The Age of Extremists

A documentary photobook by Kazuo Kitai, shot from within the student movement, which was labeled as "extremist."

This book is a collection of photographs carefully re-selected and compiled by Kitai himself, taken over five years from 1964 to 1968, while he was involved in student movements such as Zengakuren and Zenkyoto. It includes scenes that shook Japan during the period of rapid economic growth, such as demonstrations to prevent the docking of US nuclear submarines, protests against the Japan-Korea talks, anti-Vietnam War movements, the 10.8 Haneda struggle, the Sanrizuka struggle, and university barricades.

A major feature of this book is that it is not a record taken from an external perspective, but rather photographs taken "as one of them." It captures not only the exhilaration of demonstrations and rallies, but also the expressions and fatigue of comrades, the atmosphere during waiting times, and even the daily life surrounding the movement.

At the time, Kitai repeatedly moved to avoid police pursuit, continually hiding negatives and contact prints. This book includes photographs that have been digitally remastered with high precision and revived after half a century, including contact prints left in his sketchbook.

This work can be called the origin of Kazuo Kitai, who later became known for "Mura e" and "Itsuka Mita Fukei," and is a valuable record for considering the history of post-war Japanese photography and the history of social movements in the 1960s.

[Title] The Age of Extremists
[Publisher] Sapporo Miyanomori Art Museum / Published, Heibonsha / Distributed
[Publication Date] October 21, 2020
[Page Count] 224 pages
[Size] Approx. 150*210*21mm / 520g
[Format] Softcover
[Language] Japanese, English
[Title Reading] KAGEKIHA NO JIDAI
[Author/Editor, etc.] Kazuo Kitai / Author, Maria Kubota / Design
[Printing] Nippon Printing Communications / Printing & Binding
[ISBN] 9784582278330
[Condition] Used [9] Excellent
[Accessories] None
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Kazuo Kitai (Kitai Kazuo) 1944-

Born in Anshan, China (former Manchukuo). Photographer.
In 1965, while studying in the photography department at Nihon University College of Art, he self-published the photobook "Resistance." In the late 1960s, he recorded student movements and the Sanrizuka struggle from within, attracting attention as a prominent figure in Japanese documentary photography.

From the 1970s onward, he published works such as "To the Village," "Ferryboat," "Landscape I Once Saw," and "Funabashi Story." He turned his gaze to disappearing rural landscapes, local life, and the daily lives of new residential areas, continuously documenting the changes in Japanese life and landscape.

Representative works include "Resistance," "Sanrizuka," "To the Village," "Landscape I Once Saw," "Funabashi Story," and "Road."

Major awards include the Photographic Society of Japan Newcomer's Award (1972), the 1st Kimura Ihei Award for Photography (1976), and the Photographic Society of Japan Artist's Award (2013).

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