Seen: Minyo Sanga 民謡山河
Who: Issei Suda
Where: JCII Photo Salon, Hanzomon
When: January 5th - 31st, 2016
What: In the late 1970s Issei Suda’s Minyo Sanga series of the folk-culture of Japan was serialized in Nippon Camera. The strands he’s plucked from villages and festivals and other gatherings with his lens are made of a far richer threads than a mere documentarist viewpoint would allow. There’s real humor tinged with darkness in each photo- one can view younger photographers such as Shinya Arimoto and Tatsuya Shimohira as heirs to this way of working in Japan.
Since photography within the gallery itself is not allowed, I’ve added some examples of this series via the Minyo Sanga photobook published by Tosei-sha in 2007. If you are even a moderate of Japanese photography this book is an excellent addition to your photobook collection. (Book available here / video preview here )