While photography inherently gives the impression of being “real” or “existing in reality,” the essence of monochrome photography lies in creating scenes that do not actually exist. Through this abstraction, the universal characteristics and emotions of the subject are emphasized, bringing out a deeper sense of reality. If color photography can evoke individual emotions and meanings as realism, monochrome photography can be said to enable a universal empathy not influenced by color.

In summary, monochrome photography opens up new visual and emotional dimensions by stripping away color from reality and achieving a unique balance between reality and unreality. It is one of the methods that appeals to human perception and emotions, a means to explore the world “beyond of the surface” of the photograph.

Naoki Kimura

Featured picture Hikari.

Literary Revelations is thrilled to bring you an interview with a fabulous Japanese photographer whose artistic endeavors have received high recognition: Naoki Kimura. In this interview you will discover a true artist. Please stay with us until the end. You will not regret. Thank you.

Naoki Kimura is the author of the book Nagi (Shinnihon Publishing) and the recipient of numerous international awards.

Please read more about his work and his bio HERE.

Now let’s go to the interview.

Gabriela Marie Milton: Naoki-san, I am honored and humbled you accepted my request for an interview. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.  From our correspondence you know very well how much I admire your art, and how much your black and white photography means to me. Yet, to start, let’s talk first about your decision to become an artist, a photographer. I want you to return to a time when you were 15 years old, and you were walking the streets of Nishijin, Kyoto, Japan a place which by some kind of miraculous coincidence I visited. Please, tell our readers how you, the 15-year-old boy felt, and what made you decide to become a photographer.

Naoki Kimura – The catalyst for my journey into photography began shortly after I entered my first year of high school (in Japan, the school year starts in April, not September). It was a time when cherry blossoms had fallen, making way for fresh greenery. I was  strolling through the city when I happened to notice a sign for a group photo exhibition.

My memory of the event is somewhat vague, but I believe it was a small gallery located on the second floor of a building. It was indeed a group photography exhibition, and what stood out most in my memory was that nearly all the works were monochrome. As it was my first experience attending a gallery exhibition, I remember nervously stepping into the entrance. The space was minimalistic, with three white walls forming a simple rectangular studio-like area. There were around 30 photographs displayed in a single row, ranging in size might be from 8×10 to about 11×14 inches. Unfortunately, I can’t recall all the works now, but one image caught my attention. It was a scene of an old-style red (should be) Japanese mailbox, set against a strong yet graceful evening sunbeam casting its shadow. It was a breathtaking moment, and that image captured my heart.  I don’t remember the artist’s name or the title of the piece. Furthermore, I’m not entirely sure why it left such an impression on me, but I believe it was the power of expression through “photography” itself that resonated with me.

There was an atmosphere that seemed to convey something profound, even though it was just an ordinary mailbox. While I was writing my name in the guestbook, I absentmindedly glanced around the exhibition space and realized something remarkable. There were about ten or so attendees, and I hadn’t heard a single conversation among them. It was silent, and then it dawned on me—they were all communicating in sign language. It was at that moment that I realized the exhibition was showcasing the works of “deaf, hearing-impaired” individuals.

Could it be that these individuals, who lacked one of the five senses, had woven a unique kind of “power” into their creations? My young and inexperienced sensibilities began to sense the strength of human emotions and the potential of photography as a means of expression. I became deeply intrigued by the art of photography. Photography is a way to convey the world as seen through one’s own eyes to others. As a photographer, I wanted to capture my perspective and emotions through photography, and through that, share the beauty and emotions of those moments with others. It was these feelings and innate “awareness” that led me into the world of “photography.”

Gabriela Marie Milton – Let’s go to the substance of your work. Please talk to me about the time you spent in Europe, particularly your study of the Renaissance period. Looking back now how did that period influence your work? How does the art of that time reflect in your work?

Naoki Kimura – In a somewhat paradoxical manner, my involvement in Renaissance-era background and symbolism during my student days could be seen as a journey to discover the essence of my own “photographic works.” It wasn’t a matter of having a specific trigger or connection to Western culture or European art since I was born and raised in Japan. Instead, it was more like a childhood sense of aesthetics that drew me towards Renaissance paintings.

