30 Gazes That Rewrite Japanese Photographic History: Interview with Curator Mari Takeuchi for “The Miracle of the Gaze: The Adventure of Japanese Women Photographers” (Hikarie Hall)
The internationally touring exhibition “The Miracle of the Gaze,” originating from the 2024 Arles Photography Festival, arrives in Tokyo at Hikarie Hall from July 4 to August 26, featuring 30 Japanese women photographers from the 1950s to today.Summary
The exhibition “The Miracle of the Gaze: The Adventure of Japanese Women Photographers,” held at Hikarie Hall (Shibuya, Tokyo) from July 4 to August 26, 2024, is the Japanese iteration of a major international project launched with the 2024 Arles International Photography Festival. Based on the bilingual (English/French) book *I’m So Happy You Are Here: Japanese Women Photographers from the 1950s to Now* (Aperture, 2024), the exhibition challenges the historical male bias in the global understanding of “Japanese photography.” Curator Mari Takeuchi—critic, writer, curator, and professor at Kyoto University of the Arts—explains that the project emerged from shared long-term interests among herself and co-editors Poline Vermeersch (Brooklyn Museum) and Leslie A. Martin (Printed Matter), both long-time experts on Japanese photography. Having drawn over 140,000 visitors during its European tour (Arles, The Hague, Frankfurt), the Tokyo version expands the original 26 artists to 30, including new additions: Hisae Imai, Ai Iwane, Ya Fujii, and Chieko Yoneda. Spanning approximately 1,600 m², the show presents around 200 works—including photography, installation, collage, and video—organized into four thematic sections not as rigid categories but as interpretive entry points: “Adventures Around ‘Photography’,” “Adventures Around ‘Record and Memory,’” “Adventures Around ‘Woman,’” and “Adventures Around ‘Everyday Life.’” Featured artists range from pioneers like Eiko Yamazawa and Toshiko Okanoue to internationally acclaimed figures such as Miyako Ishikawa, Motoyuki Watari, Rinko Kawauchi, Lieko Shiga, Miwa Yanagi, Mari Katayama, Tomoko Sawada, Arinori Nagashima, and Momo Okabe. Takeuchi emphasizes that the exhibition invites viewers to engage directly with each artist’s unique gaze and voice, transcending the reductive label of “women photographers” to experience a polyphonic resonance of individuality, creativity, and resilience—ultimately fostering a sense of recognition, connection, and liberation.
(Source：Tokyo Art Beat)