In 1959, six young photographers (Kikuji Kawada, Akira Sato, Akira Tanno, Shoumei Toumatsu, Ikkou Narahara and Eikoh Hosoe) who had all shown work in the "Ten People's Eyes" exhibition formed the agency "Vivo". The word means "life" in Esperanto. The group's aim was economic profit and the improvement of their creative environment. All the photographers in the cooperative respected each other's expressions, originality and creativity above all.
Post-war Japanese photography was dominated by news photography, and in the 1950s the "Realism Photograph Movement" unfolded, headed by Domonkyo, Ihei Kimura and others. In the late 1950s photography with more personal character emerged after the "Ten People's Eyes" exhibition. The six Vivo photographers exhibited unique, shocking works - their new style caused a stir and was critically acclaimed. Vivo dissolved in 1961, but the cooperative still holds an important place in the progression of Japanese modern photography.
This exhibition comprises 48 black-and-white photographs from Kikuji Kawada's "Map", Akira Sato's “Cold Sunset" and "Cyclopian", Akira Tanno's "Circus" and "Artist", Shomei Toumatsu's "Nagasaki", Ikkou Narahara's "Kingdom 1,2", and Eikoh Hosoe's "Man and Woman" and "Ordeal by Roses" series, and others. The photographs are all from the Vivo era or another close period, and are from the museum's collection from the first "Vivo" Exhibition that was held in 1981.
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