To put it somewhat boldly, it felt like memories from a past life. My father was stationed in Europe and the United States since when I was born, so even while in Japan, I had easy access to Western culture. There were art catalogs from renowned museums around the world at home, and I distinctly remember leisurely flipping through them. Undoubtedly, such experiences had some influence on me. As I delved deeper into art history, I encountered the field of “Iconology,” and it led me to perceive a paradox between my artistic style at the time and my background. Iconology seeks to decode the impressions and meanings inherent in artworks and images, and it is a crucial factor not only in art but also in the realm of “photography.” Photographers believe that they can convey meaning and emotions through composition and the arrangement of elements. Moreover, Renaissance paintings and sculptures often depict religious themes and narratives and studying them could provide insights into the messages and stories within those works.

Similarly, during that period, I sought clues from the Renaissance approach when trying to express specific themes or stories through photography. However, as I mentioned at the outset, a kind of “paradox” confronted me. It was a struggle to reconcile the idea that while I experimented with compositions, symbols, and the meanings they conveyed intellectually, my work didn’t feel authentic unless it was driven primarily by “sensitivity.” Pressing the shutter—this act indeed, when grounded in a contextual flow, could trigger a concept, but I realized it didn’t resonate with my personal style. Not all of a sudden, but in truth, I came to recognize that something akin to a revelation, something close to divine inspiration, was guiding the shutter to produce what I consider to be a kind of masterpiece of mine. So, for instance, I dabbled in academic research, but it didn’t lead me to a style rooted in that research. Instead, I ended up expressing myself in a style that sometimes seemed contrary to it—a somewhat comical tale, I must admit. It’s simply that a profoundly abstract atmosphere touched a natural chord within me. This, I believe, was one of the characteristics of my “Renaissance period.” I returned to the fundamental notion that beauty doesn’t always require explanation.

Gabriela Marie Milton – Let’s go now from what I call “Naoki Kimura’s Renaissance Period” to “Naoki Kimura’s Japanese period,” a period very present in your work today; a period in which the Japanese motifs are flourishing. Why did you “return home,” so to speak? And how do the beauty and the power of your native culture reflect in your work today?

Naoki Kimura – In a way, my several decades of venturing to the United States with an intention to explore, and on the other hands seeking my aspirations in Europe, particularly Italy, now feels like a period that was akin to “training or ascetic practices” for me. Looking back, I realize that I always subconsciously viewed myself as a perpetual work in progress, especially when it came to being an artist working in Europe and the United States. Additionally, during that time, I deliberately chose not to foreground my “Japanese” identity in my approach.

Around the time that approximately three decades had passed, I had a certain feeling—I can’t explain it clearly, but it was as if the “timing had ripened.” It felt somewhat like a natural progression, as if stalactites slowly and patiently bridged the gap between heaven and earth, following a single current. It was a decision that finally led me to embrace my nationality and identity as “Japanese,” the roots and core of my personality, and the source of my cultural foundation and strength.

However, this shift in embracing my nationalism as Japanese didn’t bring about changes in the influence on my work or the evolution of my concepts. While there are clear differences in the photographic subjects, the underlying concept remains consistent. It’s my dedication or, to put it differently, a desire to express the fluctuations of sensitivity, almost like an “intangible affection or dilemma” You could even call it “Mono no Aware,” It is an instinctive search for beauty that cannot be explained in the context of contemporary art, which can be considered abstract. At present, it cannot be called “conceptual art”.

Perhaps it could be explained within the context, deriving from the concept of “Marginal Art” itself, but I see it as a more primitive pursuit, guided by innate desires. As for the motif, the representation of “Nagi, -Lull-” which flows continuously within me from the Renaissance period to my time in Japan, captures the essence of this pursuit.

Throughout my growth from childhood, I carried within me a unique Japanese sensibility, such as “Mono no Aware,” “Wabi,” and “Sabi,” which I should have inherently experienced. I initially attempted to capture the legacy of the Renaissance period through this sensibility. Later, I applied this sensibility to digest foreign cultures. This journey led me to a turning point where I felt compelled to, once again, entrust a part of myself to the light and winds of my homeland.

Gabriela Marie Milton – Let’s dig deeper into your work. Why black and white? I remember I wrote to you once that by choosing black and white, you create a new reality. The Renaissance in black and white is different from how the real Renaissance looked. Most people who visit Greece today believe that white (yellowish, grayish) and blue are the colors that dominated Ancient Greece. That is not true. The temples and statues were colored. Time transformed Greece. By choosing only black and white you transform reality. Why only black and white Naoki-san?

