I had circled the KYOTOGRAPHIE KG+ Photographer Group WOMB’s 10th Anniversary exhibition as one not to miss. I was attracted to WOMB’s mission, which seemed to offer a feminine gaze yet take a metaphorical and expansive rather than body-centered view of a womb’s function. A small collective of Japanese female photographers who have been publishing WOMB photography magazine since September 2013, WOMB says they named their group and magazine to evoke “things that no one knows yet, a place where things are born (and grow).” Fortunately, I was able to meet two of the photographers, and among my many experiences at KYOTOGRAPHIE, this exhibition proved to be a highlight. Honestly, it was inspiring and rewarding beyond all expectations.
Asuca Hayashi 林明日香 — Song of the Earth, Tokyo (May 5, 2024)
On a sunny 5th of May — Children’s Day in Japan — I made my way to what seemed like an unlikely venue, Mifa Football Cafe, for a matinee child/family-friendly concert by the J-Pop singer Asuca Hayashi 林明日香. Mifa is located in Toyosu, which is one of a series of...
The Sound of Freedom: Pianist Hitomi Nishiyama at SUB (Osaka, 4/18/24)
After immersing myself in KYOTOGRAPHIE for several days (I’ll have much more to say about it soon!), I took the train to Osaka. Thanks to Japan’s wonderful high-speed trains, it’s actually a quicker commute than it is from the East Village or Brooklyn to the Upper...
KYOTOGRAPHIE KG+ Select: Masahiro Usami’s (宇佐美雅浩) Community Manda-las (April 17, 2024)
On my second day in Kyoto for the KYOTOGRAPHIE Kyoto International Photography Festival, I detoured from the main exhibitions to check out Masahiro Usami (宇佐美雅浩)’s exhibition Manda-la in the KG+ Select show at the Horikawa Oike Gallery. By the time I’d left, I felt I...
Valentina Benigni — Dancing Vulnerability (Off Arles Festival 2024)
One of the exhibitions I most enjoyed visiting during my all-too-brief stay in beautiful Arles, France to take in the Les Rencontres D’Arles de la Photographie was not in the festival at all. Instead, Valentina Benigni’s solo exhibition “Dancing Vulnerability” was a...