Like their counterparts around the world, Japanese women photographers ¡°share a long tradition of being ignored,¡± either because they are overlooked, deliberately excluded or stuck in a Catch-22 of catering to a patriarchal industry that ultimately dismisses them as too sexual, ¡°amateurish¡± or feminine.
This is noted in ¡°I¡¯m So Happy You Are Here: Japanese Women Photographers from the 1950s to Now,¡± in the documented history of women¡¯s contributions to postwar Japanese photography. Published by Aperture, the legendary photography publisher with more than 60 years of history, ¡°I¡¯m So Happy You Are Here¡± launched last summer at the French photography festival Rencontres d¡¯Arles. ¡°¡± a concise but illuminating show complementing the book, was a highlight of this year¡¯s T3 Photo Festival that wrapped up on Oct. 27. A larger, touring exhibition is also in July 2026.
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