Showa by Bischof – Japan Was Not Japan Then
Tokyo, Japan — Leica Camera Japan is pleased to announce the opening of Showa by Bischof – Japan Was Not Japan Then, a major exhibition marking the centenary of the Showa era. The show offers a rare opportunity to revisit a pivotal moment in Japan’s modern history — the years of postwar occupation — when, as Werner Bischof observed, “Japan was not Japan.”
Swiss photographer Werner Bischof, a member of Magnum Photos, spent ten months in Occupied Japan between 1951 and 1952. Initially assigned to Magnum’s global “Generation X” project, he soon became deeply immersed in the country’s landscape of cultural resilience and rapid transformation. His photographs reveal a Japan negotiating between continuity and change: traditional practices such as visits to Meiji Shrine, tea ceremonies, and Bunraku theater coexist with the growing influence of American culture.
During his stay, Bischof developed a close friendship with celebrated Japanese photographer Ihei Kimura. In his memoir Me and Leica, Kimura recalls that the two became “like brothers,” and notes that Bischof’s images “were widely published and contributed greatly to Japanese photography.”
Works such as Meiji Shrine, 1951 and Ginza, 1951 stand as iconic visual testimonies to a country redefining itself — a moment when, in Bischof’s own words, “Japan was not Japan.”
About the Author
Werner Bischof (1916-1954) grew up between Switzerland and Germany, encouraged early on by his father’s interest in photography. He trained at the Zurich School of Applied Arts under Hans Finsler, a key figure of the Bauhaus movement, and soon opened his own studio, producing fashion, advertising, and abstract work for major clients and cultural institutions. After a brief attempt to pursue painting in Paris and a period of military service, he joined the magazine Du, where his studio practice developed into ambitious photo essays and early experiments in visual storytelling.
His shift to documentary photography began with extensive assignments across post-war Europe for Swiss Relief, taking him through Western and Eastern Europe and helping him refine the humanistic perspective that would define his work. His growing reputation led him to join Magnum Photos, where he contributed to major international magazines while continuing to travel widely.
Bischof’s career expanded globally with a landmark report on famine in India for Life, followed by a year in Japan and further assignments in Korea and Okinawa. He then worked as a correspondent for Paris Match in Indochina, producing some of his most celebrated images. After returning to Switzerland to prepare an exhibition and publication on his Asian work, he embarked on an extensive project in the Americas, documenting landscapes and infrastructure from the United States to South America.
Bischof’s life and career ended tragically during an assignment in Peru, but his legacy endures as one of the most refined, empathetic, and influential voices in post-war photography.
Showa by Bischof – Japan Was Not Japan Then
5 December 2025 – 3 March 2026
Leica Gallery Omotesando – Tokyo – Japan
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