Rinko Kawauchi HonFRPS (川内倫子, ''Kawauchi Rinko,'' born 1972) is a Japanese

photographer A photographer (the Greek language, Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who makes photographs. Duties and types of photographe ...

. Her work is characterized by a serene, poetic style, depicting the ordinary moments in life.

Life and work

Kawauchi became interested in photography while studying graphic design and photography at

Seian University of Art and Design is a private university in Otsu, Shiga, Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, whil ...

where she graduated in 1993.Florian Heine & Brad Finger. Rinko Kawauchi. ''50 Contemporary Photographers You Should Know''. Munich: Prestel 2016. She first worked in commercial photography for an advertising agency for several years before embarking on a career as a fine art photographer. She has mentioned that she continues to work the advertising job. Her background and experience with design have influenced the edits and arrangements of photos in her series. Kawauchi often thinks about new ways to see her photographs, allowing her to continue to find new meaning and significance in her work. There is little known about her personal life and family, but through her photo book ''Cui Cui'' she portrays the memories of her family, which she has said to have been shooting for over a decade. The photos in said book captures all the ordinaries and emotions of life, ranging from the happiness of childbirth to the heartbreak of death. At age 19, she began making prints of her first black-and-white photographs, and it wasn't until five years later that she started printing color photographs. After experimenting with different cameras, she decided to stay with the

Rolleiflex Rolleiflex is the name of a long-running and diverse line of high-end cameras originally made by the German company Franke & Heidecke, and later Rollei, Rollei-Werke. History The "Rolleiflex" name is most commonly used to refer to Rollei's pr ...

, which she still uses. In 2001, three of her photo books were published: ''Hanako'' (a Japanese girl's name), ''Utatane'' ("catnap"), and ''Hanabi'' ("fireworks"). In the following years she won prizes for two of the books in Japan.Boris Friedewald. ''Women Photographers: From Julia Margaret Cameron to Cindy Sherman''. Munich - London - New York 2014, S. 108, In 2004 Kawauchi published ''Aila''; in 2010, ''Murmuration'', and in 2011 ''Illuminance.'' Kawauchi's art is rooted in

Shinto Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shintois ...

, the

ethnic religion In religious studies, an ethnic religion is a religion or belief associated with a particular ethnic group. Ethnic religions are often distinguished from universal religions, such as Christianity or Islam, in which gaining converts is a pri ...

of the people of Japan. According to Shinto, all things on earth have a spirit, hence no subject is too small or mundane for Kawauchi's work; she also photographs "small events glimpsed in passing," conveying a sense of the transient. Kawauchi sees her images as parts of series that allow the viewer to juxtapose images in the imagination, thereby making the photograph a work of art and allowing a whole to emerge at the end; she likes working in photo books because they allow the viewer to engage intimately with her images. Her photographs are mostly in 6×6 format. However, upon being invited to the Brighton Photo Biennial in 2010, Kawauchi first photographed digitally and began taking photos that were not square. Kawauchi also composes

haiku is a type of short form poetry originally from Japan. Traditional Japanese haiku consist of three phrases that contain a ''kireji'', or "cutting word", 17 '' on'' (phonetic units similar to syllables) in a 5, 7, 5 pattern, and a ''kigo'', or se ...

poems. She lived for many years in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

and in 2018 moved to the countryside on the outskirts of the city.

Style

Since she began her photographic career, Kawauchi's photographs contained a unique aesthetic and mood, capturing intimate, poetic, and beautiful moments of the world around her. They often have brilliant and radiant light that give them a dream-like quality. The sublimity of her photographs are further enhanced by her use of soft colors as well as her awareness for the beauty in even the most average moments. There is not one specific theme or concept that Kawauchi chooses to explore with her image creation; rather, she does it spontaneously, observing and reacting to everything that is around her before doing and sort of editing. She focuses on just shooting, photographing everything that attracts her eyes before looking back and thinking about why she was interesting in those subjects. Another subject that she explored in her book, ''Ametsuchi'', was the practice of religious ceremonies and rituals that hinted at an earthly cycle involving the concepts of time and impermanence. In the book, she depicts Japan's

Mount Aso Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

, a sacred site for a Shinto ritual called yakihata, and its volcanic landscape. The ritual is a long-standing tradition dating back about 1,300 years in which farmland is burned yearly to maintain its sustainability for new crops as opposed to using chemicals, and the communities at Aso are among the few that continue this tradition. Ironically, witnessing essentially the rebirth of farmland take place, Kawauchi claims that she burned away her old self and was reborn herself. In her book ''Halo'', she continues to explore that theme with different rituals at other locations. She traveled to

Izumo Izumo (出雲) may refer to: Locations * Izumo Province, an old province of Japan * Izumo, Shimane, a city located in Shimane Prefecture ** Izumo Airport * Izumo-taisha, one of Japan's most ancient and important Shinto shrines Ships * ''Izumo ...

