Ziraiya

In his most active period around 1990s, his expression to make us feel a borderline between this and another world greatly influenced younger followers. He used to use 8×10 negative films and finished original color prints at his darkroom. As he quit every commissioned work and hid himself nearly 10 years ago suddenly to avoid being made a darling in commercialism, Kyoji Takahashi was thought as one of legendary photographers in Japan in a way.

In 2008 he started his uninhibited activity again. One of such acts is this book ‘Ziraiya’.

The book is composed of photographs by Takahashi and younger photographer, Yu Ukai. All photographs of the two with Leica are mixed in complete harmony and there is no guideline to show readers which is whose one. Besides, each photograph ignores up-down and right-left of subjects used to have cause of gravity.