Positions in japanese photography

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Infos

Opening
3.10.2003

Duration
4.10.2003–2.11.2003

Symposion on Photographie XVIII
31.10. und 1.11.2003
Kunsthaus Graz – space 04
Participants:
Masafumi Fukagawa, Toshiharu Ito, Mao Ishikawa, Michiko Kasahara, Kazue Kobata, Shino Kuraishi, Minoru Shimizu, Kyoichi Tsuzuki, Toshiya Ueno

with:
Mao ISHIKAWA, Keizo KITAJIMA, Kisei KOBAYASHI, Mika NINAGAWA, Sakiko NOMURA, Masafumi SANAI, Tomoko SAWADA, Risaku SUZUKI, Kyoichi TSUZUKI
curated by Christine Frisinghelli & Seiichi Furuya & Manfred Willmann
Realized with the support of Graz 2003 – Cultural Capital of Europe and EU Japan Fest, Tokyo

Intro

What are the themes of today’s young generation of Japanese artists? How do they deal with the artistic heritage of the previous generation which still felt the impact of the fall of the Empire and developed its positions against the background of a serious change in political culture – a generation which experienced the global mediatisation of images and was able to put forward artistic ideas in a newly gained “freedom”? What are the cultural premonitions guiding current art production in the face of a highly developed and hence again vulnerable capitalist system, in the light of the tensions and ruptures arising from simultaneously maintaining Japanese modernist traditions on the one hand and facing the current social problems and cultural decline, particularly in urban centres, on the other? Do Japanese artists take up themes specific to Japanese or Asian culture? If so, how are they influenced by Western conditions of production and response, considering their strong presence at exhibitions in Europe? And vice versa, given this recent “Japan boom” in Europe, what is their influence on art production in the West?
The project “Positions in Japanese Photography” was conceived as part of Camera Austria’s special programme for Graz 2003: Keep in Touch. The international network of relationships with individuals and institutions built up by Camera Austria on the basis of publications, exhibitions and symposiums has been the formative element in this: co-operating with international artists, theoreticians and curators who have formerly participated in various projects, the aim is to reconsider the status of the image with all its artistic and social implications.

Japan is a focus here, because Camera Austria looks back on a long series of projects with Japanese photographers ever since the 1970s. Several times Graz was the first city to present central positions of contemporary Japanese photography outside of Japan. These projects were planned in collaboration with the Graz-based artist Seiichi Furuya, who is a co-founder of Camera Austria and has served as mediator between Japan and Austria. The goal of the current project is to include a new and younger generation of Japanese artists into the existing network. The exhibition and symposium will be programmatically developed in conjunction with them, so as to explore the status of the image in contemporary Japanese art production in all its complexity and diversity, and to create a basis for further projects.

Publication
The project is documented in Camera Austria magazine, No. 84 / December 2003 (German/English).

Installation Views

Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Kyoichi Tsuzuki, Catfight Cuties, aus / from: Universe for Rent, 1993 – 2001.
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Risaku Suzuki, aus / from: Kumano.
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Risaku Suzuki, aus / from: Kumano.
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Masafumi Sanai, aus / from: Hawaiii, 2003. Co-Produktion: SANAYUMI / Masafumi SANAI & Yumiko ITOH.
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Kisei Kobayashi, aus / from: Asian Japanese, 1991 – 2002.
Kisei Kobayashi, aus / from: Asian Japanese, 1991 – 2002.
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Mika Ninagawa, aus / from: A Piece of Rainbow (of recent works), 2001.
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Sakiko Nomura, aus / from: KURONEKO, 2002.
Sakiko Nomura, aus / from: KURONEKO, 2002.
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Tomoko Sawada, COVER, 2002.
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Camera Austria 2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya

Press Converence & Opening

Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Pressekonferenz / Press conference: 3.10.2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Eröffnung / Opening: 3.10.2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Eröffnung / Opening: 3.10.2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Eröffnung / Opening: 3.10.2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Eröffnung / Opening: 3.10.2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Eröffnung / Opening: 3.10.2003
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Christine Frisinghelli with students
Photo: Seiichi Furuya
Positionen japanischer Fotografie / Positions in japanese photography
Christine Frisinghelli with students
Photo: Seiichi Furuya