Akita: Nikon Salon Books 4

This photobook compiles "Akita," one of Ihei Kimura's representative post-war works.
It was published as Volume 4 of Nikon Salon Books.

In 1952, Ihei Kimura was deeply drawn to the farming villages around Omagari in Akita Prefecture, which he visited for a photo judging. He subsequently made many return trips to continue his photography. This book features the daily lives of people in snow-covered villages, women and children awaiting men who had left for seasonal work, and scenes of festivals and community activities.

Known as a representative series of post-war Japanese photography, "Akita" is more than just a record of farming villages. It portrays the lives and dignity of people rooted in their land, and Ihei Kimura himself stated, "I became a human through photographing Akita." The intimacy and natural expressions captured reflect Kimura's profound gaze toward humanity, which he pursued throughout his life.

This book is meticulously laid out by Yusaku Kamekura. The end of the book also includes a roundtable discussion with individuals such as Jun Miki, a chronology, and photo explanations.

[Title] Akita (Nikon Salon Books 4)
[Publisher] Nikkor Club
[Publication Date] 1978
[Page Count] 136 pages
[Size] Approximately 300*210*10mm / 679g
[Format] Softcover
[Language] Japanese
[Title Reading] AKITA
[Author/Editor, etc.] Ihei Kimura/Photography, Jun Miki/Editorial Cooperation, Nobuo Ina/Contribution, Yusaku Kamekura/Layout
[Printing] Toppan Printing/Printing & Binding
[ISBN] -
[Condition] Used [3] Fair (Cover: minor damage top/bottom, scuffs; Body: slight age-related tanning on edges)
[Accessories] -
[Featured In] -
[Related Exhibitions] -

Ihei Kimura (1901-1974)

Born in Taito Ward, Tokyo. Photographer.

Began his career as a photographer in the 1920s. Active in a wide range of fields including photojournalism, street photography, and portraiture, he left a significant mark on the development of Japanese photography.

In 1933, he joined Nippon Kobo with Yonosuke Natori and others, promoting photojournalism. After the war, he gained high acclaim for his lively snapshots and portraits taken with a Leica. In the 1950s, he produced his masterpiece "Akita," which captured farming villages in Akita, and in his later years, he published a series of works photographed in Paris.

Representative works include "Akita," "Paris," "Journey to China," and "Photographs for Leica by Leica."

His major awards include the Photographic Society of Japan's Distinguished Service Award (posthumous), and the Ihei Kimura Award for Photography was established in his honor.

His main collections are housed at the Tokyo Photographic Art Museum, the National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, the Yokohama Museum of Art, and the Japan Camera Museum, among others.

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