KEIICHI TAHARA

Thanks to a photographer grandfather, Keiichi Tahara acquired a real technical mastery very early on, which quickly earned him the title of "The Master of Light" for his photographic work as well as for his installations, sculptures and architectural projects.

Born in 1951 in Kyoto, Keiichi Tahara left for France in 1972, where he was struck by the light, which he said was "very brutal and piercing" and very different from that of Japan. Upon his arrival, he captured this very special light in his series "Window" (1973-1981) which sublimates Paris through the dust, rain and vapors accumulated on the windows. These landscapes, so banal for Parisians, are re-revealed through the photographer's very particular aesthetic.

Keiichi Tahara is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Grand Prix Jeunes photographes in Arles in 1977 (for the series Fenêtre ), the Kimura Ihei Prize in 1985, the Prix Nicéphore Niepce in 1988, the Grand Prix de la Ville de Paris in 1995, etc.) and died in 2017. He was exhibited at the MEP, among other things, as part of the retrospective Keiichi Tahara, Sculpteur de Lumière in 2014.

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Thanks to a photographer grandfather, Keiichi Tahara acquired true technical mastery very early on, which quickly earned him the name "The Master of Light" as much for his photographic work as for his installations, sculptures and architectural projects.

Born in 1951 in Kyoto, Keiichi Tahara moved to France in 1972, where he was struck by the luminosity, according to him “very brutal and piercing” and very different from Japan's light. Upon his arrival, he captured this very special light in his series “Window” (1973-1981) which sublimates Paris through the dust, rain and vapors accumulated on the windows. These landscapes, so banal for Parisians, are re-revealed through the very particular aesthetic of the photographer.

Keiichi Tahara is the winner of numerous prizes, including the Grand Prix Jeunes photographes in Arles in 1977 (for the Window series), the Kimura Ihei prize in 1985, the Nicéphore Niepce Prize in 1988, the Grand Prix de la Ville de Paris in 1995 … ) and died in 2017. He was, among other things, exhibited at the MEP as part of the retrospective Keiichi Tahara, Sculptor of Light in 2014.