Like their counterparts around the world, Japanese women photographers “share a long tradition of being ignored,” either because they are overlooked, deliberately excluded or stuck in a Catch-22 of catering to a patriarchal industry that ultimately dismisses them as too sexual, “amateurish” or feminine.
This is noted in “I’m So Happy You Are Here: Japanese Women Photographers from the 1950s to Now,” an anthology that seeks to fill a void in the documented history of women’s contributions to postwar Japanese photography. Published by Aperture, the legendary photography publisher with more than 60 years of history, “I’m So Happy You Are Here” launched last summer at the French photography festival Rencontres d’Arles. “Visions of Japanese Women Photographers Seen in Photobooks,” a concise but illuminating show complementing the book, was a highlight of this year's T3 Photo Festival that wrapped up on Oct. 27. A larger, touring exhibition is also coming to Shibuya Hikarie in July 2026.
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