Wing Shya “One Light, Different Reflections” presented by BMW at Kondaya Genbei Chikuin-no-Ma ©︎ Takeshi Asano – KYOTOGRAPHIE 2020

Exhibition designer Endo Architects chose to display Wing Shya’s “One Light, Different Reflections” photographs in a long line, a nod to Kondaya Genbei’s history as an obi purveyor. Shya’s scenes of gritty domestic life narrated cultures and generations in one continuous length of photos inside this well-preserved machiya.

Marjan Teeuwen “Photo Exhibition Destroyed House” “Architectural Installation Destroyed House Kyoto” at Itoyu Machiya ©︎ Takeshi Asano – KYOTOGRAPHIE 2020

Marjan Teeuwen’s destroyed house showcased the artist’s work to create both order and chaos. For this year’s exhibition, she and her team gutted a nagaya rowhouse, digging a large hole into the earth, and created a vantage point of the black hole from a ledge two floors up. The extracted building materials were piled neatly in the adjacent house, demonstrating her interest salvaging trash. Photos of past demolished buildings were exhibited next door in new construction.

Atsushi Fukushima “Bento is Ready” at Itoyu Machiya ©︎ Takeshi Asano – KYOTOGRAPHIE 2020

Atsushi Fukushima’s “Bento is Ready” offered viewers insight into the daily life of a bento delivery person serving the vulnerable and elderly Japanese population. The sometimes shocking conditions of today’s elderly (although, the artist states in a running diary on the wall that these are elderly are fortunate to receive hot meals delivered in person) tell us more about the will to live than the gloom of approaching death. 

Ryosuke Toyama “LEADING LIGHT” presented by Kiwakoto at Ryosokuin Temple (Kennin-ji Temple) ©︎ Takeshi Asano – KYOTOGRAPHIE 2020

Ryosokuin Temple (Kennin-ji Temple) houses a 10-year project by photographer Ryosuke Toyama. “LEADING LIGHT” consists of “SEED”, photographs of craftsmen taken by the then 28-year-old at the start of this artistic journey. After experimenting with photography, his craftsman father said he was now a photographer, so the artist looked for ways to make taking photos a craft, which led to the use of an ambrotype collision process, consisting of light exposures fixed to a glass plate. Using that technique, he photographed the same craftsman 10 years later, exploring themes of monozukuri (the art of making things from scratch).