December 7, 1932
Gelatin silver print
9 1/2 in x 13 in
Mead Art Museum, Amherst College
AC 2014.49
Museum purchase with gift of funds from Scott H. Nagle (Class of 1985) in honor of Samuel C. Morse, Howard M. and Martha P. Mitchell Professor of the History of Art and Asian Languages and Civilizations, and the Richard Templeton (Class of 1931) Photography Fund

Initially, Kageyama Kōyō’s view of the city of Tokyo is one of urban beauty; the two figures standing on top of a building gaze over the twinkling lights of the street below. Having been completely rebuilt, this is an entirely new city, a city of the future. Ginza is a main thoroughfare for cafes, shops, bars, and restaurants. However, there are hints of a less ideal aspect of the city on the horizon line; we see the silhouettes of the smoking towers of the factories which supply the city. Kageyama offers us a view of the city of Tokyo after the Great Kanto Earthquake. The use of a slow shutter speed captures bright streaks of light from vehicle headlights. Normally invisible to the eye, these lines of light demonstrate how the camera allows us to experience time’s passing when visually depicted by traveling light. Meanwhile, as the light streaks across our field of view, the two figures stand seemingly frozen in time. Kageyama Kōyō captures a contemplative moment, underscoring the sublimity of standing above a cityscape and accepting humanity’s built environment.

-Ashley Williams and Elizabeth Gouin


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