Shashin

After photography was introduced in Japan in 1848, the medium quickly became popular with both natives and foreigners. The Japanese referred to photography as Shashin, meaning reproduction of reality.

From 1870 onwards the number of photo studios increased significantly and the production of photographic albums became a small industry. Images of famous views and important religious sites were popular, as were images depicting people in domestic settings. An attractive feature of early Japanese photography is that most photographs of this period were hand-coloured by skilled artisans using soft water-soluble pigments.

Some of the photographs are by known photographers such as Kusakabe Kimbei. His image Fujiyama from Kanbara, circa 1890, will be on show.

All photographs are presented framed and mounted on acid free paper.

Contact: - hidde@benjanssens.com