ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Masahiro Okafuji, President & CEO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) opened ITOCHU AOYAMA ART SQUARE in the CI Plaza, a commercial facility situated next to ITOCHU’s Tokyo Head Office, in October 2012. The gallery was part of ITOCHU’s social contribution activities, with the aim of developing the future generation through art, contributing to the local community, and promoting both local and international art and culture. Various exhibitions have since been held in the space.

Taking a step forward from traditional projects, ITOCHU is now organizing a two-part photography exhibition curated by photography critic Minoru Shimizu, with the purpose of developing future generations. The first part features photographs taken by two up-and-coming photographers who are gaining attention after receiving the Kimura Ihei Award, dubbed the Akutagawa Award of the photography community. The theme of the photography exhibition is Tohoku/Okinawa. Mr. Masaru Tatsuki (37th Kimura Ihei Award winner) has been visiting the Tohoku Region since 2006, well before the Tohoku earthquake, to take photos while concurrently communicating with the local people. Mr. Ryuichi Ishikawa (40th Kimura Ihei Award winner) was born and raised in Okinawa, and has been capturing the way people live their lives in present-day Okinawa. Both photographers honor their encounters with the people who are also objects of their photography, listen to what they have to say, and share their lives and experiences before taking the photographs. This is the reason why their photographs are not only beautiful, but also powerful.

It is 2016 and now is the time to view the evocative scenes of Tohoku and Okinawa, vividly captured by two photographers who play an important role in nurturing modern art for future generations.

Tohoku/Okinawa Talk Show with Minoru Shimizu, Masaru Tatsuki and Ryuichi Ishikawa

The curator of this photography exhibition, Mr. Minoru Shimizu, who also works as a photography critic, will meet with Mr. Masaru Tatsuki and Mr. Ryuichi Ishikawa on stage, ask them about their photography and discuss the present-day Tohoku and Okinawa that they are trying to portray.

Born in Tokyo in 1963. Photography critic. Received the first Shigemori Koen Photography Critic Award in 1995, and has contributed to magazines, photobooks and pictorial records of exhibitions on a regular basis, both locally and internationally. His major publications include Shiro to kuro de – Shashin to… (In white and black, with photographs…), Gendaishicho-shinsha, 2004, Shashin to hibi (Photographs and the everyday), Gendaishicho-shinsha, 2006, Hibi kore shashin (Photographs of everyday life), Gendaishicho-shinsha, 2009, and Pururamon - Tansu ni shite fukusu no sonzai (Pluramonity - on the existence of plurality in the mono), Gendaishicho-shinsha, 2011.

Born in Toyama Prefecture in 1974. Started working as a freelance photographer in 1998. He encountered Art Trucks that same year and spent the next nine years taking photographs of trucks and truck drivers while travelling all over Japan. Published the photobook DECOTORA (Little more Co., Ltd.) in 2007. Another photobook, Tohoku (Little more Co., Ltd.), published in 2011, is a collection of photographs that he took in the Tohoku Region. He has been visiting the area since 2006 and even to this day, he visits it on a regular basis to capture the landscapes, the people and the history of Tohoku. In 2012, he received the 37th Kimura Ihei Award ( fiscal year 2011).

Born in Okinawa Prefecture in 1984. He discovered the art of photography while studying at Okinawa International University. In 2010, he started to study under photographer Tetsushi Yuzaki, then in 2011 he participated in the Shomei Tomatsu Digital Photography Workshop. In 2012, he received an honorable mention for his work okinawan portraits in the 35th Shashin-Shinseiki competition. In 2015, he received the 40th Kimura Ihei Award ( fiscal year 2014). His major publications include okinawan portraits 2010-2012 and Zekkei no porifoni (A grand polyphony). Both were published by AKAAKA Art Publishing Inc., in 2014.