Sat, Jul 27, 2024

Masterworks of Askaen photo studio to be featured at Hanzomon Museum in Tokyo

The Hanzomon Museum in Tokyo will run an exhibition this fall (2024) to showcase the photographic masterpieces of Askaen — a photo studio situated in the ancient capital of Nara specializing in shooting Buddhist statues and other cultural assets — which, in 2022, celebrated the 100th anniversary of its founding.

The studio, founded by photographer Seiyo Ogawa (1894-1960) in 1922, was commissioned by a government bureau in 1950 to document cultural properties by photos for use in the process of designating Japan’s important cultural properties and national treasures, and has since been involved in efforts to preserve cultural properties by shooting photos.

OGAWA SEIYO AND ASKAEN, A CENTENNIAL JOURNEY
Sep 11 (Wed) – Nov 24 (Sun), 2024
Hanzomon Museum
(Hanzomon, Tokyo)
*See outline below for details

“OGAWA SEIYO AND ASKAEN, A CENTENNIAL JOURNEY,” the exhibition set to open on Sept. 11, 2024, and run through Nov. 24, 2024, will trace the 100-year history of the studio by displaying photos taken by Ogawa and his son and successor Kozo (1928-2016), who are said to have elevated Buddhist statue photography to a form of art.

Among the photos to be displaed are those of some of the most well-known Buddhist statues of temples in Nara, such as the “Fukukensaku Kannon Bosatsu” of Todai-ji, the “Kannon Bosatsu (Kudara Kannon)” of Horyu-ji and the “Bosatsu Seated with One Leg Pendent” of Chugu-ji.