobe) area. Original eight members led by Shisui TANAHASHI, and including Toru KONO, Takeji IWAMIYA, were all former members of TANPEI Photo Club of pre-war Modernism trend in Kansai area led by Kiyoshi KOISHI, Nakaji YASUI, et al.

GERIBARA FIVE, Fukusha-Shudan (1971-1973?): Group of Authors/Editors of a series of famous copy magazines; MIZUGI NO YOUNG LADY TACHI (i.e. Girls in Swimsuits or Bathing Beauties), 1971; BENJO( i.e. Lavatory), 1971; etc. The group name seems to be a parody made from the mixture of 'Guerrilla', 'GERI' (i.e. diarrhea or loosening of bowels), and 'HARA' (i.e. stomach). So, literally, it conveys such humorous nuance as 'Guerrillas bursting into the lavatory for their sudden stomachaches'. The four members included Nobuyoshi ARAKI, Yoshio TAKASE, and their assistants/friends.

PUT: 1976-(1979?) Like CAMP by Moriyama students, an independent gallery, PUT was formed and run in Shinjuku by ex-students of Workshop SHASHIN GAKKO's Shomei TOMATSU Class. Members exhibited and published their collective works, SHIKAKU NO GENZAI in 1979 (Exhibitors included Noboru HAMA, Tomoyuki OKA, Tsunetoshi OSAFUNE, Hiroshi SUMITOMO, et al). Also, a member HAMA later established a publisher SHASHIN KOUENRIN, by whom books like La Ville de la Chance, 1987, by Hiroshi OHSHIMA, and From Scratch, 1990, by HAMA himself were published. Meanwhile, other ex-students of TOMATSU from other areas went back home to find their working fields in their own places like Fukuoka, Tochigi, and Okinawa, and continued photographic activities including photo galleries and publishing. Such in Okinawa was AHMAN, to which an active female photographer, Mao ISHIKAWA belonged.

The SHASHIN JIDAI Magazine (1981-1988) and Erotic Trends after the early 1980's: Trends led by erotic photo magazines after major political themes during the 1960-1970ies have been seemingly lost its way or weakened (that is, in the years of indifference and decadence: SHIRAKE NO JIDAI) . Series of The SHASHIN JIDAI Magazine (1981.07 - 1988.04, Byakuya Shobo) by chief editor Akira SUEI and regular entries by Nobuyoshi ARAKI, Daido MORIYAMA, et al was the most famous and influencing one (First volume sold 140,000 copies, at its peak nearly 300,000 copies). Many young photographers were called to take part in these magazines. Early works had sociological viewpoints to watch human sexual-social behaviors changing quickly from time to time, but gradually overwhelmed by publishers' sales demands and readers' further curiosity and stronger requirements to see something more aggressive, fact-based documentary works or reportages gradually decreased and replaced more by staged fictions or pornography on the edge of legal/illegal borders.

Hachiro HAMADA: One of the regular participants in SHASHIN JIDAI magazine. An ex-editor for a political magazine GENDAI NO ME and a colleague with Takuma NAKAHIRA. Hamada also edited a new quarterly magazine, titled SHASHIN JIDAI 21 (1984.01- 1984.11, total four volumes), a developing form of monthly SHASHIN-JIDAI. Hamada died young on 1996.12.03 for liver disease caused by alcoholic addiction and loss of memories that followed. Project committee for the publication of late Hamada's photographic work was formed during 1996-1997, including such members as SUEI, MORIYAMA, Kazuo NISHII, Kohji ONAKA, et al ( According to SHASHIN-JIDAI NO JIDAI by Kotaro IIZAWA, 2002, Hakusuisha).

ECCE HOMO: Literally means "Behold the Man". The original Japanese title of this book by Hiroh KIKAI, 1987, is The Portraits of Kings, i.e. O-TACHI NO SHOZO, the continued second book, 1996, YA-CHIMATA: The Gallery for Kings, i.e. O-TACHI NO KAIRO.

