Japanese Literary Awards

← Back to Home

Yoshikazu Shirakawa

しらかわ よしかず

Shirakawa Yoshikazu

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1935-01-28 （Kinsei Village, Uma District, Ehime Prefecture (now Shikoku-Chuo City), Japan）
Died
2022-04-05 （Unknown） age 87
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese

Career

Occupations
Photographer
Active Years
1962-2022
Influenced By
the sunrise of the Matterhorn, interest in primordial landscapes and sacred sites

Education

Nihon University, College of Art
College of Art / Department of Photography
Year of Graduation: 1957
Country: Japan

Awards

Mainichi Art Award (13th)
1972
Organization: Mainichi Newspapers
Result: 受賞
Arts Encouragement Award — Minister of Education (22nd)
1972
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs
Result: 受賞
Highest Photographer Award (American Photographers Association)
1981
Organization: American Photographers Association
Result: 受賞
Japan Art Grand Prize (27th)
1995
Organization: Japan Art Grand Prize
Result: 受賞
Order of the Purple Ribbon
1999
Organization: Government of Japan
Result: 受章

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Alps

1969 Photography

A photobook of the European Alps, noted for its use of color and light.

mountainsnaturelight and landscape
Translations
  • Published in English and other language editions

World's 100 Famous Mountains

2000 Photobook / Photography project

A large-scale project started in 1996 to photograph mountains worldwide, culminating in a photobook selecting 100 peaks.

mountain landscapessacred sitesaerial photography
Adaptations
  • [TV program] Photographer Yoshikazu Shirakawa: Taking on the World's 100 Mountains (2001)
Translations
  • Published in English and other languages

Eternal Japan

2012 Photobook

A series photographing Japan's primordial landscapes and sacred sites, exploring the theme of Japan's timelessness.

Japanese landscapessacred sitescultural heritage

Bibliography

  • White Mountains (1960)
  • Alps (1969)
  • Himalaya (1971)
  • The American Continent (1975)
  • Antarctica (1994)
  • World's 100 Famous Mountains I–III (2000–2002)
  • World's 100 Famous Waterfalls (2007)
  • Eternal Japan (2012)
  • THE EARTH (2020)

Adaptations

  • NHK special documentary programs
  • UN Postal administration commemorative stamps (photographs used)

Translations of Works

  • Alps (English and other language editions)
  • World's 100 Famous Mountains (English and other editions)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Focuses on grand landscapes and the expression of lightPursued both monochrome and color photography
Recurring Motifs
mountainssacred sitessunrise and sunsetaerial photography

Health

  • cerebral infarction
    2022年（死去）
    caused his death

Legacy

Yoshikazu Shirakawa was a photographer renowned for documenting mountains and sacred sites around the world. Through large projects such as 'World's 100 Famous Mountains' he earned international recognition; his photographs appeared on UN commemorative stamps and were widely presented in documentaries and books.

Archives

  • NHK Archives
  • Official website archive of Yoshikazu Shirakawa
  • Shogakukan publication archives

In Popular Culture

  • Related documentary programs broadcast by NHK
  • Photographs used in UN Postal commemorative stamps

Quotes

  • For the restoration of humanity through rediscovery of the Earth
    Source: Official profile / theme of his works

Trivia

  • Twelve photographs from 'World's 100 Famous Mountains' were issued as UN Postal commemorative stamps.
  • He won a copyright lawsuit in 1971 regarding a parody/montage photograph case.
  • He undertook long-term photographic expeditions, including to Antarctica.