Nikkei, Financial Times and Peter Fetterman Gallery are proud to present an exhibition tour by renowned photographer, Michael Kenna, during 2024. The exhibition, titled ‘Japan / A Love story’ - featuring highlights from Kenna’s work in Japan over almost four decades - will visit Tokyo, Los Angeles and London from April through October.
This exceptional collection of one hundred original silver gelatin prints, hand-crafted by Kenna, has been curated by Peter Fetterman. The exhibition will be complemented by publication of a book of the same name by Nazraeli Press, designed by Japan’s Hideyuki Taguchi.
Michael Kenna has been photographing landscapes around the world for over fifty years. His in-depth explorations and imagery of Japan, which he first visited in 1987, stand out as perhaps his most distinguished and well-known works.
“On my first visit to Japan, I was blown away by the aesthetics, the spiritual and religious aspects, the curiosity of the people, their friendliness and generosity,” Kenna says. “Later, I went to Northern Hokkaido in the middle of winter, and it looked to me like a stark sumi-e ink painting, a white canvas with Kanji characters marked on it. I’ve been in love with the place ever since.”
The exhibition will run at Daikanyama Hillside Terrace, Shibuya City, Tokyo from April 17 - May 5, with a public book-signing April 20; at Peter Fetterman Gallery in Santa Monica from April 27 to June 20, with a public book-signing on May 11; and at Asia House, New Cavendish Street in London from September 24 - October 20, with a public book-signing on September 28. Full details and opening times are below in notes. An exhibition website is also available.
JAPAN / A LOVE STORY is sponsored by global media companies, Nikkei and Financial Times. It is presented by them in partnership with Peter Fetterman Gallery.
Introducing the project, Naotoshi Okada, Chairman of Nikkei and John Ridding, CEO of Financial Times write: “Nikkei and the FT, who forged a global partnership in 2015, are best known for business journalism. But we also share a long-standing commitment to culture and the arts, understanding their importance to vibrant societies and recognising that our readers have passions well beyond their professions. We hope people will enjoy the breadth, depth and beauty of this exhibition.”
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For more information please contact:
TOKYO
Public Relations Office (Youth Planning Center): mk-japan2024@ypcpr.com, +81 3-6826-8853
LOS ANGELES
Rhonda Taylor, Financial Times, rhonda.taylor@ft.com, +1 646 901 0140
Kate Stevens, Peter Fetterman Gallery, kate@peterfetterman.com, +44 7766 684300
Antonia Stoyanovich, (Los Angeles), antonia@peterfetterman.com, +1 310 453 6463
LONDON
Poppy Cooper, Financial Times, poppy.cooper@ft.com, +44 7395 347024
Kate Stevens, Peter Fetterman Gallery, kate@peterfetterman.com, +44 7766 684300
About Michael Kenna
Born in Widnes, Lancashire, England in 1953, Kenna currently lives with his family in Seattle, Washington, USA, and continues to photograph and exhibit around the world.
His mysterious photographs, often made at dawn or in the dark hours of night, concentrate primarily on the interaction between the natural landscape and human-made structures. Kenna is both a diurnal and nocturnal photographer, fascinated by times of day when light is at its most pliant. With long time-exposures, which might last throughout the night, his photographs often record details that the human eye is not able to perceive.
Kenna is particularly well-known for the intimate scale of his photography and his meticulous personal printing style. He works in the traditional, non-digital, silver photographic medium. His exquisitely hand crafted black and white prints, which he makes in his own darkroom, reflect a sense of refinement, respect for history, and thorough originality.
During Kenna’s fifty-year career, his photographs have been shown in almost a thousand one-person and group gallery and museum exhibitions throughout the world, and are included in over a hundred permanent institutional collections, including; The Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris; The Metropolitan Museum of Photography, Tokyo; The National Gallery, Washington, D.C.; The Shanghai Art Museum, Shanghai; and The Victoria and Albert Museum, London
About the Financial Times
The Financial Times is one of the world’s leading business news organisations, recognised internationally for its authority, integrity and accuracy. The FT has a record paying readership of 1.2 million, more than one million of which are digital subscriptions. It is part of Nikkei Inc., which provides a broad range of information, news and services for the global business community.