Naoki Kimura – The reason I specialize in monochrome photography is not to reject natural colors but because the contrast between the realism inherent in color representation and the unreality woven by monochrome expression resonates as an approach to human “imagination” and “sensitivity.” Monochrome photography tends to focus on the essence of the subject and express it in an abstract form.

While photography inherently gives the impression of being “real” or “existing in reality,” the essence of monochrome photography lies in creating scenes that do not actually exist. Through this abstraction, the universal characteristics and emotions of the subject are emphasized, bringing out a deeper sense of reality. If color photography can evoke individual emotions and meanings as realism, monochrome photography can be said to enable a universal empathy not influenced by color.

In summary, monochrome photography opens up new visual and emotional dimensions by stripping away color from reality and achieving a unique balance between reality and unreality. It is one of the methods that appeals to human perception and emotions, a means to explore the world “beyond of the surface” of the photograph.

Monochrome photography also has the characteristic of conveying a sense of the passage of time beyond capturing a “moment.” Of course, the same can be said for color photography, but the limited information in monochrome photos allows for even more freedom, making it a factor that can appeal to people’s concepts. In simpler terms, it might be a process of presenting a connection to the viewer’s “unique individual thoughts” and “nostalgia”.

While easy to understand, it is also easy to induce a directionality of thought, and I believe that “Black and White photographs”, which are less informative due to the lack of color, are more easily associated with concepts within the individual.

 This may lead to the cultivation of deep emotions and a sense of symbolism, even though the imagery is unrealistic. By eliminating color information, we can emphasize the symbolic aspects of the subject, and in a state liberated from the influence of color, shapes, structures, and contrasts become sharper. When this happens, the symbolic meaning of the photograph emerges, approaching what I seek, which is akin to the concept of “Yuragi”(fluctuation) or “Nagi.”(Lull-calm)

I believe that there is a faint affinity between the infinite tonal range and the flow of time in “black and white.”

Gabriela Marie Milton – Please choose two of your favorite photographs and talk to me about them.

Naoki Kimura

At the top of the still chilly hill, 
Cherry trees in full bloom stand as if in love with their ancient glory.
A single breeze that passes through is stopped.
Bloom has been lulled.

It is said that there was a time of darkness when people feared evil spirits of rivers and mountains and turned to God.

”The dawn of the Renaissance, when humanity was restored.”

The fantastic accompaniment of the choir would have praised the freedom of the people. The dull glow of metal lies dormant behind a strict guard.

I wonder if the organ is still there with the same feeling.

The low, heavy sound of a car passing by outside. Only one pipe seemed to resonate.

I watched the faintly colored light of the sun shining through the window. I waited for the echo once more.

A slight tremble brought in the calm.

I wondered what it would praise for …now.

Gabriela Marie Milton Naoki-san, thank you again for this interview. Literary Revelations is thrilled to feature you and your magnificent art again. Anything else you would like to tell our readers? Anything else we should know about your work?

Naoki Kimura – I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude for taking the time to interview me. It has been an enriching experience to delve into your valuable insights and opinions, Gabriela-san.  This interview has provided me with a fresh perspective, stimulating my thinking and creative endeavors. It has also given me the opportunity to reflect objectively on myself. 

I am truly thankful for the consideration and support of “Literary Revelations” and of you Gabriela-san.

I would also like to extend my gratitude to the readers. I hope that my work reaches your hearts and inspires them. While my creations are shared through the medium of photography, your reception and interpretation add new depths to them. I hope that we can continue to explore new worlds together through my artwork.

With heartfelt appreciation,

And now, I would like to share a little about my work with all of you.

My work is an exploration of the ancient Japanese sentiment known as “Mono no aware” or the appreciation of the transience of things. This concept underlies all of my creations. Through the concept I refer to as “Yuragi ≒ Nagi (Fluctuation ≒ Lull)”, I aim to evoke empathy and resonance. Beyond visual perception, my work also seeks to connect with the emotional aspects through the material elements of original prints.

Thank you once again for this opportunity.

Gabriela Marie Milton – The pleasure is all mine, Naoki-san.

Works by Naoki Kimura