Miyako Ishiuchi facts for kids

Miyako Ishiuchi (石内 都, Ishiuchi Miyako, born March 27, 1947) is a famous Japanese photographer.

In 2005, she showed her work for Japan at a big art show called the Venice Biennale. In 2014, she won a very important prize for photography, the Hasselblad Award. She was only the third Japanese photographer to ever win it!

Her photos are kept in famous museums around the world, like the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles.

Life of a Photographer

Ishiuchi was born on March 27, 1947, in Nitta District, Gunma, Japan. She grew up in Yokosuka, Kanagawa, a city with a large naval base. She stayed there until she was 19 years old.

Ishiuchi once said that her time in Yokosuka greatly influenced her. She felt that the "scars of adolescence" she got there became a starting point for her photography.

She began taking pictures around the same time as other famous Japanese photographers. These artists were exploring new ways to use photography after World War II. They often focused on the feelings and changes happening in Japan.

Early Work and Awards

Ishiuchi has created many photo collections since the late 1970s. Her very first series of photos was called Yokosuka Stories (1976–1977). It showed the city where she grew up.

In 1976, Ishiuchi helped organize an art show called Hyakka Ryoran. It was special because it featured only women photographers. In 1979, she won the Kimura Ihei Award for her photo album APARTMENT. This award is a big honor in Japanese photography.

Her Unique Style

Ishiuchi's photos often have a special look. She likes large, grainy prints and subjects that feel a bit rough or real. This style was popular with many photographers in the late 1960s and 1970s. They preferred pictures that were "are-bure," meaning grainy and blurry.

In the early 1990s, she started taking close-up pictures of very old people's bodies. More recently, her photos have explored ideas about skin, clothing, and time.

Special Photo Projects

• Hiroshima (2008): In this series, she photographed clothes that belonged to victims of the atomic bombing in Hiroshima.
• Frida: Love and Pain (2012): The Frida Kahlo Museum in Mexico City invited her to photograph items that belonged to the famous artist Frida Kahlo. These included corsets, clothes, shoes, and jewelry.
• Recent Exhibitions: In 2022, she had her first show in Scotland. It featured photos from her series Mother's, Hiroshima, and Frida.

Exhibitions and Shows

Miyako Ishiuchi's work has been shown in many places around the world.

Solo Exhibitions

These are shows where only her work is displayed:

• Ishiuchi Miyako: Postwar Shadows, Getty Center, Los Angeles, CA (2015–2016). This show looked back at her whole career.
• Grain and Shadow, Yokohama Museum of Art, Yokohama, Japan (2017–2018). Another show that covered her past work.
• Ishiuchi Miyako, Stills, Edinburgh, Scotland (2022).

Group Exhibitions

These are shows where her work is displayed alongside other artists:

• 1994: Japanese Art After 1945: Scream Against the Sky, Guggenheim Museum, New York
• 2005: Venice Biennale
• 2016–2017: Japanese Photography from Postwar to Now, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco

Awards and Honors

Miyako Ishiuchi has received many important awards for her photography:

• 1979: Kimura Ihei Award
• 1999: Higashikawa Prize, Domestic Photographer Prize
• 1999: Society of Photography Award
• 2006: Photographic Society of Japan
• 2009: Mainichi Art Award
• 2013: Medal of Honor, Purple Ribbon
• 2014: Hasselblad Award, Hasselblad Foundation

Museum Collections

Ishiuchi's photographs are kept in these public collections:

• Museum of Modern Art, New York
• J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
• San Francisco Museum of Modern Art