The Camera MAINICHI Magazine (1954.05 - 1985.04) and Shoji YAMAGISHI (1930- 1979.07.20): A most influential monthly photography magazine in post-war Japan, with editors like Shoji YAMAGISHI, Kazuo NISHII, et al published by Mainichi Shimbun-sha (an oldest nation-wide newspaper company). While other monthly magazines from different news press companies put much emphasis on mechanical and technical sides of photography, Camera MAINICHI attracted the readers for its leadership toward newest trends of the expressions by photo artists. Especially after 1963, editor YAMAGISHI played a great role in finding and choosing new photographic talents, introduced their work not only in the regular issues, sometimes made special independent issues, or introducing them to overseas museums like MOMA in New York, where his friend, John Szarkowski was the director of the photography division. YAMAGISHI also directed and edited for outstanding series photography books from other publisher, Chuo-Koronsha in 1971-1972, whose series title was named EIZO NO GENDAI (10 volumes). After YAMAGISHI resigned from his post as editor in chief of Camera MAINICHI in 1978 for heavy symptoms of neurosis, he killed himself in his office in Tokyo and found dead on the morning of his 49th birthday. (Briefly summarised from The Homage to a Photographic Editor: Shoji YAMAGISHI, written by Kazuo NISHII, published from Madosha, 2003 ISBN4-89625-038-9)

ALL JAPAN STUDENTS PHOTO ASSOCIATION (ZEN-NIHON GAKUSEI SHASHIN RENMEI) organized by Tatsuo FUKUSHIMA (middle 1960's -): First founded in 1952(05.05: chairman Tokujiro KANAMORI)) as the joint league of The Metropolitan university photo clubs (i.e. ROKUDAIGAKU SHASHIN RENMEI) and all Kyoto-Osaka university clubs (i.e. KANSAI GAKUSEI SHASHIN RENMEI), sponsored by Asahi Shimbun and Fuji Film. Almost in five years, the league included prefectural high school clubs and had its members as many as totally near 30,000 students or 1020 schools from all 8 area blocks, from Hokkaido to Kyushu, around Japan, (according to a news booklet 1957 by the association). It looks that such professional photographers and critics as Hiroshi HAMAYA, Ken DOMON, Hideo HAGA, Tsutomu WATANABE, et al were called as instructors for their workshops and events in the early years. From the middle of th 1960's, the association seemed to have left the sponsors and became independent from other parties, also a famous critic and curator, Tatsuo FUKUSHIMA (who had organized exhibitions for VIVO members in late 1950's) was invited to help select and edit the students works to publish their unique series magazines titled JOKYO (i.e. Circumstances); confirmed issues that existed are from 1965 (actually published 1966.02), 66 (actually published 1968.08), and some more issues with specified themes from 1969, 1970, 1972 ,.. (co-published by a publisher named K.K. 491, founded by ex-members), regular issues are edited by the association's Campaign Committee, other special issues by other committees as well (e.g. 10.21 Day committee/ KOGAI campaign committee/ HIROSHIMA DAY committee).... detailed facts* about this vast nation-wide move for long post-war time have been yet unrevealed thoroughly by photo critics or art historians, but photographs in their JOKYO Magazines had started to show an apparent resemblance to the PROVOKE photos after 1968. (*some facts mentioned by the related persons: (1) Tatsuo FUKUSHIMA's magazine essays in quarterly KEN vol.1 pp.134-145, KEN vol.3 pp.90-96 / (1) Koji IWAKATA's report from Hiroshima in KEN vol.2 pp. 95-96, SHAKEN, 1970-71 / (3) 491's answers and comments made to the questionaires by the editors of The Bi-Monthly SHASHIN HIHYO Magazine, pp.53-54, vol 2, 1973.06 issue / (4) 491 members' on-magazine discussion, pp.34-38, vol,6, 1974.05 issue of The Quarterly SHASHIN HIHYO Magaine)

