Fujifilm Exhibition Traces Japan's Photography Origins
The Fujifilm Square Photo History Museum in Tokyo is hosting a new exhibition titled 'How Japan Became a Photography Powerhouse: The Beginnings,' featuring around 30 rare artifacts from the Fujifilm Photo Collection, which includes photographs, equipment, and books. This collection was created to celebrate Fujifilm Group's 80th anniversary in 2014 and showcases works from 101 notable Japanese photographers spanning the late Edo and Meiji periods to today. Photography first arrived in Japan nearly 190 years ago, shortly after Daguerre's invention, brought by a Dutch ship to Nagasaki. Scholars like Kawamoto Kōmin were commissioned by the Tokugawa shogunate to explore this new medium. The exhibition runs from June 30 to September 17.
Key facts
- Exhibition 'How Japan Became a Photography Powerhouse: The Beginnings' at Fujifilm Square Photo History Museum in Tokyo
- Approximately 30 rare items from Fujifilm Photo Collection
- Collection assembled for Fujifilm Group's 80th anniversary in 2014
- Features works by 101 distinguished Japanese photographers
- Photography arrived in Japan about 190 years ago via Dutch ship at Nagasaki
- Tokugawa shogunate commissioned scholars like Kawamoto Kōmin to research photography
- Wet collodion process introduced in early 1860s
- Exhibition includes daguerreotype camera (ca. 1840-50) and oldest camera obscura in Japan (late 18th to mid-19th century)
- Runs from June 30 to September 17
Entities
Artists
- Ueno Hikoma
- Kajima Seibei
- Uchida Kuichi
- Kawamoto Kōmin
- Yanagawa Shunsan
Institutions
- Fujifilm Square Photo History Museum
- Fujifilm Corporation
- Fujifilm Group
- PetaPixel
- Tokugawa shogunate
Locations
- Tokyo
- Japan
- Nagasaki
- France