Protest, Shinjuku, Tokyo

© Estate of Shomei Tomatsu

Protest, Shinjuku, Tokyo

Currently not on view

Protest, Shinjuku, Tokyo,

1969, printed ca. 2000

Shōmei Tomatsu 東松照明, 1930–2012, born Nagoya, Japan; died Naha, Japan; active Tokyo, Japan, and Nagasaki, Japan
2000-302
In the 1960s, Japan experienced great civil unrest, sparked by opposition to the government’s signing of the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan. The agreement granted the United States the right to maintain a visible military presence in the country. Tomatsu’s Protest, Tokyo series captures students and onlookers crowding the streets of the city’s Shinjuku district to protest the government’s decision. This image is characteristic of Tomatsu’s high-contrast style, a quality that would inspire subsequent generations of Japanese photographers.

Information

Title
Protest, Shinjuku, Tokyo
Dates

1969, printed ca. 2000

Maker
Shōmei Tomatsu 東松照明
Medium
Gelatin silver print
Dimensions
image: 29.2 x 40 cm. (11 1/2 x 15 3/4 in.) sheet: 40.6 x 50.7 cm. (16 x 19 15/16 in.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase, gift of Duane Wilder, Class of 1951
Object Number
2000-302
Place Depicted

Asia, Japan, Tokyo

Inscription
Dated and signed in graphite, verso lower right corner: 1969 Tom
Culture
Japanese
Type
photographs, gelatin silver prints, black-and-white photographs
Techniques
gelatin silver process
Subject
protests, political events, students, streetscapes, figures (representations), night

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