1974 Gunkanjima

On January 10, 1974, at the age of twenty-two, I headed for Hashima (the official name of Gunkanjima), the island I had been longing to visit since childhood. I was glad to fulfill my long-cherished wish, but at the same time, I was disturbed by the fact that the island’s coal mines were being closed and the island would be deserted soon. “If only I could have a glimpse of the island.” My wish drastically changed once I had landed; the island was well beyond my imagination. I was astounded. When I recovered my senses, I found that I had only the drive to photograph.

It was just since the previous year that I had decided to pursue photography seriously and started taking photographs. The crudeness of this series is obvious. When I see the pictures now, I feel, before everything, embarrassment. But however unskillful the pictures might have been, I honestly feel that my desire to take photographs then was stronger than it is now.
I saw, at close range, islanders in pain for leaving, while I was, myself, at a loss because of the difficulty in taking photographs. I plunged myself into photography, while asking the meaning of life. In those days, photography was everything for me.
I kept on returning to the island until it was finally deserted.

When I was twenty-five, I had the luck to hold two exhibitions in a year at Nikon Salon in Tokyo, a photo gallery I admired at the time. I showed the pictures of Hashima at one of the exhibitions.  My work at both exhibitions got me nominated for the third Kimura Ihei Photography Prize. Among the prominent nominees I found my name, even though I thought of myself unworthy to be called a photographer. I did not win the Prize, however, but I gained a lot of confidence.

After this series, my photography has changed greatly. Now I have little interest in taking photographs that are notably documentary. Nevertheless, these are certainly the photographs that I have taken.

I have changed the title of this series, previously published as “Closing ; Gunkanjima” to “1974 Gunkanjima.”

Translator: KUROIWA chie

 

 

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