The exhibition in Trieste aims to bring together three themes – Memory and Identity, Body and Bodies, Reality and Vision – a collection of works by contemporary Japanese artists who, through the use of images, offer a broad overview of the current Japanese photography and video scene, from dialogue with the masters to the research of new generations committed to reinterpreting Japan’s recent history, questioning issues of gender and everyday life, and sometimes using the body as a political medium.

‘Recognised since the 1930s as one of the most important photographic schools internationally, establishing itself in the early years of the third millennium with artists such as Hiroshi Sugimoto, Nobusyoshi Araki, Daido Moriyama and others, contemporary Japanese photography – observes curator Filippo Maggia – now seems to be opening up to interpretations that correspond to a generational renewal that is certainly closer to Western themes and issues.”

While 20th-century Japanese photography was long characterised by a strongly identity-based and self-referential language, today we are witnessing a significant change of direction: many young and established artists are taking as their reference point not only the complexity of their own country, but also global changes, constructing a close dialogue with Western themes such as gender issues, collective memory, social relations, the environment and the perception of images.