, Japan to witness a ritual that involves the lighting of sacred flames to welcome the gods. She also went to the

Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, an ...

province of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

to see new year celebrations, including a 500 year old tradition of throwing molten iron at the city walls to make their own fireworks.

Awards

* 2002

Kimura Ihei Award The is a Japanese photography award. The award has been given every year since 1975 (except 1983) by the Asahi Shimbun Company, publisher of ''Asahi Shimbun'' and the magazine ''Asahi Camera'', in honor of the photographer Ihei Kimura. It is give ...

* 2009 Infinity Award for Art from the

International Center of Photography The International Center of Photography (ICP), at 79 Essex Street on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, New York City, consists of a museum for photography and visual culture and a school offering an array of educational courses and programming. ...

* 2012 Honorary Fellowship of the

Royal Photographic Society The Royal Photographic Society of Great Britain, commonly known as the Royal Photographic Society (RPS), is one of the world's oldest photographic societies. It was founded in London, England, in 1853 as the Photographic Society of London with ...

* 2013 Minister of Education Award for New Artists * 2013 Domestic Photographer Award,

Higashikawa Prize The has been awarded to photographers by the "Phototown" of Higashikawa, Hokkaidō, Japan since 1985. The Overseas and Domestic Photographer prizes are of 500,000 yen and the New Photographer and Special prizes are of 300,000 yen. The work of t ...

, Higashikawa, Hokkaidō, Japan

Publications

* ''Hanako.'' 2001. *''Hanabi (, Fireworks).'' 2001. Tokyo: Little More, 2002. . * ''Utatane'' = siesta. Tokyo: Little More, 2001. . **Reprinted edition. Tokyo: Little More, 2020. *''blue''. 2003. . * ''AILA.'' 2005. . * ''the eyes, the ears.'' 2005. . * ''Cui Cui.'' 2005. . *''Rinko Diary''. 2006. . * ''Rinko Diary II.'' 2006. . *''Majun.'' 2007. . *''Semear.'' 2007. . * ''Murmuration.'' Brighton:

Photoworks Photoworks is a UK development agency dedicated to photography, based in Brighton, England and founded in 1995.

, 2010. . * ''One Day - 10 Photographers,'' Heidelberg/Berlin: Kehrer, 2010. , edited by Harvey Benge.The publisher's description of this set: *''SNOWFLAKE TWELFTH.'' 2011. * ''Illuminance.'' New York:

Aperture In optics, an aperture is a hole or an opening through which light travels. More specifically, the aperture and focal length of an optical system determine the cone angle of a bundle of rays that come to a focus in the image plane. An opt ...

, 2011. . *''Light and Shadow.'' 2012. * ''Approaching Whiteness.'' Tokyo: Goliga, 2012. *''Illuminance, Ametsuchi, Seeing Shadows.'' 2012. . *''SHEETS.'' 2013. . * ''Ametsuchi.'' New York: Aperture, 2013. . *''Kirakira.'' 2013. . *''Gift''. 2014. . * ''Light and Shadow''. Kanagawa, Japan : Super Labo, 2014 *''The river embraced me.'' 2016. . * ''Halo.'' New York: Aperture, 2017. . *''A New Day.'' 2018. . *''When I Was Seven.'' Hehe, 2019. . *''As It Is.'' Marseille, France: Chose Commune, 2020. . With text in English and French. *''Des Oiseaux''. Paris:

Éditions Xavier Barral Éditions Xavier Barral is a French book publisher specialising in photography, architecture, contemporary art and science. It was founded in 2002 by Xavier Barral and based in Paris. Martin Parr has said of Éditions Xavier Barral that "Every boo ...

, 2021. .

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

*1998: ''Utatane'', Guardian Garden, Tokyo. *2006: ''Rinko Kawauchi,''

The Photographers' Gallery The Photographers' Gallery was founded in London by Sue Davies opening on 14 January 1971, as the first public gallery in the United Kingdom devoted solely to photography. It is also home to the Deutsche Börse Photography Prize, established in ...

, London. *2007: ''Semear,'' Museu de Arte Moderna de São Paulo, São Paulo. *2010:

Brighton Museum & Art Gallery Brighton Museum & Art Gallery is a municipally-owned public museum and art gallery in the city of Brighton and Hove in the South East of England. It is part of the "Royal Pavilion & Museums, Brighton and Hove". It is free for local residents ...

, during

Brighton Photo Biennial Brighton Photo Biennial (BPB), now known as Photoworks Festival, is a month-long festival of photography in Brighton, England, produced by Photoworks. The festival began in 2003 and is often held in October. It plays host to curated exhibitions a ...

, ''New Documents,'' curated by

Martin Parr Martin Parr (born 23 May 1952) is a British documentary photographer, photojournalist and photobook collector. He is known for his photographic projects that take an intimate, satirical and anthropological look at aspects of modern life, in p ...