The CAMERA JIDAI Magazine and 'SYMPOSIUM NIHON 1966', published by Shashin Dojinsha (1966.01. - 1967.01): Consisted from 13 volumes of the monthly magazines that were published just for a short while during the year 1966 and January next year. Without any public notice, the magazine suddenly ended itself by the last issue in 13 months, when the new year's series project '*SYMPOSIUM NIHON 1967' was about to start. The special on-magazine project titled 'SYMPOSIUM NIHON 1966' took place in each issue, coordinated every other month by Tatsuo FUKUSHIMA (see above ariticle of our notes) and Koen SHIGEMORI (later by Tsutomu WADA after SHIGEMORI quit his role). FUKUSHIMA's way of organizing this project resembled very much to the one he seemed to have applied to the JOKYO project with the ALL JAPAN STUDENTS PHOTO ASSOCIATION: quite unique, strong anonymous photo images were selected and edited in most effective manners to describe the social-political circumstances and the concerned people's feelings of the period. / Related matter on Shomei TOMATSU'S Four Series Books planned to be issued from Shashin Dojinsha: The publisher of the magazine, Shashin Dojinsha, has just started to sell Shomei TOMATSU's 11:02 NAGASAKI (1966.07.15, Shashin Dojinsha) in the same period as this FUKUSHIMA's project was going on in their monthly issues and it was also stated in their advertisement that they'd publish three more series books by TOMATSU, which, however, didn't happen successfully; the second book to follow 11:02 NAGAQSAKI seemed to have been a book identical to what we today know as 'NIHON ' originally due in October 1966 (which in fact came in 1967 by SHAKEN, after a year's delay), the third title planned *SENRYO (i.e. Occupation, due in January 1967) and the fourth and final title *SHIRO, Collection, DAIYOHIN'(i.e. Castles, Collections, Substitutes, due in April 1967) were not published --- all these publication plans might have been canceled, mainly for the publisher's reasons, but perhaps also for some other reasons that the social situation and photographic scene have so rapidly changed toward the end of the sixties, and the next book TOMATSU actually published were all from SHAKEN: during 1967-1969 period. / Related matter on how Shashin Dojinsha fell into business dificullties: A testimony by Nobuya YOSHIMURA.

The Bi-monthly SHASHIN TSUSHIN Magazine (1977.06-1977.10, vol.1-3) and a nation-wide group exhibition 'Today's Photography '77' (1977.10.11-23), under SHASHIN KOKU Project (Summer 1976- October 1977?): In order to carry out a first inter independent gallery exhibition involving both pros and amateurs, mixed project leaders from major independent galleries, geographically varying from Tokyo to Okinawa joined some time in the latter half of 1976 to form a project named SHASHIN KOKU (i.e. Photographic Nation). A bi-monthly publication for promoting the exhibition was titled SHASHIN TSUSHIN and issued while the project was underway. The 3rd volume of the series publication was issued in the form of the exhibition catalogue including, 48 young member artists from around Japan, including Tsunetoshi OSAFUNE, Shinzo SHIMAO, Hiroshi SUMITOMO, Toyomitsu HIGA, Tomoyuki OKA, Takashi YADA, Keizo KITAJIMA, Yoshimasa OKIMATSU, Noboru HAMA, Miyako ISHIUCHI, Mitsugu OHNISHI, Hitoshi TSUKIJI, et al and the catalogue editor, Ryuichi KANEKO. (summarized from vol.1 and vol.3 of SHASHIN TSUSHIN)

