On February 5, the winner of the 39th Kimura Ihei Award (sponsored by the Asahi Shimbun Company and the Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc.), the award given to exceptional new photographers in honor of photographer KIMURA Ihei’s achievements, was announced. The award was given to MORI Eiki for his photo book ‘intimacy’. (Japanese)
On February 13, the exhibition titled ‘Toward the Modernity: Images of Self & Other in East Asian Art Competitions’ opened at the Fukuoka Asian Art Museum (until March 18). The exhibition introduced art through government sponsored art competitions (kanten) that took place in Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Northeast China (former Manchuria) under the Japanese occupation. It revealed local trends where their own modernity was sought in connection with Japanese contemporary art. The exhibition travelled to the Fuchu Art Museum (May 14 – June 8) and the Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art (June 14 – July 21). (Japanese)
ISHIUCHI Miyako was announced as the winner of the Hasselblad Foundation International Award in Photography, hosted by the Hasselblad Foundation in Sweden, an international photography prize given to a photographer recognized for pioneering achievements. The award ceremony was held at the Embassy of Sweden in Tokyo on March 6. ISHIUCHI Miyako is the third Japanese winner, after HAYAMA Hiroshi in 1987 and SUGIMOTO Hiroshi in 2001. (Japanese)