Herbie Yamaguchi
Born in 1950, he suffered from spinal caries and spent most of his childhood in corset, which fortunately led him to the photo club in school where he found his lifetime passion. He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics before he left home for London in 1973, where he stayed for the next decade. In London, he joined the musical company “Red Buddha” led by Tsutomu Yamashita and performed on stage as an actor for a while. Soon he started to capture the days with his camera and kept a lively record of the development subculture movements, especially the punk scene in the 70’s London as he was inspired by his own experiences. Among his early works, his photographs of punk rock musicians such as Joe Strummer (The Clash) received high recognition. Once returned home to Tokyo, he kept visiting Europe to photograph hundreds of people, from artists to everyday people, which eventually became his precious collections of monochrome. His style is well-known for its delicacy and naturalness. Today he is one of the most celebrated photographers who have fans and admirers all over the world. His enthusiasm is not limited to photo collections and exhibitions: he also writes for magazines and appears on TV and radio. AWARD: Lifetime Achievement Award (Photographic Society of Japan Awards 2011)