Silent Existence

Japan has been suffering from the aftermath of the tremendous Earthquake and Tsunami that devastated vast areas in North Eastern Japan on March 11, 2011. The disaster was an immense shock to the nation, and the quake and tsunami laid waste to whole towns and villages along the Pacific coast. Over the years, I have been working with Japan as the theme of my art, investigating pathos in relation to historical, social, and economic issues involving industrialization and urban and social development. I regard the 311 disasters as a new page in Japanese postwar history. It was only natural for me to visit the Tsunami affected area not only to face the reality but also to see how I would personally relate to the events. Confronted with the face of the devastated landscape I fell into silence. There was only my existence. Seeing birds flying in unprecedented devastation at dusk, the breeze of the sea wind and odd pungent smells suspended me into contemplation of the complexity between human existence and nature. Amid chaos, I began to seek commemoration and the beauty of things as if it was a spiritual practice. I was drawn towards the idea that beauty could be the way to reach the truth. Through the practice, I pursue my beliefs and identity rather than simple facts that are black or white. Although I am continually looking for the truth, there is a feeling within me that believes that a single truth does not exist. These photographs attempt to portray only one version, but by doing so, I strive to bring out other truths that may lie within humans and nature.

Tetsugo Hyakutake was born in Japan. In 2003 Hyakutake moved to Philadelphia and graduated from the University of the Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography, receiving the Promising Artist Award and Society for Photographic Education Mid-Atlantic Region Scholarship Award. In 2009, Hyakutake obtained a Master's Degree of Fine Arts from the University of Pennsylvania where he was awarded a Toby Devan Lewis Fellowship. His work has been exhibited in Tokyo, Philadelphia, New York, Madrid, and he is currently represented by Gallery339 in Philadelphia, and Alan Klotz Gallery in New York.