Description:
A Japanese hare, winter white, dead in the snow. A traditional minka, thatched roof shedding summer rain. A silver-haired man gathering wood from the forest. In Otari - Pristine Peaks, Keiko Nomura documents life and ritual in mountainous far northwestern Japan. During a cycle of seasons around Otari Village, she photographs the landscape, the worship of spirits, hunting, cooking, growing food. In the tradition of the Tahiti paintings of Paul Gauguin, or Sabine: A Love Story by Jacob Aue Sobol, Nomura's pictures show not just a rural and remote place, and not just an exotic way of life, but a place and a way of life that for a time the artist has made their own."Nestled among the peaks of Japan's Northern Alps, small enclaves such as Otari village punctuate the foothills with faint signs of activity. Here villagers live with the flow of the seasons in the fertile, yet unforgiving foothills. It's been almost four years since my first visit to this mountain community, a place where snow can pile as… Read More
