How to Take Subjects and Society Seriously
皆さんこんにちは。FRAME TOKYO SHUNSUKEです。
今回は、写真集紹介です。
髙橋健太郎さんの「A RED HAT」をご紹介したいと思います。
Hello everyone. I am SHUNSUKE. This time, I am going to introduce one of my favorite photographers, Kentaro Takahashi, and his book called, " A RED HAT."
私はこれまで、自分で撮るのも観るのも、いわゆるStreet Photogtaphyが中心でした。Street Photographyは、自分がこれだと思う瞬間を求めてひたすらStreetを歩き回り、偶然的そして運命的に出会う瞬間を切り取っていくというものです。
過去のブログでも書いてきた通り、自分が何を切り取りたいのかを日々考えながらStreetを徘徊するわけですが、最初から被写体を特定するというケースは稀で、被写体との接点も本当に一瞬であることがほとんどです。
それに対して、今回ご紹介する髙橋健太郎さんの「A RED HAT」は、特定の被写体と、とことんまで向き合った結果生まれた作品です。
この作品は、1941年に起きた「生活図画事件」という出来事が題材となっています。私達が写真を撮ったり、写真表現について語り合ったりするのと同じように、絵を描き、絵画表現について議論を交わしていた学生たちが、共産主義思想を啓蒙しようとするものだとして突然逮捕され、刑務所にまで入れられたという事件です。
当事者の方々は、青春時代の貴重な時間の一部を奪われました。そのうちのご存命のお2人の現在の生活に密着したのが、今回の作品です（残念ながら、うちお一人（松本五郎さん）は昨年亡くなられました。）。
私は最初、ページをめくるうちに、まるで自分も彼らの近くにいるように引き込まれる感覚に陥りました。
もちろん、一枚一枚の写真が素晴らしく、かつ、構成や流れにも細心の注意が払われていると感じるのですが、それよりも根本的に、被写体との関係の深さが、自分が撮る写真とは全く異なることに衝撃というか、ショックを受けました。
これは、事件の舞台となり彼らが生活する北海道まで何度も何度も通い、彼らと多くの時間を共に過ごし、接し続けたからこそ、彼らの本当に自然な姿を切り取ることができ、それが、引きこまれるような没入感に繋がっているのだと感じました。
I used to shoot and observe photos like " Street Photography." Street Photography is usually defined as photos taken while walking around Street in search of the moment you think you want to shoot, and capturing the moments you meet accidentally and fatefully.
As I have been writing on some of my articles before, I always walk on the street while thinking about what I want to really shoot, but it is rare that I set a mind to capture curtain subjects before going outside, and it is also a few moment when I meet with subjects what I want to capture.
Comparing to that, the book, "A RED HAT," taken by Kentaro Takahashi is composed by lots of great photos that Mr. Takahashi had closely covered subjects and documented happenings and reality, which is totally different to the way of shooting candid photography.
This book's main theme is Life Painting Case, that had been occurred in Hokkaido, Japan, 1941. This case is know that Students who were drawing and discussing pictorial expression, just as we take pictures and talk about photographic expression, were suddenly arrested because they were seen that they were trying to enlighten communist ideas. Then students were put in jail, which is very shocking case. The parties who were arrested were deprived some of their precious time in their youth. This work is closely related to the current lives of two of them ( Unfortunately, one of them (Mr. Goro Matsumoto) died last year).
I first felt like I was very close to them and drawn to their stories while turning pages. Of corse every single photos are impressive, and I could appreciate how Mr. Takahashi carefully captured moments and thought a composition of the book. However, what I was mostly shocked is that the relationship between subjects and Mr. Takahashi himself was deeply visualized by captured moments in every photo, and his photographic stance felt very different with mine.
I think this is because Mr. Takahashi continued visiting Hokkaido, where the victims of the case are living now and case had occurred, many times to deeply understand what was actually happened and how victims are spending their time now. Also I feel why the book is so attractive is because Takahashi spent a lot of time with them and kept in touch with them so that he was able to capture their truly natural appearance, which led me to a feeling of immersion.
また、髙橋さんは、当事者の方々の「今の日常」を写すことを通じて、逆に事件当時の異様さを浮き彫りさせ、今の私達の社会についても考えるきっかけを喚起するということを意図されています。
以下は、髙橋さんの後書きからの引用です。
"穏やかな一生を過ごすであろうと信じてやまない私たちの人生は突然、"国のため"、"正義のため"という名目で権力によって進む方向をねじ曲げられることがあるということを、歴史は静かに語りかけてくる。"
"普段、秩序化された時間を横軸に沿って直線的に生きていると信じる私たちを、写真は立ち止まらせ、思い出させてくれる。"
現在、世界、そして日本は、未だ新型コロナウィルスによる混乱状態の最中にあります。日々、ニュースで流れてくる政府の対応などを見ていると、約80年前に起きたこの事件は現代においても決して非現実的なものではないと感じてしまいます。
いくら私たちが人類史上最も平和な時代に生きているとはいえ、平和ボケせずに社会に関心を向け続け、緊張感を持って生きていく必要があるということも、この作品は思い出させてくれました。
自分は写真家として、被写体と、そして社会とどう向き合っていくのか、非常に考えさせられる作品です。
皆さんもよろしければ是非読んでみてください。
それではまた次回。
It is also seemed that Mr. Takahashi intended to bring out the strangeness at the time of the incident and to evoke an opportunity to think about our society now by taking pictures of the "current daily life" of the victims related to Life Painting Case.
Below is Mr. Takahashi's quotes from an afterwords on the book.
”History is telling that our lives, which we believe we will have a calm and peaceful life, can suddenly be destroyed by power in the name of "for the country" and "for justice."”
" Photography let us stop and remind, who believe we are alive in the time to go on the horizontal axis."
Currently, the world includes Japan are still in a confusion due to the new coronavirus. Looking at the government's response in the news every day, I feel that Life Painting Case, which occurred about 80 years ago, is not unrealistic case even in modern times. This work also reminds us that no matter how much we live in the most peaceful times in human history, we need to continue taking seriously of society and everyday life.
As a photographer, I felt that I needed to take subjects I capture and society more seriously while looking at the book, " A RED HAT." I hope you will be able to check the book sometime.
Thank you so much for reading, and see you soon.
FRAME TOKYO SHUNSUKE