Rinko Kawauchi

Rinko Kawauchi is exploring in her work the poetry of the commonplace. What makes her work special to me, is how she is sequencing and editing her pictures in the books. Most of the time you look at the pictures side by side, so there seems to be some kind of visual or underlying association between the two photos on the facing pages, which can create a total different layer. It’s fun to look for the connections between the pictures, but it can be sometimes near impossible to understand them.

You can see the entire page with all posts of Rinko Kawauchi’s work here on Lost in Publications.

"Unlike many of her European counterparts, Kawauchi has not given up on the search for the sublime amid the banal. Some of her images, particularly her still lifes, might initially appear to approach the deadpan detachment that characterises so much contemporary art-photography, but on closer inspection there is always some glimmer of hope and humanity, some sense of wonder at work in the rendering of the intimate and fragile."

“Aila” meaning “family” in turkish, uses photography to thematically illustrate notions of birth, life, death, and time.  She captures the limitless diversity of nature while emphasizing the limited time all creatures have on earth. Animals, plants and humans are all depicted at various stages of transition from birth to death

“From the black ocean comes the appearance of light and waves. It helps you imagine birth. I want imagination in the photographs I take. It’s like a prologue. You wonder, ‘What’s going on?’ You feel something is going to happen.”

A detailed book review can be found on DLK Collection.

Untitled, from the series “Aila” © Rinko Kawauchi

Untitled, from the series “Aila” © Rinko Kawauchi

Untitled, from the series “Aila” © Rinko Kawauchi

"I prefer listening to the small voices in our world, those which whisper. I have a feeling I am always being saved by these whispers, my eyes naturally focus on small things. Even when I walk around Shibuya, I find myself running towards a little batch of flowers…"

“the eyes, the ears” consists photographs taken from usual everyday life in combination with whispery words.

“surely

they are all meant

to be here

perfectly in balance.

and soon

they will be broken.”

“I wanna see. I wanna see.

I wanna see. I wanna see.

I wanna see. 

I wanna see. 

I wanna see. I can’t see.

I wanna see.

I wanna see.”

“I was waiting too eagerly

to feel the wind

was blowing.

the summer was too short.”

“Murmuration” was commissioned by Photoworks for the Brighton Photo Biennial 2010: New Documents 2010, curated by Martin Parr. 

During the winter months at dusk, the birds gather in tens of thousands, wheeling around to create a mesmerizing cloud called a murmuration. In addition to documenting the literal patterns of the starlings along the coast, which is the first part of the book, Rinko Kawauchi was using murmuration as her guiding inspiration. In the second part she also captured the metaphorical motion of flocking during explorations of Brighton’s urban environment. 

Rinko Kawauchi in conversation with Martin Parr about her Photoworks commission, “Murmuration”.

“Illuminance” is Rinko Kawauchi’s first book published outside Japan and contains unpublished photographs of the last 15 years of her commissioned and personal work. It shows poetic moments between melancholy and death, light and infinity. Her images are not intended as individual photographs. Almost without exception they show juxtapositions, which create associations. A precious diamond on one side, and a trivial water drop on the other. Without being mundane, she creates a photographic Haiku. The book opens and closes with two images made during a total eclipse of the sun. 

“In Illuminance I found what beauty and richness is. Usually, I shoot without thinking (I mean not too much thinking), and after shooting I find something.”  You can find the whole interview about her new book on DALPINE.

Untitled, from the series “Illuminance” © Rinko Kawauchi

Untitled, from the series “Illuminance” © Rinko Kawauchi

Untitled, from the series “Illuminance” © Rinko Kawauchi

Untitled, from the series “Illuminance” © Rinko Kawauchi

Also don’t miss the book review by Nicholas Chiarella on photo-eye.

In October 2001 Rinko Kawauchi published 3 photo books simultaneously. In spring 2002, she won the prestigious “Kimura Ihei Award” for two of her books and received as well the Newcomer’s Award for 2002 by the Photographic Society of Japan.

“Utatane”, which means “nap”, is the first Volume of the trilogy and shows snapshots of everyday things. Especially striking in this book are the connections and juxtapositions of images (watch the video below to get a better impression).

Untitled, from the series “Utatane” © Rinko Kawauchi

Untitled, from the series “Utatane” © Rinko Kawauchi

Untitled, from the series “Utatane” © Rinko Kawauchi

“Hanabi” means “fireworks”, which is the second Volume of the photo book trilogy. Fireworks is closely associated with summer in Japan. In July and August, fireworks displays are held all over the country. The fireworks is a very social time in the Japanese summer,

(pictures from 748photobook.blogspot.com)

“Hanako” (a girl’s name), is the last Volume of the trilogy. The book documents the life of Hanako.

“Cui Cui” provides an intimate insight into Rinko Kawauchi’s own family. This series of over 50 images were taken from 1992 to 2005. It speaks about life and death, about aging, intimacy, family and time, which everyone of us has to experience. Her subjects vary from her family members to her surrounding objects. “Cui Cui” is like a precious family album, which celebrates life, memory and family.

A century has passed since the first Japanese immigrants arrived to Brazil, who left from the port city of Kobe. “Semear” was produced over a two year period, to document the Japanese “Nikkei” community in Brazil, as well as the natural scenery and sometimes nostalgic, an uniquely Brazilian sense of energy. 

“What I wanted to see might be be the immense power of Brazil, a country able to absorb everything like the so-cold Devil’s Throat, which swallows Iguacu Falls’ main flume in a deafening roar.” - Rinko Kawauchi