Make it through a century to another, day after day, by photographing Kyoto.
From the years of freedom, counterculture and protest to the start of our uncertain times.
Kai Fusayoshi developed a style which is unique for it is out of its time, out of fashion, and yet precisely taking place in the daily life's current affairs of the city. He fashioned visual chronicles of Kyoto's small and big events. No one else is able to see this town the way he does. With tenderness. With gratitude. With a deep humanity knowing to recognize beauty wherever it is, that is to say in each corner of the city and at each moment of the alternating rhythm of the Japanese society, daytime and nightime.
For Kai, taking photos is like breathing. His practice is existential: at each moment, his poetic spirit is in alert. The click of the camera seems to come from an amazement in front of the unexpected things of life, where the beauty lies.
It's a wistful gaze, the eye of a poet on each shot, and therefore on each moment lived.

Curated by
Pascal Beausse　Head of the Photographic Collections at CNAP(National Center for Visual Arts), in Paris

KAI Fusayoshi 甲斐扶佐義

Kai Fusayoshi (Born 1949 in Oita pref. Japan) was the owner of the legendary coffee shop “Honyarado” which was lost four years ago in a fire. He also runs Bar “Hachimonjiya”, where various artists gather every night. He is a writer, and above all a photographer who loves Kyoto, which he continues to photograph to this day. He has often been invited to hold exhibitions in foreign galleries and has produced over 40 books. Still today, his desire to create art knows no bounds.

>KAIFUSAYOSHI.WEBSITE