Post-TSUNAMI The meaning of "Ikiru", what is it to survive?
The Japan Professional Photographers Society (JPS) will present an exhibition of photographs taken during the first year after the earthquake and tsunami that struck northeast Japan on March 11, 2011 at Photokina 2012 in Cologne, Germany (September 18-23). The thema is "Ikiru" (in Japanese, "We Survive!"). This exhibition and the published photo collection "Ikiru" on which it is based are an effort on behalf of JPS members to contribute to the recovery of the region affected by the earthquake and tsunami.
The photographs included in both reveal through these photographers's eyes how people in the region are transcending their anguish and getting on with their lives. The exhibition was shown first in Tokyo in March 2012, one year after the earthquake and tsunami. From the end of March through April, it was shown in Sendai, a city severely affected by these events. The visitors who flocked to see the exhibition in both cities were deeply moved by what they saw. Five hundred copies of the photo collection "Ikiru" were contributed to public libraries throughout the afflicted region. The exhibition at Photokina will be the first showing outside Japan. This exhibition conveys the heartfelt gratitude that we in Japan feel for the outpouring of support, assistance and encouragement we received from all over the world following the earthquake and tsunami. It is our hope that people from all over the world will take the opportunity to see these photographs at Photokina, the world of photography's greatest biennial celebration.
