Miyako ishiuchi biography of michael j

Miyako ishiuchi yokosuka story

Ishiuchi Miyako began her photographic career shooting familiar streets and buildings in her hometown, Yokosuka, which had been transformed during the post-war period into one of the largest American naval bases in the Pacific. For over ten years, Ishiuchi documented this alien presence, capturing traces of the Occupation that lingered decades after the war had ended, and charging her work with a subjectivity which blended personal and political awareness.

As a student, Ishiuchi was immersed in the radical political climate of Tokyo at the end of the s. Contemporary identity politics and debates surrounding self-expression encouraged Ishiuchi to reflect upon her fraught relationship with Yokosuka, and in she returned to the town she has characterized as a place of fear, grief, resentment, and disorientation.

This led the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum to invite her to capture everyday objects which had belonged to victims of the atomic bomb. Michael Hoppen:"I sometimes need to remind myself that new and interesting things can be illuminated quite by chance , and when one is least expecting it. Shortly after, I received a call from Manfred Heiting, a legendary Dutch collector of both photography and photobooks, and also a friend who has always offered me sage advice; over the years he has pointed me towards all kinds of wonderful pictures, artists and books.

Out of the blue, Manfred suggested that I travelled to Prague to meet the Japanese artist Ishiuchi Miyako, and, it was then that I realised I had been discussing her work only the day before with the book dealer - our relationship was born! Manfred had decided to publish a small, beautifully designed monograph about Ishiuchi in collaboration with the Dutch photographer Machiel Botman, and he was aware of my increasing fascination with Japanese photography and books.

I had heard about Ishiuchi, but I had not seen much of her work in person. I flew to Prague to attend the opening of her show at Langhans, a well-known photography gallery in the heart of the city.

Miyako ishiuchi mother

I remember being particularly impressed by the extraordinary simultaneous translator, who fielded questions from the Czechoslovakian audience translating into Japanese and also English! Furthermore, I was thoroughly smitten with Ishiuchi Miyako. She wore a beautiful full-length kimono, accessorised with dark leather fingerless gloves and large dark-glasses.

The effect was wonderfully rock and roll, subverting the traditional connotations of her robes. She would dress again like this at her Getty Museum opening several years later.