About Book

写真集より

世界を透明に見通すには、
目を瞑ることを恐れてはならない。
世界は透明な帯で保たれているのだ。
すなわち風の河。
その結び目に高峰や大河があり、
目には映らない日さえある。
だから僕たちは、
透明な帯の端を決して手放してはならない。

津田直

At first glance, "SMOKE LINE" appears to be a simple book of landscape photographs, albeit with the twist that each spread consists of two photographs which combine to create a panorama effect. The field of vision of these pairs usually overlaps, perhaps mimicking the way that human eyes take in visual information. The content of Tsuda's landscapes ranges from meadows to foggy mountains to the desert. The last half of the book, though, begins to hint at the experience behind this work: we see a shaman, some people sitting in a stone dwelling, a man in a turban. In his text following the photographs, Tsuda explains that these photos were taken in remote areas China, Morocco and Mongolia. He feels that there is a kind of "wind belt" encompassing the globe, which unites regions of the world. He goes on to describe his almost mystical encounters with the people who guided him through these places far from modern civilization. In this way, "SMOKE LINE" becomes less a book of "landscape photography" and more of a mysterious travelogue.

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Artist Information

津田直｜Nao Tsuda > HP

写真家。2001年より『遠くの近く』を発表、続く2002年からは『近づく』と題された新作で大阪、東京、横浜で個展を中心に多数の作品を発表。 自然を捉える視線のユニークさと写真と時間の関係という古くて新しいテーマへの真摯な取り組みで、 21世紀の新たな風景表現の潮流を切り開く新進の写真作家として注目されている。 湖、山肌、雲霧などの対象物を一見それとはわからない距離やアングルで撮影したその作品は、写真では体験できないものをいかに写し取るかという、写真の限界に挑む試みでもある。 また最近では、ギャラリーの外へも活躍の場を拡げ、美術館での企画展への参加も続いている。作品集には「近づく」(hiromi yoshii発行)。 2007年秋には近年日本家屋にて開催された個展『漕ぎだし』から作品集「漕」を主水書房より出版。 2008年は5月N.Y.での個展をはじめ、11月に資生堂ギャラリーにて個展、Paris Photoへ参加。また最新の作品集「SMOKE LINE」は赤々舍より出版。

Nao Tsuda is a photographer who has been showing his landscape photographs since 2001. The main series of works include, "Coming Closer"(2001-2004), "Kogi"(2005-2009), "SMOKE LINE"(2008) and "Rera Faraway"(2009). Number of works from these series have been shown internationally. With his unique view toward nature and his sincere approach to a timeless theme: the relationship between photography and time, Tsuda is spotlighted as a cutting-edge, who is cultivating a new trend of the landscape photography in 21st century. He photographs objects, such as lakes, surface of mountains, cloudy fogs, winds and paths of the moon from hardly distinguishable distances or angles in an effort to break out of, or beyond the limit of photographic expression. In recent years, Tsuda has been actively showing his works not only at galleries, but also in solo and group exhibitions at museums. In 2010, Tsuda won the Minister of Educational Award for New Artist in Fine Arts. His publications include "Kogi" (MONDE BOOKS), "SMOKE LINE"(AKAAKA) and "Coming Closer"(AKAAKA+hiromiyoshii). The latest photography book, "Storm Last Night"(AKAAKA), is a collection of photographs from his trips to Ireland, where people worshipped the scenery in ancient times.