Kishin SHINOYAMA & The Monthly SHAGAKU Magazine (1981.04-1985.12) etc. ''All my models are selected top few people from our era, to which I myself also belong. I think I'm in the role of copying and recording the skin of our era' ( summarized from SHINOYAMA's concluing words told about his magazine works to Takuma NAKAHIRA ( p.319 KETTO SHASHIN-RON, 1977 Asahi Shimbunsha). After almost two decades of successful magazine works with various publishers since early 1960s, especially after he titled his work style 'GEKISHA'(i.e. hard shooting), SHINOYAMA established his indisputable top role in the mass cultural magazines by the end of 1970s. One of Gekisha series books, 'GEKISHA: 135 Girl Friends' (1979, Shogakukan) was said to have sold 700,000 copies and ranked high in the top ten best selling books of the year in Japan. The Monthly SHAGAKU, from Shogakukan publisher, named after Toshusai SHARAKU, a most famous Edo Period Ukiyoe wood-block printer, started to be published in April 1981, a year earlier than the rival SHASHIN-JIDAI Magazine by Nobuyoshi Araki et al. This rivalry relation of the two magazines and of SHINOYAMA's GEKISHA style and Araki's eccentric GUERILLA style accelerated the heated race for years through the former half of 1980s. Among regular photographers for The SHAGAKU Magazine were Hajime SAWATARI, Shuji YAMADA et al. / RELATED MATTERS: *1) In 1982, SHAGAKU Editorial Division of Shogakukan made an unusual kind of book which succeeded in winning everyone's attention. This was a small hard cover book named The Visual Consitution of Japan, a 'Shagaku Book', (1982 Shogakukan). a photo-illustrated visual reading book of Japan's post-war Constitution, texts both in Japanese and English. In spite that SHINOYAMA only joined this book with a image of snowing mountain village in which no model appeared, the small handbook sold very well (historically 7th position in the best-selling, longest-distributed books in Japan), so as later to be printed tens of times again and again till mid 1990s, when The SHAGAKU magazine was no more issued from Shogakukan publisher, but a later generation opinion magazine, SAPIO followed its role to distribute it by re-naming it a 'Sapio Book'. (Confirmed latest was 30th printing of Sapio Book issued on 1995.03.20) *2) Later in 1991 (The 3rd year of Heisei), SHINOYAMA's model books published from Asahi Shuppansha, Accidents 1: Water Fruit (1991.02.15), Accidnets 2: White Room (1991.09.15), and later Santa Fe (1991.11.13), were said to be the epoch-making books to liberate the exposure of the models' under hairs (these books acquired the Japanese way of naming 'hair nude books'), to finalize the long discussed essential matter on the freedom of expression that continued to be suspended throughout the long dark history of Showa Period.

Our selections are mainly targeted to cover 1960 - 1980 periods, during which Japanese society had been given its Rebirth under the New Constitution (1947-), with which Japan promised to the World Society that it would permanently abandon its military ambition and all armed forces never to repeat its way toward any wars: 9th Article. But under the 'Cold War' by super powers surrounding it, Japan had already been involved in the political controversies over U.S.- Japan Military Treaties (ANPO MONDAI) (1951-), and in every 10 years, at the time of the Treaties' Revision years (later in 1960, 1970, and 1980), large anti-treaty actions have been taken by the people. To encounter these moves, (in the year Korean War broke out), special police corps (1950-), later turned out to become Self Defense Forces (JIEITAI)(1954-) including sea and air forces, were created despite much dispute and objections among the people. Also, There were domestically all those problems after W.W.II, like still aching victims of the atomic bombs in HIROSHIMA and NAGASAKI; too long U.S. occupation in OKINAWA till 1972, near the end of Vietnam War in 1975; and environmental pollutions (KOGAI) all around this small island country for the too rapid growth of modern industries; the concentration of population to some major cities (KAMITSU TOSHI), inevitably caused, on the other hand, the declines and destructions of rural agricultural, forestry or fishery communities and their original cultures and Nature preservation activities (KASO/KOREIKA). Family, a basic unit of human life, has also changed drastically in these decades, from traditional multi-generation House (IE) to a core unit of a married couple (KAKU KAZOKU), between these two styles and ideas of Family relations, post war Japanese have been making trials and errors. And today, after more than 40-20 years later, we must say we still face these problems in much more critical sense than ever in our post war history. And that's when we know the true meaning of the entire works of our photographers, in such ways as even photographers themselves might not have been fully aware of. (2005, GJ*)

VIVO OR BEFORE:	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
PROVOKE OR AFTER:	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
OVERSEAS:	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
OTHERS:	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

NOTES