The Last Adventurer (Signed)

This is a non-fiction account by photographer Naoki Ishikawa, chronicling his four and a half years with adventurer Michio Kanda, who persistently challenged himself to cross the Pacific Ocean in a hot air balloon.

Michio Kanda, while working as an employee of Kawajima Town in Saitama Prefecture, repeatedly undertook long-distance hot air balloon flights and mountain crossings. Ishikawa accompanied Kanda on his trans-Pacific flight in 2004, learning ballooning techniques and embarking on a journey where their lives were intertwined.

Hot air balloons ascend by burning LP gas and navigate by reading the wind and air currents. The direction of travel cannot be freely chosen, and an emergency landing over the ocean or in the mountains directly threatens life, making it a delicate and harsh adventure. This book meticulously describes everything from equipment preparation, meteorological judgment, and the tension during flight, to failures and renewed challenges.

In 2008, Kanda attempted his second trans-Pacific crossing and disappeared over the North Pacific Ocean. Ishikawa, as a disciple who learned ballooning techniques from scratch, and as a young friend with whom he shared life-or-death experiences, records Kanda's character and the trajectory of his adventures with a restrained writing style.

This book not only recounts the success or failure of the adventure but also conveys the process by which two people of different generations built a relationship, respecting and needing each other. It is the winner of the 6th Kaiko Takeshi Non-Fiction Award.

[Title] The Last Adventurer
[Publisher] Shueisha
[Publication Date] November 21, 2008
[Page Count] 199 pages
[Dimensions] Approx. 138 x 194 x 17 mm / 335g
[Format] Hardcover
[Language] Japanese
[Title Reading] SAIGO NO BOKENKA
[Author/Editor] Ishikawa Naoki / Author
[Printing/Binding] Tosho Printing / Printing, Kato Seihon / Binding
[ISBN] 9784087814101
[Condition] Used, signed [6] Good to Very Good
[Accessories] -
[Featured In] -
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[Awards] 6th Kaiko Takeshi Non-Fiction Award

Naoki Ishikawa (1977–)

Born in Tokyo in 1977. Photographer, adventurer, writer.

Graduated from Waseda University's Second Faculty of Letters in 2002. Completed his doctoral program in Fine Arts at Tokyo University of the Arts in 2008. Interested in fields such as anthropology and ethnology, he travels through various places from remote areas to cities, photographing and documenting land, movement, nature, and human activities.

In 2008, he received the Photographic Society of Japan Newcomer's Award and the Kodansha Publishing Culture Award for "NEW DIMENSION" and "POLAR." In the same year, he won the 6th Kaiko Takeshi Non-Fiction Award for "The Last Adventurer," which chronicled his four and a half years with hot air balloon adventurer Michio Kanda. In 2011, he received the 30th Domon Ken Award for "CORONA." In 2020, he received the Photographic Society of Japan Artist Award for "EVEREST" and "Marebito." In 2023, he received the Higashikawa Award Special Artist Award.

His main photobooks include "NEW DIMENSION," "POLAR," "ARCHIPELAGO," "CORONA," "Kunisaki Peninsula," "K2," "EVEREST," "Marebito," and "MOMENTUM." His written works include "The Last Adventurer" and "Chijo ni Seiza o Tsukuru."

His works are housed in the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, Yokohama Museum of Art, Okinawa Prefectural Museum & Art Museum, Niigata City Art Museum, Shizuoka Prefectural Museum of Art, Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, Domon Ken Memorial Museum, and others.

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