MASATOSHI NAITO
TOKYO: VISION OF ITS OTHER SIDES
Published by Super Lab, 2016
Book size 21.6 x 28 cm
Pages 44 years with 25 Images (b/w)
Softcover (hand-sewn), double gatefold cover
Language Japanese and English
Limited edition of 1000
ISBN 978-4-905052-95-1
“It was from 1970 to 1985 when I intensively photographed Tokyo. Japan was radically changing as rapid economic growth was underway. Old houses and buildings were being destroyed and replaced by new ones including modern skyscrapers. Even today, Tokyo is still expanding.
I thought it would be quite interesting if I shot Tokyo using the technique of time-lapse photography. I fixed a full-automatic camera on the top of the Tokyo Tower, turning it to various directions such as Shinjuku and Ginza and releasing the shutter once every hour every day for ten years. Back then, filming cameras could shoot 24 frames a second. There are 24 hours in a day so I could shoot a one-second short movie with 24 frames every day. Therefore the movie would add up to 30 seconds in a month and about one hour in ten years. It would depict the rapid development of Tokyo in super-slow speed, revealing the real essence of Tokyo as an ever-moving huge life form like a protozoan–––I expected so.
The image of Tokyo as a “huge life form” did not come from literary imagination. It was based on what I felt physically during my walking around Tokyo in those days.
In Tokyo, there are layers of sediment from various times. Tokyo today. Tokyo in the time of the post-war black markets. Tokyo in the Edo period. A day of the people in Tokyo commonly begins with getting up in the morning and going to work. When the day's work is done, they go home after stopping by shopping streets or drinking bars.
Nowadays, I see crowds of people flooding all over the Tokyo city area from morning to night. The crowds are always there, from the first train to the last train of the Yamanote Line, the Chuo Line, subways and various private railways. However, when the last trains are gone, along with the businessmen and women, students, and the workers of restaurants and bars, Tokyo is deserted, and the “other face of Tokyo” emerges.
Somebody gathers food dumped by bars and restaurants. Another one picks up cardboard boxes and cans that may sell. There are people sleeping on the street. Some of them are drinking alcohol. Homeless people begin to act lively. Exactly, Tokyo as a “huge life form” reveals itself.”
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"It was from 1970 to 1985 that I photographed Tokyo intensively. Japan was changing radically as rapid economic growth was underway. Old houses and buildings were being torn down and replaced with new ones, including including modern skyscrapers. Even today, Tokyo is still expanding.
I thought it would be very interesting if I photographed Tokyo using the time-lapse photography technique. I fixed a fully automatic camera to the top of Tokyo Tower, turning it in different directions such as Shinjuku and Ginza, and releasing the shutter once an hour every day for ten years. At the time, film cameras could shoot 24 frames per second. There are 24 hours in a day so I could shoot a one-second short film with 24 frames per day. Therefore, the film would add up to 30 seconds in a month and about an hour in ten years. This would represent the rapid development of Tokyo at an ultra-slow speed, revealing the true essence of Tokyo as a huge life form always moving like a protozoan ––– I expected this.
The image of Tokyo as a “huge life form” was not born from literary imagination. It was based on what I physically felt while walking around Tokyo at the time.
In Tokyo, there are layers of sediment from various eras. Tokyo today. Tokyo during the post-war black market era. Tokyo during the Edo period. A day for people in Tokyo usually begins with getting up in the morning and going to work. After the workday is over, they return home after stopping at shopping streets or bars.
Nowadays, I see crowds of people flooding the city of Tokyo from morning to night. The crowds are always there, from the first train to the last train of the Yamanote Line, the Chuo Line, the subways and various private railways. However, when the last trains have left, along with the businessmen and women, the students and the workers of the restaurants and bars, Tokyo is deserted, and "the other face of Tokyo" emerges.
Someone is collecting food thrown away by bars and restaurants. Another is collecting cardboard boxes and cans that can be sold. There are people sleeping on the streets. Some of them are drinking alcohol. The homeless are starting to act dynamically. Exactly, Tokyo as a "huge form of life" is revealed.