With a Special Contribution from Yoshihiro Tatsuki

I often tend to the gallery.
It's partly due to a lack of staff, but also to engage with the people who visit the gallery.
Many people visit the gallery to see the photographs.
There are local residents, people with children, those who happen to pass by, tourists, students, people interested in photography and those who aren't, people from the photography world, and even those who glance at the photos through the shop window while on their bicycles or in their cars, or peek in while eating a sandwich.
Truly, a diverse range of people engage with photography in various ways.
When the opportunity arises, I sometimes have conversations with them, but other times I simply observe them.
These are everyday occurrences for me. (Hidemi Iizuka)

I have traveled extensively and taken photographs for a long time. I am a traveler who stays in places and has never earned money in those countries. I believe one cannot truly understand the sentiment of a place without working and earning there, yet there are things one can see while passing through.

The more fresh discoveries I make by looking aside on the way to my destination, the happier I am. Whether there's a theme or not, the question is whether my intuition responds to what's in front of me. It's troublesome because judgment can follow intuition and make the photograph dull.

I believe I have aimed my lens at all things in nature, but in the end, it seems 'people only see what they want to see.' What should be all things in nature often appears as just ordinary scenery. On the other hand, there are sights that one wouldn't encounter in normal daily life. For an outsider traveler, things that seem abnormal begin to appear as commonplace in the local context. I have tried to juxtapose these, transcending time and space, or to arrange them side by side. In doing so, I hope to evoke unexpected alienation effects, assimilation effects, or inspiration.

Of course, I embed my own intentions and thoughts in 'pairing these or combining them,' but I would be delighted if something beyond my own intent is added. However, I myself tend to focus on my own interests. Needless to say, viewers are free to form any impression they wish of these photographs. In the past, color photographs could be converted into monochrome images suitable for viewing through electronic technology. Many of the photographs displayed here also utilize the results of this technological innovation. Experiencing this has led me to discover new enjoyment.
It is indeed worthwhile to live a long life.

Track Artwork Factory × Yoshihiro Tatsuki

In French, 'as usual' is expressed as 'comme d’habitude'.
'Habitude' means habit or custom, referring to things one always does or sees in daily life, which become accustomed and habitual.
The scenery I see while tending the gallery is an everyday occurrence, in other words, 'comme d’habitude.' However, while it is a usual event for me, it can be an interesting, unusual, or even strange event for others.
I began to hold these thoughts after encountering the photographs in Yoshihiro Tatsuki's solo exhibition 'Ordinary Scenery,' currently being held at Track Artwork Factory.



This is the second time we have hosted a solo exhibition by Mr. Tatsuki; the first was in March last year, a photography exhibition titled 'Akira Kurosawa Director Portraits.'
He is a photographer known to every Japanese person, but there are not many opportunities to encounter his work in France.
Having few opportunities to encounter his work means that few people in France know the name Yoshihiro Tatsuki, and thus, Yoshihiro Tatsuki might not be 'comme d’habitude' in France. However, fundamentally, everyone's 'comme d’habitude' is different, so I feel it's not possible to say that definitively.

It was during such a time that the photographer Yoshihiro Tatsuki had an opportunity to visit my gallery, Track Artwork Factory, and I tentatively proposed a solo exhibition.
The response was immediate.

'Let's do the photographs of Director Akira Kurosawa,' he said.

With that, the works were sent.
This was not an everyday occurrence for me.


From this, we came to host the 'Akira Kurosawa Director Portraits' exhibition, and subsequently, this 'Ordinary Scenery' exhibition.
Rather than me explaining the exhibition or the content of the photographs here, I hope that you will visit the gallery, experience the works as if you were there, and fully appreciate the 'ordinary scenery' as envisioned by Yoshihiro Tatsuki.

Exhibition: 'Ordinary Scenery' by Yoshihiro Tatsuki
Canon Gallery Umeda: November 22 - November 28

'Long Day / White Nights' by Yoshihiro Tatsuki
Canon Gallery Umeda: November 29 - December 5
http://cweb.canon.jp/gallery/ginza/index.html


Track Artwork Factory is available for purchase through the web shopping magazine 'Rumors.'