, Brighton, UK. *2011: ''Illuminance,'' Foil Gallery, Tokyo. *2012: ''Light and Shadow'', Traumaris Photography Space, Tokyo. *2012: ''Illuminance, Ametsuchi, Seeing Shadow'',

Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography The is an art museum concentrating on photography. As the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography, it was founded by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, and is in Meguro-ku, a short walk from Ebisu station in southwest Tokyo. The museum also ...

, Tokyo. *2013: ''Illuminance,'' Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich. *2013: ''Ametsuchi,'' Aperture Gallery, New York. *2014: ''Ametsuchi,'' Galerie Priska Pasquer, Cologne. *2014: ''New Pictures 9: Rinko Kawauchi,''

Minneapolis Institute of Arts The Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) is an arts museum located in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. Home to more than 90,000 works of art representing 5,000 years of world history, Mia is one of the largest art museums in the United State ...

, Minneapolis. *2014: ''Ametsuchi'', Main Gallery,

Lesley University College of Art and Design Lesley University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education. As of 2018-19 Lesley University enrolled 6,593 students (2,707 undergraduate and 3,886 graduate). History ...

.　 *2014: ''Light and Shadow'', Colissimo, Hyogo. *2015: ''Illuminance,''

KunstHausWien The KunstHausWien is a museum in Vienna, designed by the artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser. This museum in the Landstraße district houses the world's only permanent exhibition of Hundertwasser's works, and also hosts regular temporary exhibit ...

, Vienna, 20 March – 5 July 2015. *2017: ''Halo,'' Christophe Guye Galerie, Zurich.

Group exhibitions

*2005: ''Autumn 2005'',

Huis Marseille, Museum for Photography Huis Marseille, Museum for Photography is the oldest photography museum in Amsterdam, opened in 1999. Huis Marseille was the first photography museum in the Netherlands when it opened in 1999; the Nederlands Fotomuseum in Rotterdam, the Fotomuseu ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, 10 September – 4 December 2005 *2008: ''Creatures from the Collection and Other Themes'', Huis Marseille, Museum for Photography, Netherlands, 31 May – 31 August 2008 *2010: ''Summer Loves'', Huis Marselle, Museum for Photography, Netherlands, 5 June – 29 August 2010 *2011: ''Bye Bye Kitty!!! Between Heaven and Hell in Contemporary Japanese Art,'' curated by David Elliott, Japan Society, New York. With Kawauchi and

Makoto Aida is a Japanese contemporary artist known for his provocative works of manga, painting, video, photography, sculpture, and installation. Though less well known internationally than Takashi Murakami or Yoshitomo Nara, he is recognized in Japan as ...

(会田誠), Manabu Ikeda (池田学),

Tomoko Kashiki is a Japanese artist based in Kyoto, Japan. She is known for her paintings, which often portray dreamlike scenes of lone female figures. Early life and education Kashiki was born in Kyoto City, Japan. In 2006, she earned a Bachelor of Fine ...

(樫木知子), Haruka Kojin (荒神明香), Kumi Machida (町田久美),

Yoshitomo Nara is a Japanese artist. He lives and works in Nasushiobara, Tochigi Prefecture, though his artwork has been exhibited worldwide. Nara has had nearly 40 solo exhibitions since 1984. His art work has been housed at the MoMA and the Los Angeles Coun ...

(奈良美智), Kohei Nawa (名和晃平), Motohiko Odani (小谷元彦), Hiraki Sawa (さわひらき),

Chiharu Shiota (born 1972) is a Japanese performance and installation artist. Educated in Japan, Australia, and Germany, Shiota interweaves materiality and the psychic perception of the space to explore ideas around the body and flesh, personal narratives t ...

(塩田千春), Tomoko Shioyasu (塩保朋子), Hisashi Tenmyouya (天明屋尚), Yamaguchi Akira (山口晃),

Miwa Yanagi is a Japanese photographic artist who examines self-image and stereotypes of women in contemporary Japanese society. Yanagi was discovered by conceptual photographer Yasumasa Morimura, who noticed some of her work while borrowing her house as a s ...

(やなぎみわ) and Tomoko Yoneda (米田知子). *2015: ''In the Wake: Japanese Photographers Respond to 3/11,''

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 paintings and more than 450,000 works ...

, MA, 5 April – 12 July 2015. *2018: ''A Beautiful Moment,'' Huis Marseille, Museum for Photography, Netherlands, 9 June – 2 September 2018.

Collections

Kawauchi's work is held in the following collections: *

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) is a modern and contemporary art museum located in San Francisco, California. A nonprofit organization, SFMOMA holds an internationally recognized collection of modern and contemporary art, and was ...

, San Francisco: 7 works. *

, Amsterdam *

, Tokyo

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kawauchi Rinko 1972 births Living people Japanese photographers Japanese women photographers Fine art photographers Fellows of the Royal Photographic Society