Akihiko Okamura (1929-1985) first made his debut as a photo journalist with a 9 page spread in Life magazine covering the Vietnam war and was soon hailed as the successor to Capa. In 1965 as a result of following the activities of the South Vietnam freedom fighters he was punished with a 5 year ban from Vietnam and following this took his focus to theDominican Republic and pacific islands of Hawai, Tahiti and New Zealand. In 1968 he moved to Ireland with his family, and here he not only followed the Northern Ireland conflicts but also traced the Irish roots of J.F. Kennedy, who took the decision to send special troops into Vietnam. He went on in 1969 to become the first Japanese journalist to cover the Biafra war and after his 5 year ban had ended he soon returned to Vietnam in 1971 to document the governments failed attempt to annex Laos. In his later years he took up a concern a concern with bio ethics and the issues of care for the terminally ill. This exhibition provides a vigorous overview of Okamura’s inspiring career with collections of previously unseen photos, negatives and new prints revealing his enduring mission to question with cutting force the very conditions of our age.
[Related Event]
Symposium
Date: September 6(Sat) 18:00-20:00
Moderator: Eikoh Ikui (Rikkyo University Professor)
Panelist: Arata Dodo(photographer), Mika Kobayashi(Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo), Akiko Toda (Musashino Art University Assistant Professor)
Venue: 1F Hall
Capacity: 190 participants
*For details on reservations please refer to the official website.
Open on a public holiday Monday but closed on the following day. Closed during the New Years holidays.
Fee
Adults ¥600, Students ¥500, High School and Junior High School Students/Over 65s ¥400, Elementary School Students and under free, Redistered Disabled + 1 assistant free.
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