Photographer Kimura Ihei was born on December 12, 1901, in Shitaya, Tokyo. He passed away on May 31, 1974.
After learning photography techniques while living in Taiwan, he returned to Japan and opened a photo studio in Nippori. Kimura was known as a Leica expert, but it wasn't until 1929 that he first encountered the camera. He decided to buy one after seeing the Graf Zeppelin's captain, Hugo Eckener, wearing one around his neck when the airship landed at Lake Kasumigaura.
After joining the advertising department of Kao Soap in 1930, Kimura began working on numerous advertising photographs. His portraits of women were particularly well-received. Taking advantage of the Leica's mobility, he captured the subject's fleeting expression, and his intentionally shallow focus brought out the woman's charm to the fullest. He also took numerous street snapshots, his swift movements never missing a shutter opportunity so adroit they were likened to the art of iaijutsu.
In 1933, he founded the photo agency "Nihon Kobo" and expanded his activities to include photojournalism. With the outbreak of World War II, he joined the Photographic Association, which was under the Cabinet Intelligence Bureau. After the war, he became the first president of the Japan Professional Photographers Society and mentored amateur photographers. Meanwhile, after serving as a judge at a photo exhibition held in Akita Prefecture in 1952, Kimura fell in love with the people and nature there and returned to the area frequently on photography trips. One of the photographs taken during this time would later become Kimura's signature work, "Obako." This photograph, used for the cover of his photo collection "Akita," skillfully captures the refined features and elegant expression of a woman working in a rural area with Kimura's signature composition.
Afterwards, Kimura became a representative photographer of the Showa era, serving in various roles including permanent director of the Japan-China Cultural Exchange Association and advisor to the Japan Realism Photography Group. After his death in 1974, the Kimura Ihei Award was established in his honor. This award is given to new photographers, and has sent many famous photographers out into the world. In 2003, Asahi Shimbun Publishing published a collection of essays titled "Leica and Me," which includes 59 of his representative works.
