Kazuyoshi Usui

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Kazuyoshi Usui follow Japanese, born 1975

Lives in Tokyo, shibuya-ku, Japan

Projects/Portfolios

Showa88

Introduction

“Showa88” is all about playing with the real and the fake, to create an imagined world in which my mixes together elements of Japan’s past, present and future.

The idea of this work “if the Showa period continued until this day, what kind of world would that be?” It’s an imagined world. The Showa period ended in its 64th year, so 2013 would be Showa 88.

Along with Western years, Japan also uses an imperial year system, where different periods correspond to the life of each successive emperor. This year, 2013, corresponds to the 25th year of the Heisei period. Before Heisei was Showa, a period that lasted 64 years until 1989. The idea behind “Showa88” is to depict a world in which the Showa period never ended.

“Showa” mean to me, It was a really turbulent time, lots of things were going on. The war, of course. First losing the war, then after that our parents had to work really hard to rebuild the country. This was a really lively period, almost in the sense of survival. It practically radiated life. Now, because of the hard work of the last generation, we’re able to live very well, but I think we’ve lost that sense of liveliness. Wondering where I could find this sense again was the trigger to make this work. I found that in Osaka, or Kyoto, there are some run-down areas that still have this sense of survival. What makes these places different? It’s the color. If you go to some fashionable place in Tokyo, it’s all gray, concrete. The areas I’m talking about might be old, but they have color—it’s like a flood of color.

Galleries

ZEN FOTO GALLERY, Tokyo, Japan

Publications

showa88, Kazuyoshi Usui, ZEN FOTO GALLERY, Tokyo, 2011
Macaroni Christian, Kazuyoshi Usui, Bijutsu Shuppan-sha, Tokyo, 2006

Statements

Artist Statement
"Juxtaposition" could be seemed as the main idea among my works.
To line two completely opposite things side by side and make those into one.
Such as "life and death","good taste and bad taste", "the vulgar and the sacred", "the expensive and the cheap", "laugh and the fear", “Oriental culture and Western culture”, "a real thing and a fake". To mix those opposite emotions and objects with good balance and output them into one creation.

Biography

1975 Bone in Tokyo Japan. Live and work in Tokyo Japan.

Solo Exhibitions

1996 MACARONI CHRISTIAN, KONICA MINOLTA PLAZA GALLERY ,Tokyo, Japan
2011 Showa88, ZEN FOTO GALLERY , Tokyo Japan
2013 Showa88, SHADAI GALLERY , Tokyo Japan

Group Exhibitions

1997 Sun Marino International Photomeeting, San Marino
2000 HUMANSCAPE, Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Arts, Yamanashi, Japan
2003 IN&OUT, Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, Tokyo, Japan
2009 EDITOR’S CHOICE Magazine editors select the most promising young photographers
RICOH RING CUBE GALLERY, Tokyo, Japan
2010 SNAPS, RICOH RING CUBE GALLERY, Tokyo, Japan
TOKYO PHOTO, Roppongi Hills Academyhills 40,Tokyo, Japan
2012 CONTEMPORARY JAPANESE PHOTOBOOKS,THE PHOTOGRAPHER’S GALLERY, London, UK
TOKYO PHOTO, Tokyo Midtown Hall, Tokyo, Japan
10×10 JAPANESE PHOTOBOOKS,ICP-Bard MFA Studio Space, New York, USA
2013 THE EMERGING PHOTOGRAPHY ARTIST, INSTYLE PHOTOGRAPHY CENTER, Tokyo, Japan
2014 CREATIVE©ITIES : Mapping creativity in Asia-Pacific’s cities today,P2 Warehouse ,Kaohsiung,Taiwan
JAPON, Abbaye St André Centre d’art contemporain ,Meymac,France

Publication

2006 MACARONI CHRISTIAN, Bijutsu Shuppan-sha, Tokyo, Japan
2011 Showa88, ZEN FOTO GALLERY , Tokyo Japan

Awards

1996 The 18 th Fox Talbot Awards
1999 Encouraging prize.Fuji Photo Salon New Face Prize.
2006 Advertising Photography in Japan 2006,Grand Prize/Japan Advertising Photographer’s Association
2011 Advertising Photography in Japan 2011,Grand Prize/Japan Advertising Photographer’s Association
2012 Kassel International Photobook Festival ,Nomination/ Le Bal, Paris, France

Public Collections

Tokyo Polytechnic University, Tokyo, Japan
Kiyosato Museum of Photographic Arts, Yamanashi, Japan

Cross-Reference

2013 Issue 212 Aperture Magazine

Website

kazuyoshiusui.com/

Blog

kazuyoshiusui.blogspot.jp/

Contact

For print inquiries, please contact any of the fine galleries below.

ZEN FOTO GALLERY, Tokyo, Japan

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