$47.90
- Softcover
- 249 × 364 mm
- 170 pages
- ISBN 978-4-903545-83-7
- Oct 2012
By recognizing the uncertain world, I find the existence of "I".
By finding the uncertain existence of "I", I recognize the world again.
In order to recognize something hard to do, I take photographs.
——July24, 2012 OKADA Atsushi
"The World" could be viewed in a number of different ways. On the one hand, it's a response to the events of the disasters that rocked Japan in 2011, while at the same time it functions as a kind of personal diary of the photographer. Perhaps it's best understood in terms of other photographic production happening in contemporary Japan, which values a highly personal expression over a clarity of concept: in a very lyrical, abstract way, Okada is attempting to express the unexpressable. There's a focus on nature throughout the book, as well as photographs of areas affected by the tsunami of 2011, and it seems fair to say that in the wake of the Great Tohoku Earthquake, Okada is questioning the relationship between humans and nature. These photographs of natural phenomena are interspersed with studio images of women in various states of undress, but it's difficult to say that they are meant to represent unconditional "beauty." Okada is not trying to present a simple statement about "The World." Instead, he recognizes the difficulties in his subject, and has incorporated them into his own work.
