Armed with his skills as a boarder and his observational eye as a photographer, photographer Ryo Endo has sublimated the active sport of snowboarding into a special work of art. His work, "inner focus," is a collection of photographs that is well worth a look.
And now, as a special exhibition by Fujifilm, Endo's photo exhibition, "Living in the Northern Limits Now," will be held at Fujifilm Square Gallery-X from September 14( Fri ) to September 27, ( Thu ).
Endo has been photographing snow-capped mountains and glaciers around the world, and this April 2018, he traveled to the Arctic region, which he says was one of his major goals , to shoot there.
Focusing on Greenland, where the effects of climate change and modernization are rapidly advancing, this work is the result of a month-and-a-half-long trip to Greenland, including camping in an iceberg town and the northernmost indigenous settlement in the world, to experience the local situation firsthand.
The exhibit will feature about 40 or so pieces that capture the present day appearance of the indigenous people who live primarily in northern Greenland.
The following is a quote from Mr. Endo's thoughts on this exhibition.
A land where most of the land is covered in ice, where the temperature is below -30 degrees Celsius and the sun does not rise for months. An environment where nature is far greater than civilization , and a small circle of people. People who live in wild furs and hunt on dogsleds. The Inuit living in northern Greenland consider the food they obtain from hunting to be "essentially human food," and they have lived while sharing their bounty. The northern end of the earth, which I never thought I would visit, and the purpose of photography with GFX in my hands, established my presence there and my experience of the unknown. Life and death. Taking life. A world where these things are in harmony at a level far removed from our current lives. Photographs show us the depth of this world. The words of the elders who watch over the earth. . The sight like an unknown star seen from a dog sled on a hunting trip. The feeling of walking on snow on sea ice. Gratitude for the bounty of the wild. The gentle chirping of birds and the warmth in the eyes of the people who live there. Our world and the ever-changing lives of its people as seen through the eyes of a small indigenous village. I can't help but feel that there is an important message to be found in these images of people living in the northernmost part of the world.
Color photographs show the tranquility, beauty, and harshness of nature in its various forms , and black-and-white photographs dramatically capture the lives and expressions of the indigenous people.
"No to environmental destruction!" but also to make the viewer think about what needs to be done to preserve the landscape beyond the artwork... This is one of the power of art!
Text_Shinri Kobayashi
Photo exhibition by Tsutomu Endo "Living in the Northern Limit Now" (Japanese only)
Dates: Sept. 14( Fri. ) - Sept. 27, 2018 ( Thu. )
Venue: Fujifilm Square Gallery-X
Open: 10:00-19:00 (admission until 18:50) , open daily during the exhibition period
Address: Fujifilm Square, 1F, Tokyo Midtown Headquarters, 9-7-3 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Phone: 03-6271-3782
Photo Exhibition Official Page
http://fujifilm-x.com/gallery_x/ja/detail/20180914.html
Photographer Tsutomu Endo
. Born in 1978 in Omachi City, Nagano Prefecture. . He is well versed in the snowboarding world and specializes in filming in the snowy mountains. As a player himself, he has been pioneering the Azumino scene since the 1990s, visiting snowy mountains and communities around the world, and filming the current trends in board culture for 20 years. He has also experienced the changes in climate and the earth through his past activities. Believing in the possibilities of photography, he has traveled the world in search of artistic expression, nature, and culture in harmony with the brightness and life of this dynamic planet. He is a member of the Arctic Club. He is the author of "inner focus" (Shogakukan), a collection of his works.
www.tsutomuendo.com
