Daido Moriyama is a major photographer of the 20th century. Born in Osaka in Japan, he continues to work mostly in Tokyo. He studied graphic design before he learned photography with his first mentor
Takeji Iwamiya.
In 1961 he moved to Tokyo and became the assistant of Eikoh Hosoe and worked also with the writer
Yukio Mishima on the series
Ordeal by Roses. It is only in 1964 that he became an independent photographer. He gained recognition quickly with his first book
Japan a Photo Theatre (1968) and later
Farewell Photography (1972),
Hunter (1972),
Mayfly (1972),
Another Country in New York (1974),
Light and Shadow (1982),
A Journey to Nakaji (1987),
Lettre à St Lou (1990)... We will stop there as we cannot list his 200 books!
In 1968 Daido Moriyama became a member of the
Provoke movement. He describes his work as been
"are, bure, boke". He gave birth to a new kind of street photography. His work was shown in 1974 at the
MOMA in an exhibition called
"New Japanese Photography". Since then we have seen his work all around the world in majors exhibitions and museums. In 2012 he won the
ICP Infinity Award.
After studying graphic design, Daido Moriyama first explored photography under
Takeji Iwamiya. He moved to Tokyo in 1961 to become an assistant to the great Japanese photographer
Eikoh Hosoe while he was working on his famous series
Ordeal by Roses with the writer
Yukio Mishima. Daido Moriyama began to work independently in 1964.
His first monograph, Japan, a
Photo Theater (1968), was immediately acclaimed by the artistic community and was followed by several books that became references in the history of photography, such as
Farewell Photography (1972),
Hunter (1972),
Mayfly (1972),
Another Country in New York (1974),
Light and Shadow (1982),
A Journey to Nakaji (1987) and
Lettre à St.Loup (1990), to name only a few. Daido Moriyama has published over 180 books to date.
As a member of the
Provoke movement, which he joined in 1968 for the second issue of the eponymous magazine, Daido Moriyama delivers rich, dense and versatile photographs. His work, often described as raw, blurried and troubled (or, in Japanese, the "are, bure, boke" aesthetics), gave birth to a new street photography practice in which the artist roams the street, confronting and being confronted by public spaces. Daido Moriyama started manipulating silkscreen printing in the seventies, using the technique for his books as well as his exhibition pieces. The Japanese artist also organized interactive events and installations as a way to adapt his discourse to different spaces and situations. Through several autobiographical texts, such as
Memories of a Dog (1984 and 1997), he explains how his artistic practice is inspired by the heritage left by the likes of
Eugène Atget,
Jack Kerouac,
William Klein,
Nicéphore Niépce,
Shomei Tomatsu,
Andy Warhol,
Weegee, and
Garry Winogrand.
Daido Moriyama's work has had a radical impact on the artistic communities both in Japan and abroad. In 1974, the
MoMA in New York presented his work as part of the first Western exhibition focused on Japanese Photography. His pieces have since been showcased in many major exhibitions: at the
TATE in London (William Klein + Daido Moriyam, 2012); at
SFMoMa in San Francisco and at the
Metropolitan Museum in New York (Stray Dog, 1999); at the
National Art Museum in Osaka (On the Road, 2011);l at the
Fondation Cartier pour l'Art Contemporain (Paris, 2003); at
FOAM in Amsterdam (2006); and, more recently, at the
Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie d'Arles (Labyrinth + Monochrome, 2013).
Source: Polka Galerie
Articles:
Book Review: Quartet
