Shomei Tomatsu's 'Skin of the Nation' retrospective surveys five decades of photography at Japan Society
An extensive retrospective of Shomei Tomatsu's photography, named 'Skin of the Nation', is currently displayed at Japan Society in New York until January 2, 2005. This exhibition showcases around 250 pieces spanning five decades, curated by Sandra S. Phillips and Leo Rubenfein. Following its New York run, the exhibition will move to SFMOMA, The Corcoran Gallery of Art, and Fotomuseum Winterthur. The catalog accompanying the exhibit, released by SFMOMA and Yale University Press in 2004, marks the first English-language publication dedicated to his work. Born in 1930, Tomatsu, who witnessed the atomic bombings, delved into themes of Americanization and national identity, merging modernism with traditional elements. Notable pieces include 'Untitled [Hateruma-jima, Okinawa]' (1971) and 'Apres-Guerre Prostitute, Nagoya' (1958).
Key facts
- The exhibition 'Skin of the Nation' runs through January 2, 2005 at Japan Society in New York.
- It features about 250 works by Shomei Tomatsu spanning five decades.
- The retrospective was organized by Sandra S. Phillips of SFMOMA and Leo Rubenfein.
- Venues include SFMOMA, The Corcoran Gallery of Art, Fotomuseum Winterthur, and Japan Society.
- The accompanying catalog is the first English-language book on Tomatsu's work.
- Tomatsu was 15 when atomic bombs fell on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
- He co-founded the photography agency Vivo in the 1950s.
- His work explores postwar American occupation, Japanese identity, and globalism.
Entities
Artists
- Shomei Tomatsu
- Sandra S. Phillips
- Leo Rubenfein
- Hiroshi Hamaya
- Daido Moriyama
- Cartier Bresson
- William Kline
- Brassai
Institutions
- Japan Society
- SFMOMA
- The Corcoran Gallery of Art
- Fotomuseum Winterthur
- Yale University Press
- MOMA
- Vivo
- Bauhaus
Locations
- New York
- United States
- Washington, D.C.
- San Francisco
- Winterthur
- Switzerland
- Japan
- Hiroshima
- Nagasaki
- Okinawa
- Hateruma-jima
- Nagoya
- Paris
- London
- New Haven
- Southern Asia